UPDATE: DATES INDICATED FOR THE LOSS OF APPEAL RIGHTS / COMMENCEMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW

24 Oct 2016, 01 mins ago

The Home Office has indicated when it intends to phase in further reforms to the UK immigration appeals system (as per the Immigration Act 2014). These changes have already been phased in for applications made under the Tier 4 category. [see here]

As of 2 March 2015 it will no longer be possible to appeal a decision to refuse applications under the Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 5 categories. As of this date, the main remedy to challenge such refusals will be to request an Administrative Review of that decision by the decision-maker (the UK Home Office or UK Visas & Immigration at the decision-making post).

It is intended that, as of 2 March 2015, it will no longer be possible to appeal a decision to refuse applications under the Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 5 categories. Thereafter the main remedy to challenge such refusals would be to request an Administrative Review of that decision by the decision-maker (the UK Home Office or UK Visas & Immigration at the decision-making post).

For all other temporary migration and settlement applications it is indicated that appeal rights will be lost in April 2015. A specific date is yet to be announced.

200 Administrative Review cases have already been carried out for refusals of Tier 4 applications, 58% of which have been successful. The service standard for these Administrative Review requests is that a decision will be made within 28 days from receipt of the request.

A right of appeal will still be available where the Home Office has made a decision to refuse a protection or human rights claim, or against a decision of the Home Office to revoke a protection status. 

Judicial Review is still an option for challenging a refusal decision where the decision-maker’s decision was not made lawfully, i.e. the way in which the decision was made was not correct.