Welcome to episode 84 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. We again start with developments in asylum law before going to business immigration and the Hong Kong BNO visa which is now open for applications. There is also an interesting tribunal decision on long residence to go over and we end with a quick discussion of the hostile environment, giving me a chance to subtly plug my new academic article on the subject. If you would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and listening to this podcast, sign up here as a Free Movement member. There are now over 100 CPD hours of training materials available to members. You...

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Immigration update podcast, episode 84

In 2019, Roger Daltrey of The Who swore at a reporter who asked him about Brexit. “What’s it got to do with the rock business?”, the veteran singer scoffed. “As if we didn’t tour in Europe before the ******* EU”. The end of free movement for workers has a fair bit to do with the ******* EU. British artists are upset that the Brexit trade deal contained no meaningful replacement, leaving them to comb through European work permit laws country-by-country to work out where a visa is required. An open letter protesting to the government has been signed by over 100 stars, including Ed Sheeran, Elton John — and Roger...

Podcast: visa options for musicians touring the UK

Welcome to episode 84 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. We’re going over what happened in December 2020, which feels a bit like it was asylum month: we’ve got some very important changes to the Immigration Rules on claiming asylum and safe third countries; an interesting case on military service and refugee status; a big case on asylum accommodation delays; a report on the UK statelessness procedure; not one but two cases on the treatment of trafficking victims; and a slightly odd Scottish case on how country guidance cases work. We’ve also going to cover the right to benefits for EU citizens with pre-settled status, deportation and the latest...

Welcome to episode 83 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. It’s a case-law heavy episode, with lots of judgments from the immigration tribunal, Court of Appeal and even the European Court of Human Rights to chew on. We also talk about a potentially important new policy on deporting people who arrived in the UK as young children, legal preparations for Brexit and of course the new Immigration Act. For discussion of recent changes to economic migration routes under the Points Based Immigration System, see the previous episode or our brand new training course. If you would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and listening to this...

Immigration update podcast, episode 83

You don’t have to be British to work here, but it helps. Citizens of the 54 Commonwealth countries can serve in the British Army and other branches of the armed forces, and are eligible to settle in the UK after discharge if they have served for at least four years. But settlement isn’t automatic, and over the years too many have ended up without the immigration status they were promised. While the situation has improved in recent years, the sheer cost of indefinite leave to remain — £2,389, or over £10,000 for a family of four — means that some remain frozen out despite policies designed to help them.  On...

Podcast: how the immigration system froze out Commonwealth soldiers

Welcome to episode 82 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. This month we mostly focus on a host of changes to the Immigration Rules introduced in October and mainly coming into force in December. There are also some big cases on long residence, removal windows, deportation law and fairness in sponsored worker cases, and we’re also going to talk about EU citizens and naturalisation. If you would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and listening to this podcast, sign up here as a Free Movement member. There are now over 100 CPD hours of training materials available to members. You can find all the available courses here. If you listen...

Immigration update podcast, episode 82

Lawyers have spent much of this year fighting off controversial changes to legal aid for immigration appeals. In May, the government brought in adjusted legal aid arrangements for cases lodged under a new online appeal system — arrangements that spelled doom for an already under-pressure sector. I spoke to Sonia Lenegan from the Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association about the legal action that defeated those proposals, the system that’s been put in place instead, and how things are looking for legal aid lawyers more generally.

Podcast: where are we at with legal aid for immigration appeals?

Welcome to episode 81 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. This month we kick off with a big ruling on deportation law before turning to some draft laws affecting EU citizens in the UK. The visa rules for students changed on 5 October, so we discuss those tweaks before moving to economic migration and the elusive Immigration Health Surcharge rise. We finish with some judgments on asylum and immigration detention.   If you would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and listening to this podcast, sign up here as a Free Movement member. There are now over 100 CPD hours of training materials available to members. You can find all...

Immigration update podcast, episode 81

“Don’t panic!” is Tom Brett Young’s message to his education sector clients. Revised student visa rules kick in next month, replacing the Tier 4 routes beloved of known to immigration lawyers since 2009. Thankfully, the VWV partner reckons it’s more evolution than revolution, with the system of student sponsorship remaining broadly familiar. Although with students from EU countries now needing visas, schools and unis have quite enough upheaval to contend with as it is. In this podcast, Tom and I talk through the new student migration rules that kick in from 5 October: where to find them, what they change and what they don’t. Some — but not all —...

Podcast: the new student visa rules

Welcome to episode 80 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. This month we start with the EU Settlement Scheme before turning to a couple of cases at the intersection of immigration law and family law. With the slow down in the court system, there wasn’t a whole lot of case law this month, so we take a detour via domestic abuse and sponsor licensing before getting back to the courts with a few cases on procedure and compensation for delay. To round off, there’s a couple of positive developments on legal aid and leave to remain for people falsely accused of cheating on their English test. If you would...

Immigration update podcast, episode 80

Commercial surrogacy — paying someone else to carry and give birth to your child — is banned in the UK, but available overseas. That allows couples and individuals who would otherwise be unable to have children to experience the miracle of life with the aid of a third party. It’s a fraught process, and getting the resulting baby a visa may not be at the forefront of the intended parents’ minds. It may, however, be necessary. A child born to a surrogate abroad will not be automatically entitled to come straight back to the UK, even if the intended parents are both British themselves. It depends on who the child’s...

Podcast: helping families with international surrogacy

Welcome to episode 79 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. This month we’re starting with a few asylum decisions, then talk a little about the Shamima Begum case and go over the latest on coronavirus immigration changes. We look at the Hong Kong BNO visa, mention a couple of things about immigration detention and access to benefits, and end with some rather disparate tribunal and procedural cases.  If you would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and listening to this podcast, sign up here as a Free Movement member. There are now over 100 CPD hours of training materials available to members. You can find all the available courses here....

Immigration update podcast, episode 79

The representative of an overseas business visa wasn’t mentioned once in the government’s blueprint for a new immigration system, but that doesn’t mean it’s going anywhere. Or at least we hope not; as Joanna Hunt tells me in this podcast, stranger things have happened in immigration law. We mostly proceed on the assumption this route has life in it yet and that, as an immigration lawyer, you need to know about it. Jo explains what the representative of an overseas business visa is, why it’s sometimes called the “sole rep” route, what the requirements are and why it’s often trickier than other work-based routes. We also touch on recent changes...

Podcast: applying for a representative of an overseas business visa

Welcome to episode 78 of the Free Movement immigration update podcast. This month we start with some general discussion about the immigration system and my new book, Welcome to Britain, move on to cover a couple of deportation cases and then look at some material on appeals, asylum, family immigration and EU law. We end with a reminder on refunds for the Immigration Health Surcharge for NHS and social care workers. If you would like to claim CPD points for reading the material and listening to this podcast, sign up here as a Free Movement member. There are now over 100 CPD hours of training materials available to members. You can find all...

Immigration update podcast, episode 78

In this bumper bonus episode, Free Movement editor Colin Yeo is interviewed by Satbir Singh, chief executive of the migrants’ rights charity JCWI. The subject of the interview is of course Colin’s book, published on 29 June 2020.  Welcome to Britain: Fixing Our Broken Immigration System explains the workings and non-workings of the immigration system to the general public. You can read a detailed overview of the contents here. To mark publication day, Satbir kindly agreed to host a lockdown-approved launch event over Zoom to talk about the themes of the book and to put some questions to Colin from Free Movement readers. The interview is also available on our...

Podcast: Welcome to Britain book launch, with Satbir Singh of JCWI

Updates and comment on UK immigration law

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