Immigration

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal from the State over the definition of "child" in the International Protection Act 2015. Mr Justice Max Barrett ruled in May 2018 that the legal guardian of a child who is not their biological or adopted child is eligible for family unification.

Nearly 2,000 asylum seekers in Ireland were granted permission to work last year under a new system introduced after a landmark Supreme Court ruling. The new regime for asylum seekers to access the labour market was introduced last June when the absolute prohibition on employment was ruled unconstit

The Ombudsman, Peter Tyndall, has called for his remit to be extended to include how asylum applications are assessed by the Minister for Justice. Mr Tyndall appeared before the Oireachtas joint committee on justice and equality this morning to discuss the Direct Provision system.

A Zimbabwean asylum seeker whose human rights claim to remain in the UK was refused by the Home Secretary has had an application for judicial review of a decision that he had not made a fresh claim to remain in the country dismissed. The petitioner “GC” argued that, as an “openly g

Eimear Nugent, solicitor at immigration law specialists Berkeley Solicitors, examines an important ruling on the rights of EU citizens' spouses. The European Court of Justice delivered a very significant judgment in the case of Chenchooliah v Minister for Justice on Tuesday 10 September 2019, follow

Lawyers for a Syrian national seeking to relocate from Turkey to Ireland have asked the Department of Foreign Affairs to intervene and expedite his visa application. Belfast-based KRW Law is representing Tareq Samha, a freelance author and translator who currently lives in Turkey with his British wi

Plans to reintroduce a two-year post-study work visa for international students in the UK have been welcomed by universities. The Department for Education (DfE) told The Guardian that graduates will be allowed to seek work for two years after completing a course in any subject at undergraduate level

Leaving the European Union means the loss of a safe, legal route for the reunification of separated refugee families in Europe, a House of Lords committee has told the UK government. The House of Lords EU Home Affairs Sub-Committee has written to Home Secretary Priti Patel to share key fin

Lisa Bryson, partner and head of employment at Eversheds Sutherland in Belfast, considers the meaning of Priti Patel's recent announcement on free movement. Reports early this week indicated that the new Home Secretary intends to “end free movement” to the UK of EEA citizens immediately

A man seeking asylum in the UK from a country where homosexuality is illegal was rejected by an immigration judge because he did not have a gay "demeanour", a barrister has said. English barrister Rehana Popal said the judge had "taken a stereotype, used it as a benchmark and compared my client to i

Irish emigrants planning to move back to the State with their non-EEA partners will benefit from a new streamlined preclearance process launched today. De facto partners of Irish citizens will now be allowed to apply for their permission to reside in the country before they travel to Ireland.

The Government has set out the national standards for asylum seeker accommodation and reception centres in Ireland following engagement with the UN and various NGOs. Minister David Stanton, who convened an advisory group including UNHCR Ireland and NGO representatives, said the new standards would i

A man who was found to have entered into a ‘marriage of convenience’ to obtain a residence card has lost an application for judicial review of the decision to revoke his permission to remain in the State. Refusing the application, Mr Justice David Keane rejected, inter alia, the argument

Soaring immigration fees have led to accusations of profiteering against the Home Office, which made £500 million last year. Analysis by The Times shows that fees charged to hundreds of thousands of people for British residency and citizenship have increased sharply over the past five years, w

Over £2,000 raised by immigration solicitors in Northern Ireland has been presented to children's charity Barnardo's.