Immigration and Migration

Appeal deadlines for civil penalty notices are not absolute where the court is to blame
Free Movement
Free Movement
Appeal deadlines for civil penalty notices are not absolute where the court is to blame The High Court has recognised that it has a discretion to extend strict statutory deadlines in circumstances where the court itself, not the appellant, is responsible for the appeal being brought late. The issue arose in the case of Sikander ...
Posted:
Skilled workers and students can ask for access to public funds, but few succeed. Here’s...
Free Movement
Free Movement
Skilled workers and students can ask for access to public funds, but few succeed. Here’s... In October 2023, the Home Office formally recognised its discretion to lift the ‘no recourse to public funds’ condition from visas for skilled workers and students. Previously, the Home Office had insisted that it was unable to do so, except ...
Posted:
Key takeaways from the new Iraq country guidance: documentation and Article 3 risks
Free Movement
Free Movement
Key takeaways from the new Iraq country guidance: documentation and Article 3 risks The long-awaited updated Iraq country guidance case of AK, AH, and AJ v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2026] UKUT 00150 (IAC) has finally landed, replacing all existing country guidance on Iraq. For those unfamiliar with the Article ...
Posted:
Job ad: Manuel Bravo Project are recruiting
Free Movement
Free Movement
Job ad: Manuel Bravo Project are recruiting Senior Immigration Caseworker/Solicitor Organisation: Manuel Bravo Project Job Title: Senior Immigration Caseworker/Solicitor Salary: NJC point 25, 37.5 hrs at £36,188 (24 hrs pro rata) IAA Level 2, NJC Pay Scale point 35 – £46,290 per annum (37.5 hours full time) ...
Posted:
Free Movement Weekly Immigration Newsletter #117
Free Movement
Free Movement
Free Movement Weekly Immigration Newsletter #117 Welcome to the weekly Free Movement newsletter! Last week was a busy week for the Home Secretary. On Thursday she signed a new three-year agreement with her French counterpart to continue preventing small boat crossings. The £662 million deal is intended to strengthen enforcement ...
Posted:
Tribunals must still assess all the evidence, even where the core issue is not challenged...
Free Movement
Free Movement
Tribunals must still assess all the evidence, even where the core issue is not challenged... The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by a Pakistani man, MR, who claimed asylum in the UK on the basis that he would face persecution as a gay man if returned to Pakistan. The court held that the ...
Posted:
Continuous residence under the EU Settlement Scheme: changes to automated settlement process and expanded cancellation...
Free Movement
Free Movement
Continuous residence under the EU Settlement Scheme: changes to automated settlement process and expanded cancellation... Since 2025, the Home Office has been automatically converting some people with pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme to full settled status. It does this without requiring a new application, using automated checks to establish whether the person meets ...
Posted:
Court of Appeal upholds status cessation decision for Congolese refugee
Free Movement
Free Movement
Court of Appeal upholds status cessation decision for Congolese refugee In JL v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2026] EWCA Civ 498 the Court of Appeal upholds a refugee status cessation decision for a recognised refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). A cessation decision is one ...
Posted:
Nearly Legal and Giles Peaker: An Appreciation
Free Movement
Free Movement
Nearly Legal and Giles Peaker: An Appreciation One of the great legal bloggers died this week. I never got to meet Nearly Legal, aka Giles Peaker of Anthony Gold Solicitors. I knew him only through his blogging and, later, his micro-blogging on Twitter and BlueSky. The best ...
Posted:
What is the adequate maintenance and accommodation requirement?
Free Movement
Free Movement
What is the adequate maintenance and accommodation requirement? Several immigration routes require applicants to show that they can be adequately maintained and accommodated in the UK without recourse to public funds. This is a separate financial test from the minimum income requirement that applies to most spouse and partner visa ...
Posted:
Universities can now subscribe to Free Movement for their students
Free Movement
Free Movement
Universities can now subscribe to Free Movement for their students Free Movement now offers an institutional subscription for UK universities, giving law students and academic staff access to our full archive of articles and case law analysis. Free Movement has been covering UK immigration and asylum law since 2007. We ...
Posted:
Irregular migration status: a systemic problem
Free Movement
Free Movement
Irregular migration status: a systemic problem From politicians to the media, there is a prevailing narrative that migrants with irregular status have chosen to commit some personal, even moral, failure. If only migrants did the right thing, we are told, then irregularity would simply never happen, ...
Posted:
Job Ad: Training Manager, Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association (ILPA)
Free Movement
Free Movement
Job Ad: Training Manager, Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association (ILPA) Job title: Training Manager Organisation: Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association (ILPA) Location:  Hybrid. Primarily remote with one weekly hub day in London. Working arrangements may change. Deadline: 11:59pm on Sunday, 17 May 2026 Interviews: Weeks commencing 25 May or 1 June 2026  Salary: £33,000-£35,000 with scope to offer ...
Posted:
Past arrest and beating of Vietnamese protester does not amount to persecution
Free Movement
Free Movement
Past arrest and beating of Vietnamese protester does not amount to persecution The Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeal of a Vietnamese national who argued that his arrest, beating and blacklisting after attending an anti-China demonstration in Vietnam placed him at real risk of persecution on return. The judgment is a ...
Posted:
Free Movement Weekly Immigration Newsletter #116
Free Movement
Free Movement
Free Movement Weekly Immigration Newsletter #116 Welcome to the weekly Free Movement newsletter! HM Chief Inspector of Prisons has published a second inspection report of a removal journey to France under the ‘one in one out’ scheme. The biggest concern remains the access to interpreting services, which was ...
Posted:
When domestic abuse survivors don’t fit the rules: options and risks
Free Movement
Free Movement
When domestic abuse survivors don’t fit the rules: options and risks When navigating the UK immigration system, people will naturally aim for the best status they can obtain. For victims of domestic abuse, that usually means an application under Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse of the Immigration Rules, which – if ...
Posted:
Home Secretary accepts she can grant further leave on the five-year route without the no...
Free Movement
Free Movement
Home Secretary accepts she can grant further leave on the five-year route without the no... The Home Secretary has accepted she can grant leave on the five-year route without imposing a no recourse to public funds condition. The concession was made in judicial review proceedings brought by a woman with disabilities who had been granted ...
Posted:
High Court warns Home Office against imposing unrealistic evidence standards in trafficking cases
Free Movement
Free Movement
High Court warns Home Office against imposing unrealistic evidence standards in trafficking cases The High Court has quashed a negative conclusive grounds decision made against a man rescued by police from a cannabis house he was forced to tend. The judgment confirms that there is no minimum standard of detail required for a ...
Posted:
Applications for costs in immigration cases: what practitioners need to know
Free Movement
Free Movement
Applications for costs in immigration cases: what practitioners need to know Applications for costs in immigration appeals are relatively rare. In fact, many practitioners can spend years, or even their entire career, without making one. While such applications should be made sparingly, in some circumstances they are justified and, in the ...
Posted:
Confusing changes to sponsor right to work checks: what has changed and what is still...
Free Movement
Free Movement
Confusing changes to sponsor right to work checks: what has changed and what is still... On 6 March 2026, the Home Office updated its guidance for sponsors to include new duties around right to work checks. The changes appeared to extend the duty to conduct right to work checks beyond sponsored workers, potentially capturing anyone ‘engaged’ ...
Posted:

Load More