Expert legal advice on uk immigration and citizenship

This depends on how important the outcome of the application is and whether you can take the risk of having the application refused on the first attempt. 

Our immigration lawyers specialise in UK visa applications and know exactly how to prepare a successful application, what documents to include and what information to include in the cover letter. 

Our 100% success rate with applications which do not involve exercise of discretion means that we expect a successful outcome in every application we make unless there is a reason why it may fall for refusal. We cannot guarantee an outcome as a refusal may also be a result of a mistake on the part of the Home Office, but we work very carefully to preempt any mistakes and explain in the cover letter how the application should be assessed. We can challenge a refusal if it was a result of an error.

Lawyers is a generic term for professionals qualified to give legal advice. There are different legal professions.

Immigration barristers specialise in representing appellants in immigration tribunals but they do not normally prepare the applications to be filed with the Home Office. Immigration barristers are regulated by the Bar Council.

Immigration solicitors specialise in preparing the applications to the Home Office and where necessary conduct contentious work, such as immigration appeals, administrative review or judicial review applications. Solicitors are regulated by the Solicitors’ Regulating Authority.

Solicitors often work in more than one area of law, for example, family, employment, contract, conveyancing, immigration. Immigration is an extremely complex and specialised area and it is always beneficial to seek professional advice.

Immigration consultants are regulated by the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioners. They have to pass a legal examination in immigration to get accreditation. Consultants may be accredited at three levels – with level 1 being the lowest and level 3 the highest. Those with level three accreditation can hand the most complex cases in immigration.

The overheads of immigration consultants would often be lower than the overheads of the immigration solicitors and they may offer a more cost effective service.

You may read more on how to choose an immigration expert on this page.

Yes, of course. And it is important to remember that lawyers based in the UK are regulated, as explained above. Lawyers based outside the UK are not regulated by the UK authorities. If you receive poor advice, there won’t be a regulating body to look into it.

Technically, there is no rule which does not allow you to travel to the UK while an application for entry clearance is with the Home Office.

In practice, there may be some difficulties. First of all, you may have to submit your passport with the application. Some Visa Application Centres offer to return your passport as an additional service provided for an extra fee. But this service is not always available. If you have two passports you can travel on the second passport.

You will still have to return to the country where you applied for entry clearance to collect your visa and then travel back to the UK to activate the visa.

Your visa consultant will guide you on the process.

Your legal representative will check that you are applying for the right type of visa and if you can be successful in this application. Your immigration lawyer will guide you through the legal requirements and will give you a list of documents needed for a successful application.

Your lawyer may also feel the application form to save you time and make sure it is completed correctly.

When everything is ready, your application will be submitted to the Home Office online and you will make a payment of the government fees.

After that, you representative will book an appointment for you, if a biometric appointment is required for your type of application. Your documents will be uploaded on the government’s portal together with legal submissions prepared by your representative.

If you are preparing the application without the help of an immigration lawyer, the chances are you may miss an important document or incorrectly understand the application form and give the wrong answer. It is not uncommon for an application to be refused simply through a mistake made by the Home Office. The immigration rules are so complex that sometimes the Home Office officials are unable to understand them themselves.

A parliamentary committee has specifically addressed the complexity of visa applications and recommended that the Home Office simplified the application process to make it accessible for people who cannot afford to pay for legal advice.

It is always best to get the visa application approved after the first attempt. This is exactly where your immigration lawyer will be most helpful. If your visa application is refused you need to seek legal advice. The lawyer will tell you if you have the right of appeal, what your prospects of success are, what they depend on and how long the process is likely to take.

Not all immigration decisions can be appealed. Some decisions can be administratively reviewed, other can be appealed before an independent immigration tribunal, and some decisions can only be challenged by a judicial review if they are so unreasonable or perverse that no sensible decision maker could reach such decision.

It is often quicker and simpler to make a new application than to appeal a refusal, but it is not always the case. Sometimes, appeal is the only option. And this is where you need expert legal advice.

Previous refusals always make the next application more difficult. If the application was refused because you provided false information, you may be banned from applying again and all subsequent applications may automatically be refused. If the reason for refusal was not meeting the requirements of the rules, you will have to demonstrate that your circumstances have changed.

If an application for extension of leave to remain made in the UK is refused after the previous visa expired, you will most likely have to leave the country and make a fresh application from abroad. You will need advice from an immigration lawyer to confirm if there is an option of applying from the UK and how this will affect your right to work.

London based solicitors and barristers normally would only have the right of audience in England and Wales. They would need special permission to represent you in a court of law, such as an immigration tribunal, in Scotland.

OISC regulated advisers with level 3 authorisation have the right of audience across the UK and can act as your legal representatives in Scotland.

Unfortunately, not. You first need to apply for permission to live in the UK. This can be an application for a spouse visa, or, if you qualify under another route, for example on the basis of UK ancestry or as a person with an endorsement for a Global Talent visa, you may choose a different immigration basis.

You will qualify for indefinite leave to remain after five years of residence and then you can make an application for British citizenship.

If you are applying for a spouse visa you will make an initial application for entry clearance (or leave to remain if you are applying from the UK), then, after 2.5 years, an application for extension of leave to remain as a partner of a British citizen, then, after 5 years of residence, an application for indefinite leave to remain, and once ILR is granted, an application for naturalisation as a British citizen. After that you can apply for a British passport.

No, your application for extension of leave will be considered withdrawn if you leave the country.

Visa application processing time depends on the type of visa, whether the application is made in the UK (extension applications) or abroad (entry clearance applications) and whether you have used priority service for the application. Applications for settlement, such as applications for leave to enter as the spouse or a child of a British citizen, take longer than work related applications, such as UK ancestry, skilled worker visa or Global talent visa. Settlement applications made without priority service at present take around 24 weeks. Work related visas are normally processed within 3 weeks.

If expedited, settlement visas would take on average around six weeks, work related visas would take a few days, and visit visas can be processed within 24 hours if super priority service is available.

An immigration lawyer will prepare the application as thoroughly as possible and this will make it easy for decision maker to approve the application without asking any additional questions or referring the case to a senior caseworker. Immigration lawyers do not have a back door entry to the Home Office and those we recommend avoiding those who claim that they have.

Immigration lawyers can certainly help with the visa, but only after you have secured employment. Only the employer can act as the sponsor.

Immigration consultants can help the employer to secure the necessary licence and ensure that all paperwork is prepared correctly, but they cannot act as your sponsors unless they are employing you in their business, and they cannot prepare your visa application before you secure a job. You can read more about sponsored work requirements on this page.

You will either have a Biometric Residence Card (a plastic card with your photograph, stating the type of your visa and the expiry date) or, if you have a biometric passport, you will be able to prove your status with a share code which you can give to your employer, an estate agent, the banker etc – whenever you have to prove your right of residence.