15 July 2020 As many readers will know, it used to be the case that Ankara Agreement businesspeople could qualify for settlement after four years. But then, in 2018, the law was changed, such that they could only qualify after five years – this incidentally brought the Ankara Agreement rules into line with those for…
21 June 2020 Hong Kong has been in the media a lot recently. Formerly a British colony, it is now part of China – well, more or less, but under the Handover Agreement made with the British in 1997 it would retain many features of its western-style governance and institutions. This scheme is often described…
08 June 2020 Under the pre-Brexit regime the requirements for British naturalisation for EEA nationals and their family members were – up to a point – relatively straightforward. Complexities sometimes emerged, but there were some basic principles which were clear. One important basic principle was that any applicant had to show that they had been…
05 June 2020 The Tier 1 Investor visa, which enables non-EEA migrants to acquire visas by investing at least £2 million into British companies, does not have as many complex requirements as for example the Tier 1 Entrepreneur visa. But nonetheless the relevant rules do have to be read carefully and thoroughly understood, and it…
26 May 2020 Many readers will know that the Home Office can on occasion take an extraordinarily long time in processing immigration applications. Sometimes applications take not just months but years, and there is not always a great deal a disgruntled migrant can do about it. It is likely to be the case that a…
28 February 2020 In case anyone has not heard, Brexit has finally happened, on 31 January 2020. And, crucially importantly, the separation was relatively amicable. Negotiations are to commence about the final shape of the UK/EU relationship, and there is no sign at the moment of the dreaded no-deal scenario. It was always known and…
As we recently explained (“The ‘good character’ requirement for British naturalisation”, 13 January 2020), British naturalisation applications can be fatally damaged by character issues emanating from the ten-year period before the date of application. Now another, connected, issue and potential problem presents itself to the nation – or at least that part of it which…
It is sometimes the case in the immigration field that the basic law sets out very broad principles and other policies, rules or laws provide the detail. For example, the British Nationality Act 1981 simply tells us that a successful applicant for British naturalisation must be of “good character”. This sounds intuitively reasonable, but how…
In the wake of the General Election result it looks as though Brexit is going to happen soon and that the Ankara Agreement (which is an agreement made under EU law) may soon no longer be with us. This prompts us to remind you that if you are thinking of making an application as a…
