How do I Appeal Against The Refusal of my Spouse Visa?
Has your Spouse Visa or Family Visa been refused by the Home Office? You will no doubt be disappointed and unsure about your next steps.
In this blog, our Immigration Solicitors answer some of your questions on how to go about appealing against the refusal of your Spouse Visa.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Lawyers and Spouse Visa Solicitors
For Family Visa and immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi
Do I have a right of appeal against the refusal of my Spouse Visa application?
Most Family Visa applicants have a right to appeal against visa refusal. You may have read that immigration appeals have been severely restricted by the Home Office because of a change in the immigration rules. That’s true but a Family Visa applicant can appeal a refusal decision based on human rights under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Although you may have a right of appeal that doesn’t necessarily mean that an appeal is the best option for you. Expert Immigration Solicitors can talk you through the costs and timescales of an immigration appeal to help you understand if the appeal route is the right one for you.
Should I appeal against the refusal of my UK Spouse Visa application?
Our Spouse Visa Solicitors are seeing an increase in appeal inquiries from new clients across the globe about UK Spouse Visa refusals.
Why? Many Family Visa applicants rushed to put in a Spouse Visa application before 11 April 2024 when the financial requirement increased from £18,600 to £29,000. They either put in their application without the help of an Immigration Solicitor or did not use a specialist lawyer. That, combined with complex immigration rules, may have resulted in a Spouse Visa refusal.
Should you appeal against a Spouse Visa refusal? It all depends on the reasons for the refusal. These will be contained in a letter from the Home Office.
Our Spouse Visa Solicitors can review the Home Office letter for you and advise on your options. These include:
- An appeal
- Submitting a fresh application for a Family Visa
- Applying for a different type of UK visa
Does my country of application affect whether my Spouse Visa will be refused?
Whether you apply for a Spouse Visa from within the UK or from overseas you stand the same chance of Family Visa success. Equally, it doesn’t matter whether you are applying for your UK Spouse Visa from the US, India, Pakistan or elsewhere. The only things that will affect the success of your application are:
- The quality of your application and whether you addressed the eligibility criteria in your application form
- Your supporting evidence
What are the time limits for appealing against the refusal of a Spouse Visa application?
Time limits to appeal a Spouse Visa refusal are tight. You only have 14 days from receiving your refusal decision to appeal if you made your application from within the UK. If you made your application from overseas the appeal time limit is 28 days.
If you get a refusal letter you need to contact our Spouse Visa Solicitors as quickly as possible so we can advise you on your options and submit your appeal within the time limit.
Why was my Spouse Visa application refused?
Your letter from the Home Office will explain why your visa application was refused. Our Spouse Visa Solicitors have seen thousands of refusal letters and common reasons for refusal include:
- A Home Office official was not satisfied that you met the eligibility criteria when you applied for an Unmarried Partner Visa as you did not supply the type of evidence needed to prove that your relationship is genuine and subsisting. Alternatively, the Home Office official may question the genuineness of a relationship in a Spouse Visa application where the marriage was arranged and if there has been little contact between you and your spouse
- The financial requirement is not met. This may be because you did not provide sufficient evidence that your sponsoring partner earns £18,600 (if you applied before 11 April 2024) or £29,000 if you applied after that date. Alternatively, the Home Office may say you did not provide sufficient documentary evidence of a sponsoring partner’s self-employed income or income earned as a company director. Another reason for refusal is that you attempted to combine different types of income to meet the financial requirement. The rules are complicated on the types of income that can be combined to meet the financial requirement or on the 6-month rule on holding cash savings if you tried to use evidence of cash savings to meet the financial requirement
- You made a mistake such as paying the wrong visa application fee or omitting to supply a crucial document, such as your marriage certificate
Our Spouse Visa Solicitors will carefully consider the reasons given for the refusal of your Family Visa application and explain why they think an appeal or a fresh Family Visa application may be your best way forward to enable you to enjoy family life in the UK.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Lawyers and Spouse Visa Solicitors
For Family Visa and immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi