UK Immigration Law: What Amounts to Exceptional Circumstances in Family Visa Applications
Everyone likes to think that their family is exceptional and that is certainly the case when it comes to those making family visa applications under UK immigration law.
If you are applying for a family visa and you don’t meet the eligibility criteria then you may still be able to secure UK entry clearance and a visa if you can demonstrate exceptional circumstances. Immigration law solicitors say it is best to take legal advice on whether your family situation falls within the rules on what amounts to exceptional.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Solicitors
For advice on immigration law and visa options call the immigration lawyers at OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Exceptional circumstances and human rights
Exceptional circumstances and family visa applications involve making a human rights claim.
The immigration rules say you can get entry clearance on a family visa if you don’t meet the eligibility criteria but the refusal to grant a visa would amount to a breach of an individual’s right to family and private life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
The consequences of the family visa refusal must result in unjustifiably harsh consequences for the applicant, their partner, a relevant child, or another family member whose Article 8 rights would be affected by the decision to refuse the visa application. Not every refusal decision amounts to unjustifiably harsh consequences. Immigration solicitors and Home Office officials look at proportionality when advising on and assessing human rights claims.
That approach by immigration lawyers doesn’t diminish the very real consequences of a family visa refusal on your family but focuses on whether a human rights claim is likely to succeed so you can make the best decision for your family on whether to pursue a human rights claim.
Balancing human rights against immigration rules
The immigration tribunals have said that the court has to give due weight to immigration rules and policies and the public interest in immigration control. It is a question of whether those considerations can be outweighed by an individual applicant’s insurmountable obstacles or exceptional circumstances.
Public interest and immigration control can be clarified as meaning protecting the public through effective immigration control as well as managing taxes payable through preventing uncontrolled migration. The public interest then has to be balanced against an individual’s human rights.
Exceptional circumstances
To count as exceptional an applicant needs to be able to show that the refusal of their visa application could result in unjustifiably harsh consequences for the applicant or their family and that the visa refusal would not be proportionate under Article 8.
The factors involved in looking at the balance to be struck between Home Office rules and immigration policies and the consequences for visa applicants and their family includes:
- The best interests of a relevant child
- The family relationships
- The applicant’s ability to stay in or enter another country
- The issues with relocation overseas
- The circumstances of the separation of the visa applicant from their family
- The impact on the applicant, their partner, and their child if the visa application is refused
- The impact of a disability or a serious illness that needs ongoing medical treatment
- The absence of government or security in another country
Next steps
Immigration lawyers say that if you plan to submit a family visa application it is best to take immigration legal advice to check you meet the eligibility criteria and, if not, whether you have a potential human rights claim and the evidence you will need to provide in support of your claim.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Solicitors
For advice on immigration law and visa options call the immigration lawyers at OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
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