APPEALS

Asylum and Immigration Tribunal

Appeal Types

An individual may be eligible to appeal a decision to the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal. 5 common areas of appeal are:

• Asylum: An asylum appeal relates to a person who is under threat in their own country and looks to the United Kingdom for protection, for example during times of civil war.


• Immigration: An immigration appeal relates to a person who has applied to live permanently in the United Kingdom.


• Visit Visa: A visit visa appeal relates to a person who has been refused a visit to the United Kingdom for a period of more than 3 months. Visit visa cases can be heard at a hearing or dealt with on papers.


• Human Rights: A human rights appeal is where a person claims their basic human rights have been breached.


• Bail: An application to be released on bail from a person detained under the Immigration Acts.

A small amount of appeals are also received for deprivation of citizenship, race discrimination and non suspensive appeals.

The Appeals Process

If your application is denied, The Home Office will send an appeal form and guidance notes to you with their decision.

Should you not be proficient in English and submit an application in your native language, you must separately attach a translated form in English, and signed by the translator to certify that the translation is accurate

Your appeal form must be received by the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal(AIT):

Within 5 working days from the day you received the notice of decision if you are in detention; or
Within 10 working days from the day you received the notice of decision if you are not in detention.

The date you receive the notice of decision by post is two days after the date on the notice.

If your appeal will not be received at the AIT by required date, you must explain why you were not able to submit it in time. The reasons will then be assessed to decide whether there are special circumstances that allow your appeal to proceed.

If you are outside the United Kingdom and wish to appeal against the decision of an entry clearance officer, you may also give notice of appeal by serving it on the entry clearance officer.

Please note if you are outside the United Kingdom your appeal will not be listed for hearing until after the entry clearance officer has considered the appeal papers and prepared an explanatory statement giving full details of the reasons for refusal.

Appeal Decisions

It is unlikely that a decision will be reached on your appeal the day of your hearing. The written decision of the AIT, called a determination, will be sent to you and to your representative if you have one. The determination will state whether your appeal has been successful (allowed) or unsuccessful (dismissed) and will give the reasons for the decision.

Review of Decisions

Applications for reconsideration of dismissed appeals may be granted on the grounds it made an error of law. If your appeal has been allowed, the Home Office may apply for a review of the decision in the same way. If the AIT orders a reconsideration of the appeal there will be a new hearing date set.

The application for review must be made within 5 days of receiving the determination if you are in the United Kingdom, or 28 days if you are outside the UK.

If your appeal is allowed and the Home Office make no review application, the Home Office will issue the necessary documents to you, either directly (if you are in the UK) or through the Embassy (if you are outside the UK).

Legal Representation

While not having legal representation does not prevent you making an appeal, it is recommended that you seek legal representation for your appeal as early as possible.

Interpreters

AIT will provide an interpreter free of charge who will translate for you during the hearing. If you require an interpreter, you must inform AIT immediately, preferably in your appeal form. You may bring your own interpreter but they will not be allowed to speak officially in the hearing room nor interpret the proceedings for you. If you elect to have AIT provide an interpreter for you, you are not permitted to speak to them outside of the hearing room.