Ikie Solicitors Llp

Campsfield House immigration removal centre to close
"The Home Office has announced that Campsfield House immigration removal centre will close by May 2019, when the current management contract with Mitie Care and Custody ends. The closure of the 282 bed centre is part of Home Secretary Sajid Javid’s commitment to cut the number of people detained at any given time and improve the welfare of detainees. These reforms were announced in response to Stephen Shaw’s review into welfare of vulnerable people in detention. By next summer, the Home Office will aim to reduce the immigration detention estate by almost 40% since 2015."

The Home Office has started to roll out it's new online immigration application process for in-country applications.
Soon all paper application forms will be withdrawn.
https://www.ein.org.uk/…/home-office-ro lls-out-new-uk-visa-…

https://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKSC/2018 /53.html

https://ukhumanrightsblog.com/…/supreme -court-rules-that-…/…

Amber Rudd resigns as British Home Secretary
(CNN) UK Prime Minister Theresa May has accepted the resignation of Amber Rudd as home secretary, a Downing Street spokesperson said, according to the UK Press Association.
No reason for the resignation was provided, but Rudd has faced pressure because of a scandal involving the Windrush generation, the first large group of Caribbean migrants to arrive in the UK after World War II.
... May's government recently said that the Home Office destroyed landing documents for those immigrants, meaning some of them would face deportation after decades living in Britain because they don't have the correct paperwork.
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Who Are We and How We Work
At Ikie Solicitors LLP, we are devoted to providing quality services. We achieve this by providing the highest level of quality advice and support to our client as integrity is the cornerstone of our work.
We persist on being transparent with our clients at every stage and will always act in our clients’ best interest. Your interests dictate how we operate as we are not oblivious to the fact that an individual client’s circumstances are varied.
... We are efficient in anticipating such changes and are capable of adapting to such varied circumstances in order to attain the very best solution for any individual client. We are easily accessible and we will keep you well informed at all times.
WE ARE COMMITED TO KEY VALUES:
1. Our clients’ best interest;
2. Respect and value people; Integrity;
3. Accessibility;
4.Delivery of excellent service throughout your experience with us; and
5. Working as a team.
At Ikie Solicitors LLP, we are dedicated to providing a top-quality legal service. We will keep you informed about any costs throughout any legal representation.
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Passport prices set to increase up to 27% starting from March 27, 2018
Earlier this week, the UK Passport office announced that it is raising the fees to submit a passport renewal application by post, with online renewals remaining a cheaper alternative.
Adult passports are set to rise by 17 per cent, while children’s passport renewals are expected to increase by a whopping 27 per cent.
... How much will each passport increase?
Standard Adult Passport current price: £72.50 New Price: £75.70 (online) £85 (postal)
Children's Passport current price: £46 New Price: £49 (online) £58.50 (postal)
The Passport Office is estimated to receive 50 million pounds in 2018-2019 alone from the anticipated increase.
The fees are expected to help the Passport office cover resources needed to process applications – which has been reported at approximately 6 million a year.
The Passport office has also said that they will be hiring 200 staff members to accommodate the expected influx.
Minister for Immigration, Caroline Nokes, has stated that this price increase is in line with the UK’s movement towards having a ‘self-sustainable immigration and borders system” whilst removing tax payer support.
Additionally, after the United Kingdom has officially left the EU, passport colours will change from burgundy to blue.
If you choose to renew your passport before the deadline, any time remaining on passport will be transferred to new passport. However, there is a maximum of 9 months – so if your passport is set to expire before Dec 27 this year, it might be worth renewing before the new price increases are implemented.
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Immigration Fees to the UK set to rise starting April, 2018
On the 16th of March, the UK home office released a statement about the recent legislation that has been made to immigration, visa and nationality fees.
These changes will be implemented from April 6, 2018.
... The Home Office stated that the reason for the fee increase is to reduce the amount of funds being used from UK taxpayer’s money while still being able to maintain a level of service that is attractive to customers and still remain a competitive option amongst other countries.
Fees for work, study, visitor, nationality, settlement and family visas are all expected to increase by 4%.
Most associated premium services are also set to rise by 4% while the fee for overseas optional “priority visa” services for entry clearance will increase by 15%.
Additionally, fees for entry clearance to enter the Channel Islands and Isle of Man are also expected to rise – however, they will rise in line with the fee changes that have been made with the rest of the UK.
Only the fees under the sponsorship system will remain the same.
You can view the full list of the new fees for all visas here: www.gov.uk.
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Who can travel and settle in UK after Brexit?

https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/…/tribunal -ju…/5064449.article…
"Tribunal judges criticise 'far too complex' immigration system By Monidipa Fouzder22 January 2018 No comments Save Article... Immigration rules need to be overhauled to make them clearer and fairer, the chair of the Law Society's immigration law committee has said, following MPs' calls for reform. Sharmila Mehta, a consultant solicitor at Farrer & Co in London, welcomed the Commons home affairs committee's report, Immigration policy: building a consensus, which she hopes will 'remove the heat out of the conversation about what immigration means for the country'. The report points out that governments have passed 11 immigration acts in the past 50 years and made regular amendments to the Immigration Rules with little parliamentary scrutiny or public consultation. 'This has led to many people, including immigration tribunal judges, to complain that the system has become far too complex,' the report states. Colin Yeo, an immigration and asylum barrister at Garden Court Chambers, London, told the committee that the rules have become so complicated that it is hard to make a successful application without a lawyer. The report states that Yeo 'described the current situation as a "terrible way to run an immigration system". Not only does complexity hinder those who must engage with the system, it increases the challenge faced by officials tasked with making life-changing decisions.' Mehta said the report 'is an opportunity to think about how the rules should actually change, how they could be clearer and fairer. They're not transparent at the moment'. The report also 'refreshes how we view immigration on a national basis'. The committee recommends establishing an annual migration report setting out a three-year, rolling plan for migration. It would detail migration flows as well as the economic contribution from migration, measures taken to manage impacts and pressures, and action on skills, training and integration. The committee's report also calls for 'clearer and simpler' immigration rules, underpinned by values and principles. Yvette Cooper MP, chair of the committee, said: 'The government has a responsibility to build consensus and confidence on immigration rather than allowing this to be a divisive debate. But that requires transformation in the way that immigration policy is made as too often the current approach has undermined trust in the system.'"
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Court of Appeal has reinstated the right of appeal to the First-tier tribunal in Extended Family Members applications: http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2 017/1755.html Neutral Citation Number: [2017] EWCA Civ 1755 Case No: C9/2016/4413 IN THE COURT OF APPEAL (CIVIL DIVISION) ON APPEAL FROM THE UPPER TRIBUNAL...
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This case about the unlawful detention of His Excellency James Ibori is being placed here due to the interest that it has generated within the Nigeria community
Neutral Citation Number: [2017] EWHC 1207 (Admin) Case No: CO/6416/2016 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE...
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Landmark case on the validity of Proxy Marriages involving EU nationals resident in the UK. http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2 017/178.html

Employment law update 2017:
Gender pay gap reporting rules introduced , immigration skills charge, increase in minimum wage, statutory redundancy pay increase, Tax advantages under salary-sacrifice arrangements to be limited, Statutory family-related pay and sick pay rates increase, apprentice levy on employers ...
http://m.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid =3909

UAE to implement VAT on 1 January 2018
Consumers in UAE are expected to pay a 5 per cent value-added tax when purchasing most goods and services. The GCC VAT Framework Agreement allows member states until 1 January 2019 to implement the tax : http://www.pwc.com/…/uae-to-implement-v at-on-1-january-2018…

Minimum Income Requirement for Foreign Spouse sponsorship - Supreme Court Full Judgment: http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKSC/2017/ 10.html

All visitors should note that all the cases posted in this page are already in the public domain. The Courts published them because the courts considered them important to the public. We take matters of confidentiality very seriously. We have not published such of our cases that are not already published by the Courts.