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As the House of Commons Library notes, the number overseas students studying at UK universities reached 679,970 in 2021/22. The majority (559,800) were from outside the EU.

The top ten countries of origin for first-year overseas students in 2021/22 were, in order, China, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, United States, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Ireland, and France.

Securing a sponsor in the UK can often be a pivotal step in your journey towards skilled employment. While immigration solicitors cannot directly find sponsors for you, they can offer crucial guidance to streamline your search.

Currently, the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) standard fee for applicants over 18 stands at £624 per annum. However, this figure is set to rise to £1035. For dependent children under 18, students, their dependants, and Youth Mobility applicants, the current charge is £470 per year, which will increase to £776. There is no IHS for Health and Care Workers or for individuals applying for entry clearance or permission to stay under the Ukraine Scheme, and this will remain unchanged.

 

 The report was published by BID, a charity that provides legal support to individuals facing deportation. The report focuses on the struggles of obtaining legal advice and representation through ECF, a system introduced as a safety net for those whose cases fell out of the scope of legal aid following cuts made by the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Procedural History: The Secretary of State appealed against the Court of Appeal's judgment in AAA and Others, which found that the policy of relocating asylum seekers to Rwanda was unlawful due to deficiencies in the Rwandan asylum system

The Government recently confirmed a 15% increase in legal aid fees for work under the Illegal Migration Act (IMA), as revealed in the Law Gazette. This decision followed a June 2023 consultation, with Lord Bellamy KC, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, arguing that this rise represents a fair acknowledgment of the demand the IMA places on legal practitioners

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has said that the effect of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 is to deny asylum seekers a fair hearing and deny protection to many genuine refugees, in clear breach of the Refugee Convention.

According to the Home Office, nationals of India and Georgia are 'not at obvious risk of persecution'.

On 31st July 2023, the Home Office issued fresh guidelines concerning the 'good character' stipulation for Naturalisation applications. These guidelines, effective immediately, signify a considerable shift in the Home Office's approach towards applications from individuals with a criminal record.

Independent Legal Advice (ILA) is a type of legal advice that is provided by a solicitor who is not connected to either party to the transaction. The purpose of ILA is to ensure that the individual receiving the advice understands the risks involved in the transaction and is not being coerced into signing any documents.

The Home Office has made some changes to the guidance on the 10-year route to indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in immigration cases. The changes, which were published in December 2021, include: