An overview of the appeals process

1. The the next slide show a map of
the appeals process
The light areas represent circumstances where you
are protected from removal because you have
leave to remain, or a pending application or appeal
(if in-country)
The dark areas represent circumstances
where there is no barrier to removal
The thick white arrows represent actions that need
to be taken by an ‘appellant’ to initiate the next
stage or alternative
Each circled stage should result in a
written decision, with reasons
(Unless it is a decision
by the Secretary of
State to grant Refugee
Status)

2. LTR
Refugee
Status
Humanitarian
Protection
Other
Leave
Asylum
Claim
Appeal to
the FTT
Appeal to the
Upper Tribunal
Even Higher
Appeals
Permission
Applications
Permission
Applications
No LTR /
No Barrier to Removal
/ ARE
Judicial
Review
Fresh Claim
/ Further
Submissions
Asylum: Stages and Barriers to Removal

3. LTR
Refugee
Status
Humanitarian
Protection
Other
Leave
Asylum
Claim
Leave to Remain Granted – What next?
• If Refugee Status or Humanitarian Protection is granted
then the claimant will have permission to stay, which
they must apply to extend before it runs out
• If asylum is refused and another form of leave granted,
then the claimant may want to appeal the decision
• This is particularly so for unaccompanied minors
• UASC leave granted to unaccompanied minors will
expire when they reach the age of 17½
• At that time it may be very difficult for them to
successfully apply to extend their leave
• In these circumstances they are likely to become
overstayers and face enforcement action when they
turn 18
• A refusal to grant refugee
status carries a right of
appeal even where
other leave is granted
Appeal to
the FTT

4. Asylum
Claim
Appeal to
the FTT
Refusal of Asylum – What next?
• Normally there will be a right of appeal (to the First Tier Tribunal),
however…
• If the claim is certified as ‘clearly unfounded’ there is no right of appeal
Judicial
Review
Fresh Claim
/ Further
Submissions
• The most likely remedy for a certified refusal is
Judicial Review to lift the certificate and enable a
right of appeal, if there are grounds
• If time has passed and circumstances have
changed or new evidence is available, then
further submissions raising a fresh claim is
another possibility
• There is a deadline for
appeals to be lodged,
after which a claimant
becomes Appeal
Rights Exhausted
• Late appeals can
sometimes be made

5. LTR
Refugee
Status
Humanitarian
Protection
Other
Leave
Appeal from
the FTT
Appeal to FTT Allowed – What next?
Appeal to the
Upper Tribunal
Permission
Applications
• In most cases an allowed appeal will lead to a grant of
leave to remain
• However the Secretary of State is a party to the
appeal and can also challenge the decision
• If the Secretary of State
decides to appeal the
decision of the FTT then
leave will not be granted
unless and until
permission to appeal is
refused
• If permission is granted
then the claimant will
have to fight their case
in the Upper Tribunal
and risk losing

6. Appeal from
the FTT
Permission
Applications
Fresh Claim
/ Further
Submissions
Appeal to FTT Dismissed – What next?
• There is a right to apply to the FTT for permission to the Upper Tribunal
• If that is refused, then the application can be renewed to the Upper Tribunal
• Permission will only be granted if it is arguable that a ‘material error of law’
has been made
Appeal to the
Upper Tribunal
• If permission is refused by
the Upper Tribunal then
one remedy is a ‘Cart’ JR
(named after the first
person to succeed in
doing this)
• Alternatively a fresh claim
may still be possible
(based on new evidence
or a change of
circumstances)
• There is a deadline in which to make permission
applications, after which the claimant becomes
‘ARE’ (Appeal Rights Exhausted)
Judicial
Review

7. LTR
Refugee
Status
Humanitarian
Protection
Other
Leave
Appeal to
the FTT
Appeal to the
Upper Tribunal
Error Found by UT – What next?
• Having identified a material error of law, the appeal can
be remitted to the FTT to be re-heard by a different
immigration judge
• Alternatively the Upper
Tribunal can substitute it’s
own decision for that of the
FTT, which can be to allow
or dismiss the original
appeal
• What they do will depend
on the nature of the error
and what is required to
correct it
• If the error can be
corrected without the
need for further evidence
to be heard then the second
course of action is more likely
• Remember that the Secretary of State also has a right of
appeal!

8. Appeal from the
Upper Tribunal
Even Higher
Appeals
Permission
Applications
Fresh Claim
/ Further
Submissions
Appeal to UT dismissed – What next?
• There is a right to apply
to the Upper Tribunal for
permission to appeal to
the Court of Appeal
• If permission is refused
then the application can
be renewed to the Court
of Appeal
• For permission to be
granted, a different test
applies
• The appeal must be on a
point of law, and
• It must raise some
important point or
principal, or
• There must be some
other compelling reason
for the court to hear the
case
• It is also possible for the Upper tribunal to
review it’s own decision, either on it’s own
initiative, or on application by one of the
parties
• If there is no possibility of any review or
onward appeal then the only avenue left is
further submissions to raise a fresh claim

9. Even Higher
Appeals
So what is above the Court of Appeal?
• Above the Court of Appeal there is the Supreme Court
– It is very rare for cases to get as far as the Supreme Court
– The Supreme Court replaced the House of Lords as the highest court in the UK
• There is also the European Court of Human Rights
– It is also very rare for cases to go to the ECtHR
– However it is not essential for cases to have been considered by the Supreme
Court for an application to be made to the ECtHR – the ECtHR is wholly outside
the domestic appeals process
– It is essential that there be no effective domestic remedy for an alleged breach
of Human Rights
– This could happen where established domestic caselaw means there is no
prospect of an appeal or judicial review succeeding in the UK, but the issue in
question has yet to be addressed by the ECtHR

10. LTR
Refugee
Status
Humanitarian
Protection
Other
Leave
Appeal Rights Exhausted – What next?
Fresh Claim
/ Further
Submissions
• It is possible to make ‘further submissions’ under Rule
353 of the Immigration Rules
• Further submissions need to be lodged in person at
the Further Submissions Unit (FSU) in Liverpool unless
there are exception circumstances
• What constitutes exceptional circumstances is defined
in the policy on further submissions. It covers things
such as inability to travel (due to severe illness, etc.),
unaccompanied minors, detention, pending JR’s etc.
• Outstanding further submissions are a barrier to
removal

11. LTR
Refugee
Status
Humanitarian
Protection
Other
Leave
Appeal Rights Exhausted – Continued…
Fresh Claim
/ Further
Submissions
• Further submissions can sometimes result
in a grant of leave
• Sometimes it might be possible to make an
application under another immigration
route
Non-Asylum
Application

12. Judicial
Review
Further Subs Refused – What next?
Fresh Claim
/ Further
Submissions
Appeal to
the FTT
• If the further submissions amount to a fresh claim there
will be a right of appeal.
• Further submissions will amount to a fresh claim if the
content:
• Has not already been considered, and
• Taken together with previously considered
material, creates a realistic prospect of
success
• The Home Office will
decide whether further
submissions amount to
a fresh claim.
• If they decided that
there is no fresh claim,
then the remedy is
Judicial Review
However, if the original submissions were weak,
then another fresh claim may be more appropriate

13. The Future?

14. LTR
Refugee
Status
Humanitarian
Protection
Other
Leave
Asylum
Claim
Appeal to
the FTT
Appeal to the
Upper Tribunal
Permission
Applications
• Section 20 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 allows the Home
Office to serve something called a ‘Priority Removal Notice’ or PRN
• This is a notice requiring you to provide evidence and information
within a certain timescale
• The PRN remains in force for a year
Appeal with a Priority Removal Notice
PRN + Certified
• It is NOT part of the appeal
process
• However, if you make an asylum
or human rights claim while a
PRN is in force, any later appeal
must be expedited
• A new Section 82A to the
Nationality, Immigration and
Asylum Act 2002 allows your
claim to be ‘certified’
• This redirects your appeal to the
Upper Tribunal
• These provisions were not
commenced at time of writing