Rule 320(7C)
The UK Border Agency has included a new rule, rule 320(7C), in HC 607. HC 607 is the recent Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules. The Statement of Changes add a concession made by the government into the Immigration Rules. This concession relaxes re-entry bans, initially added in HC 321, in certain circumstances. The concession was initially announced in the House of Commons on 13 May 2008.
The new rule is effective from 30 June 2008. Prior to HC 607, the concession appeared in the parliamentary reports and in entry clearance guidance notes. This concession now appears in the Immigration Rules. It states that rule 320(7C) will not apply for:
- Spouse visa, Civil Partner visa, Unmarried Partner visa, Fiancé(e) visa or Proposed Civil Partner visa applications,
- Dependant Relative applications, including aplications for a parent or grandparent,
- Applications allowing access rights to a child,
- Spouse, Civil Partner, Unmarried Partner applications of a person with Humanitarian Protection,
- Spouse, Civil Partner, Unmarried Partner applications of a refugee, or
- an applicant who was under 18 years of age at the time of any breaches of the UK Immigration Rules.
Furthermore, 320(7B) will not be applied to people who leave the UK before 1 October, 2008. As this last concession is time limited, it is not included in the Immigration Rules.
Rule 320(11)
Rule 320(11) is also included in HC 607, the recent Statement of Changes. This places the exemption to the concession into the Immigration Rules, stating that an applicant that has in the past made an effort to frustrate the intentions of the UK Immigration Rules is exempt from the concession.
There is separate UK Entry Clearance Guidance which indicates that there must be aggravating factors for the exemption to the concessions to apply. The UK Border Agency states that an example of where an applicant has contrived to defeat the intention of the rules would be someone who has entered into a bogus marriage.
Immigration control cannot conflict with Human Rights. This is an important consideration when applying the Immigration Rules to your own circumstances. Many applicants need to leave the UK before being able to make a valid application to return to the UK for the purposes of joining their family. If their visa application succeeds then the requirement of having been made to leave the UK in order to make the application does not interfere with family life. If the application is rejected due to rule 320(11), then it may be appropriate to argue that there has been a clear interference to family life.
If you require professional legal advice and assistance with this complex area of UK Immigration, contact Mulberry Finch’s lawyers today.
