Mrs. C arrived in the UK under a Tier 2 (General) visa category in 2014. Her leave was due to expire in early 2017.
Mrs. C changed her employer and made the appropriate application to UKVI for a change of employment, which she submitted at a UKVI Premium Centre.
On the day of her Premium appointment, Mrs. C was informed that her application could not be considered as there were further enquiries needed to be made on the case. Mrs. C was not told what those enquiries were or when she could expect a decision.
Mrs. C sought an update to her case, but Home Office was not giving any timeframe. The uncertainty affected her and her prospective employer who was getting worried and considering employing someone else instead.
Next, Mrs. C also pursued this matter via her local MP, who sent two letters to UKVI but still no decision was forthcoming. By now she had been waiting for over eight months for a decision, she needed to travel, and her prospective employer was considering withdrawing the certificate of sponsorship.
Crestfallen that UKVI was not deciding her case nor indicating any progress, and that nothing came to fruition via her local MP, Mrs. C contacted A Y & J Solicitors for advice.
Crestfallen that UKVI was not deciding her case nor indicating any progress, and that nothing came to fruition via her local MP, Mrs. C contacted A Y & J Solicitors for advice. We had an initial consultation with Mrs. C and advised her that it was arguable that the delay of the UKVI was unlawful. Mrs. C instructed us to submit a Pre-Action Protocol letter arguing that Mrs. C was not given the precise nature as to why her case was being delayed and/or what enquiries were being made.
It was argued that Mrs. C’s case fell under a Point-Based System (PBS) application and the purpose of the PBS system was to be transparent. Fairness demanded that an Applicant is made aware why there is any delay so that he/she can make appropriate representations to address any concerns of Home Office. It was further argued that UKVI was not transparent and had failed to achieve any service standard timeframe to consider such applications.
Within 2 days of submitting the Pre-Action Letter, Mrs. C was contacted directly by UKVI to apologise for the delay and confirmed that a decision had now been made. Mrs. C collected her decision from UKVI and received the positive decision on her Tier 2 application.
Mrs. C had attempted to resolve her case by writing letters to UKVI and going to her local MP for assistance. She could not wait any longer, so based on our advice she lodged her pre-action letter and woke UKVI up to make a decision. If they did not make a decision, then Mrs. C would have considered proceeding with permission to apply for a Judicial Review. Thankfully it was not needed in this case, and Mrs. C saved significant resources and time needed in pursuing such a claim.
Mrs. C can finally move on and work for her new employer.
Tier 2 General Visas UK Tier 2 (General) route has been replaced with Skilled Worker Route w.e.f. 1st December 2020….
It was my one of the best decision to choose A Y & J Solicitors for my complicated immigration case. They are very professional people providing a wonderful service. Even after a rejection of my Initial Application, they manage to overturn the decision in Administrative Review with very strong arguments. Throughout my application process, they always gave me the confidence regarding the case. I would like to thank specially to Sok Wei for taking every detail and present the case very strongly and obviously to Yash who gave me the confidence in the very first meeting. So I would recommend A Y & J Solicitors to everyone who is looking for the best solicitors firm. You will be in safe hands. Thank You