Asylum Application

Our UK Immigration Solicitors have successfully represented and submitted hundreds of asylum applications and understand in detail the complexities of the process. With a diverse team of Immigration lawyers we also possess specific country and regional knowledge to ensure that your application is presented accurately and concisely.

What is an Asylum Application

The Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, also known as the 1951 Refugee Convention or the Geneva Convention of 28 July 1951, is a United Nations multilateral treaty to which the united Kingdom is a party and that defines who a refugee is, and sets out the rights of individuals who are granted asylum and the responsibilities of nations that grant asylum. The Convention also sets out which people do not qualify as refugees, such as war criminals.

Requirements

Article 1 of the Convention defines a refugee as:

Any person owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it.

All asylum seekers who either arrive spontaneously—those who reach the UK by their own means and are encountered at their point of entry, or later by police or social services—must apply for asylum if they want to stay in the UK as a refugee.

They must therefore register your asylum claim at a meeting with an immigration officer known as a ‘screening’. During this meeting, they will be photographed, fingerprinted, and interviewed, and must produce passports, travel documents, and identification documents (if they have them).

After this, you will be assigned a caseworker and may be detained at an immigration removal centre (it is possible for us to apply for immigration bail in this unlikely event) while your application is considered. You will undergo a further interview to explain and provide evidence to support your asylum claim, before your application is granted or denied. If you are Successful in your asylum application you will usually be granted five years’ leave to remain, after which you can apply to settle in the UK.

It is important to note that should your case be assessed and found that you do not qualify for Asylum, you may still qualify for Humanitarian protection.

Humanitarian protection was introduced in 2003 to fulfil the UK’s obligations under the 2004 EU Qualification Directive. It replaced the previous Exceptional Leave to Remain (ELR) policy.

Humanitarian protection (referred to as subsidiary protection in EU law) is for people who do not qualify for refugee status under the terms of the Refugee Convention but are still in need of international protection. Under the UK’s Immigration Rules, a person may be granted humanitarian protection when they face a real risk of serious harm on one or more of the following grounds: the death penalty or execution, unlawful killing, torture or inhuman or degrading treatment, prison conditions, general violence and other severe humanitarian conditions, or, indiscriminate violence.

If you were to qualify for humanitarian protection you would be usually granted five years’ limited leave to remain, during which time you may work and can access public funds if needed. After five years, a safe return review will be carried out to determine whether you are still in need of protection and may be placed on a route to settlement. If you no longer qualify for protection, you must apply to remain on another basis or leave the UK.

If your asylum application is refused then you would normally have a right to appeal or to make a fresh application.

We can help you understand the entire asylum application process and help provide the necessary documentation assistance and draft your asylum statement. London Solicitors has an impressive success rate for asylum applications.

Asylum Application , Lawyers for Asylum Seekers , Claim Asylum in the UK

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