Asylum Appeals

The Home Office sometimes refuses applications for asylum or humanitarian protection. On occasion Home Office decision-making is harsh or unfair, and it is well-known that it is more difficult for asylum-seekers from some countries to succeed than it is for those from others.

For this reason, statistics about asylum application success rates are not entirely meaningful, because it all depends on which country you are talking about. And, also, statistics change quite significantly over time.

Very roughly speaking, about 30% of asylum applications are successful, but within this figure there is great variation between countries.

But if your asylum application is refused, all is not lost. In many cases you will have the right of appeal to the First-Tier Immigration Tribunal in the UK. So if your application is refused and you appeal you will be able to stay in the UK whilst the appeal process is happening.

The rate of success at appeal is, generally speaking, slightly higher than the rate of success for initial applications. Appeal success rates are around 30% to 40%. But, as an important general principle, it is right to say that there is a better chance of a “fair hearing” before an immigration judge (who is a qualified and experienced lawyer, and who is impartial and independent) than there is before a Home Office caseworker (who may not be any of these).

What sort of factors make a strong appeal case?

 There is no easy answer to this, because it depends on a combination of factors. In some cases the Home Office refusal decision may be weak or flawed, and this can easily be exploited at the appeal hearing. In other cases the issues may be more difficult, and may require detailed analysis. The law surrounding asylum claims is sometimes very complex.

But one thing is most definitely true: good case preparation can significantly strengthen an asylum appeal.

In any event, if your application has been refused you certainly do need to get the advice of an experienced appeals lawyer. They can give you realistic and informed advice about your case.

We at Get UK Visas are very experienced in asylum appeals, both in case preparation and advocacy before the Tribunals. We have dealt with cases in various different areas of asylum law and we can analyse your case and advise you about the best way forward.