How Long Does a Spouse Visa Appeal Take?

When your spouse’s visa is refused you have various alternatives depending on your circumstance or reason for the rejection.

In these circumstances, a lawyer can assist you in finding and managing your immigration case. Although this is not mandatory, it is meant to protect you from any legal problems and reduce the burden of responding to the Home Secretary and handling the appeal process.

Often, they suggest that new applications be submitted, but sometimes it might be advisable to appeal.

Reasons for rejection of a marriage visa generally fall into two categories: eligibility and validity.

Eligibility is the condition of the visa to obtain a visa. Validation consists of checking whether an application is correct.

These reasons can be avoided or minimized if applicants take time to ensure that the applications are completed with care.

Some common reasons for refusing a Spouse visa are:

UK Spouse visa applications are commonly refused for the following reasons:

• The minimum financial requirements (an income of £18,600 per year or saving £62,500) are not met
• Immigration officials believe your marriage is not genuine or subsisting
• You have submitted incorrect documentation
• The forms have not been filled out correctly
• The English language requirement is not met

Your decision letters explain whether your decision was denied.

These can usually be used only when the ECHR is in accordance with Article 8 of the ECHR.

The article states that all of the individuals who are in this country should be protected by law from a violation of their privacy. This information can be found under Article 8:

Right to Respect for Private and Family Life

1. Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence.
2. There shall be no interference by a public authority with the exercise of this right except such as is in accordance with the law and is necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security, public safety or the economic well-being of the country, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.

If UKVI is found to have made a decision which is in breach of their obligations under Article 8, immigration rules or policy guidance, it may be forced to re-examine the decision and grant leave to remain.

Applicants should be notified of why their application was refused.

If the reason for the refusal was something that could be fairly easily rectified, such as an error on the application form or a missing document, you could correct the mistake and reapply straight away.

If your application was refused, you may be entitled to appeal at an administrative review, where if you believe there was an error in judgement in the decision you received, it will be taken to a review and potentially overturned.

Appeals are not always guaranteed and can only be made on the grounds of a human rights claim being refused.

Under the European Convention on Human Rights, you may be eligible to apply to revoke the order providing that you demonstrate you are acting under genuine human rights reasons, for instance family, private life, or seeking asylum.

Deportation is a serious matter, and means you are legally unable to enter the country for at least 10 years depending on the severity of your case. It is crucial you do not allow for this to happen, and know your rights.

In a last resort scenario, you can opt for a judicial review. It is only available where a court permits it, and requires specialist legal advice.

This is not a decision to be taken lightly, so we advise you speak to one of our Immigration team who can mentor you through the process if that is the route you choose to take.

Seeking guidance with appealing a refused Spouse visa is highly advised as there are legal documents that have to be assessed. Our Immigration lawyers can assist you with your refusal appeal.

You will only have 14 days from receiving your refusal decision to formally request an appeal.

Once the appeal has been submitted, you may need to wait up to 12 months for a result.