It seems to me that many Family Permit and other applications are refused for the most spurious and unreasonable of reasons and often without any proper explanation. Keeps the website busy haha.
You just receive one of their standard template rejection letters that is often useless in explaining why it was refused.
I know of others that applied for FP and were told they weren't even eligible to apply for a FP and were told to sign a form accepting this and they were told to apply using the UK's Visa programme instead.
It was absolute rubbish. They were eligible and got their FP when complaints were made about the false information they were fed by the visa processing people.
My personal opinion is that it is deliberate ( mistakes). Seems to me they often turn people down ( who are eligible for the FP) thinking people will just accept that and give up, cos people (wrongly) assume the Govt people must be right.
I think other reasons are that some don't know their job due to poor training or maybe it's just laziness and it's easier to refuse an application than process it.
Lesson number 1 in dealing with the UK Govt and civil service:
Do not trust what they tell you. Double check anything you are told, as they may be trying to cheat you out of your rights. If it is just a spoken conversation they will deny telling you rubbish. Always get things in writing.
If you get refused and you think it could be wrong, then don't give up. Challenge their decisions. Apply again or appeal the decision.
Write in here to tell about your problem.
Like any big organisation, some are good at their jobs and others are incompetent, lazy or dishonest or it was an honest error ( we all make them). Just depends who you get to handle your case.
Remember: UKBA is an often incompetent organisation run by an incompetent Government. Amongst its many failings is that it hired a convicted criminal (fraud) as a senior manager handling budgets of millions of UK pounds.
Read the story here and remember that when they demand all your bank details !!!! :
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... ailed.html
