Tier 4 cap (5 years limit)

[mohd]

Hi guys,
Please I need your pros of wisdom on a troubling situation.

Here’s goes;
-I was granted a 4 yrs Tier4 visa for a BSc course with foundation year (Sept 2010 – Dec 2014)

-In Dec 2014 I applied for a 2 months’ extension to complete a module (and dissertation) owning to extenuating circumstances that had cause delays in completion

-Didn’t hear back from HO for a while so I initiated a contact (since they had my passport and I needed to travel)

-In April 2015 they refused my application on the basis of a “falsified bank statement” (note, I’d used my parents’ overseas bank statement for maintenance)

-Since this was an accusation leading to a ban, I had to stay here and fight to clear my record

-After a lengthy Judicial review process, it was revealed that HO had made a mistake by contacting the wrong bank for the verification

-HO agreed to reconsider & granted the application retrospectively - until Dec 2016 (still T4 visa)

-Now, I have unconditional offer to progress onto a Masters programme starting in Jan 2017, however, university compliance team will not issue CAS as I have been on Tier 4 well over the 5-year cap (in accordance with Tier 4 policy guidance) and they dont like refusals on their sponsorship record.

This is a catch-22 situation because I was accused of fraud and had to clear my name and good character, I am now being penalised by the system for challenging HO’s wrong decision. I have not studied for the past 2 years (of the Judicial review) and the Tier 4 Visa that was finally granted to cover the JR period should not be included in the calculation of the 5-year cap.

Please I need your thoughts on how to deal with this. It doesn’t seem like the word ‘justice’ has any active meaning.

Thank you.

[sah10406]

the Tier 4 Visa that was finally granted to cover the JR period should not be included in the calculation of the 5-year cap.

I disagree. All the time you have spent in the UK under Tier 4 is included. I don't see anything in either the Policy Guidance or the Sponsor Guidance that says the sponsor or the Home Office should be excluding it. Your new sponsor will have taken advice from the Home Office before deciding whether they can sponsor you.

I'm afraid I would have advised that you left the UK in January 2015 when your presumably your studies were finished, to prevent this from happening. Having chosen to stay, I can't see any way you can do any further degree level studies under Tier 4, except if it was an excluded area of study or a PhD level course. Sorry.

[mohd]

the Tier 4 Visa that was finally granted to cover the JR period should not be included in the calculation of the 5-year cap.

I disagree. All the time you have spent in the UK under Tier 4 is included. I don't see anything in either the Policy Guidance or the Sponsor Guidance that says the sponsor or the Home Office should be excluding it. Your new sponsor will have taken advice from the Home Office before deciding whether they can sponsor you.

I'm afraid I would have advised that you left the UK in January 2015 when your presumably your studies were finished, to prevent this from happening. Having chosen to stay, I can't see any way you can do any further degree level studies under Tier 4, except if it was an excluded area of study or a PhD level course. Sorry.

Thanks for your reply. I hope you read and understood the reason I have had to stay behind after the completion of my degree.

Also, am not sure how you arrived at January 2015, but the point is that after HO completed their review of my application and refused it on the premise of "falsified bank documents" (which implies, deception and auto ban from the UK), I had to recourse to JR to prove they were wrong and have my record cleansed.

In doing so, it took 2yrs to get to the bottom of it, and after their maladministration was found out, they conceded to reconsidering my application and hence granted the visa - covering all those 2 yrs of JR challenge. My point is, HO should not have given me T4 to cover the last two years (as I was not studying but challenging their wrong decision) instead they should have another visa category mainly for situations like this as I am now being disadvantaged by the t4 cap which effectively denies me a right to study.

Staying in the UK to study...and staying in the UK to get HO to see their case working errors and correct it (whilst dealing with their stubborn insistence which could only be dissolved through a legal challenge), are two separate things altogether.

[sah10406]

am not sure how you arrived at January 2015

I was estimating the end date of your studies, based on you applying for a 2 month extension in November 2014.

I understand your point, and your frustration, but having been granted Tier 4 leave in respect of a degree level course, it is correctly counted towards the 5-year cap whether you were studying or not. I can't see any solution, other than distance learning, which would not require a Tier 4 visa, require just the occasional Short Term Student visa.

[mohd]

am not sure how you arrived at January 2015

I was estimating the end date of your studies, based on you applying for a 2 month extension in November 2014.

...it is correctly counted towards the 5-year cap whether you were studying or not...

I applied in December 2014 not Nov...anyway, I do think the UKVI system needs some absolute 'trumping' lol

Making policies that deliberately inhibits people's ability and effectively penalises them at all cost is the reason for the recent rise in change solicitation.

Very frustrating.