Naturalisation Refused

[ootum04]

Hi Guys,

I needs some advised urgently. I sent my application on 1st Dec 2016. Today I have received my refusal. I sent my application by myself. The reason they gave on the refusal letter is as below:

You were here without valid leave in the UK between 15/05/2007 till 18/02/2008 when you left UK. You were not therefore compliant with UK immigration laws during that period.

You have provided information on your application which clearly shows that you were working here without permission between 2007 and 2008. And you cannot therefore satisfy the criteria at chapter 18, Annex D, paragraph 9.7c of the nationality instructions. Your application has therefore been refused.

It is open to you to re-apply for citizenship at any time but an application made before 16/08/2018 is unlikely to succeed. Before submitting a further application for citizenship, you should ensure that you meet all of the requirements.

They are refunding my £80 for the ceremony. Plus they says if you believe the decision to refuse your application was not soundly based on nationality law, policy or our procedures and you wish it to be reconsidered, you must complete form NR and pay a fee....

Now my story is like this, I came in Feb 2004 as tourist and converted my visa to student visa which was allowed at the time. But in 2007 when I sent for an extension, I got refused saying that I needed to get an entry clearance from my home country Mauritius. So they ask me to leave UK on 16 may 2007. I consulted a solicitor in Surrey at the time and I was advised to make an appeal although I been told it's 50/50. But I needed to buy some time so I went ahead with the appeal. Today I call the solicitor but they have any record as it's been over 6 yrs and they still remember me n my case.

Now I was under impression that when we make an appeal, and until we hear a final decision from court or Home office, we are still allow to work. So I was working and saving up a bit coz I knew if I have to go back I will struggle and I didn't wanted to borrow money from anyone...

Meanwhile I met my girlfriend who is a Uk citizen and we got married and I came on spouse visa and in 2010 I applied And got my ILR.

Ladies n gents, I want to know if I got a chance to apply for reconsideration if I can prove my documents was in court/home office during my appeal in 2007. And this time do I Need to sent my passports and all documents again with my NR application????? I really want to know this coz my brothers wedding is in august.. so I have to decide asap. Please advice what my best shot. If you require any other info, pls ask and will reply accordingly.

Many thanks in adv,
Bless x

[vinny]

Did you appeal an in-time application? What was the outcome of your appeal in 2007 and what happened afterwards?

[ootum04]

My appeal was refused and I returned back in Feb 2008. Then after my girlfriend came and we got married and I came back to Uk on spouse visa by July 2008.

Then in 2010 I got my ILR. Now I want to know if I can appeal if I can prove that I made an appeal in may 2007 for my visa refusal..

Also please let me know if I appeal, do I need to send all my documents again including passport.

Thanks

[Obie]

Did you attend a hearing, and was the appeal lodged in time.

The question that Vinny asked are very significant in determining whether the decision is wrong or not.

[ootum04]

No I didn't attend any hearing. And I believed my appeal was made on time... I will have those date on Monday and if I can't get it from my solicitor coz they don't keep record for more than six years then what would be my best option to find out the exact dates. It's really hard to accept that they just pick up on this.

[secret.simon]

You can also write to the Home Office to make a Subject Access Request for a copy of the data they have on you and the dates they have on their records. That may help you understand the case against you and give you grounds to progress.

I came in Feb 2004 as tourist and converted my visa to student visa

Now I was under impression that when we make an appeal, and until we hear a final decision from court or Home office, we are still allow to work. So I was working

That may be another area of concern.

When you appeal, your existing leave is extended by Section 3C. That also means that you are still governed by the same terms and conditions of your leave status as then.

I do not know the terms of a student visa as then, but if the student visa did not allow you to work more than a certain number of hours a week, that requirement would have also extended into the appeal period.

So, if you exceeded the number of hours of work in that period, that could also be counted against the "good character" requirement for your naturalisation.

Given that you have been asked to wait for just an extra year, it is also worth reflecting as to whether it may not be time and cost-effective to merely wait out the year and reapply in 2018.