any advice will be appreciated

[HHH99]

Hi there I was refused a student visa back in september telling me it was not on the dfes list. The name and address of the college is The financial training company, 179-191 borough high street london SE1 1HR. They are on the list but the only thing is you need to search for them by their address or other details as they have branches all over the country i think john a moderator from this forum checked this and found this to be the case too. So i wrote a letter asking the home office to reconsider the decision well they denied it again by saying this college only got added on to the list after my visa was refused.

Well this claim is new and i found it really out of order because my visa was refused on 16th of september 2005 which is a friday I wrote them the reconsideration letter on 20th with a printout from the DFES website so in a space of 1 working day it went from an unregistered college to a bona fide one. Not only this I have letters from the college dated in june with a bac logo on it and a letter from the college saying they were bac accreddited back in 2002 and those colleges were added on to the list automatically on Jan 2005. The only reason i think they are doing this to me is because if I'm granted leave here I would have been here for 10 years by next may and visa request is till sep'06 so they dont want me to get ILR next year and are trying every trick in the book.

IF anyone can shed light on some of these questions it will be much appreciated

1. Is the AIT an independent body or are they just another form of the home office because personally I dont think i have a shot if the are not independent of the home office as I really think the home office is out to get me you can probably see that too from the above points.

2. I originally requested for a paper based hearing but now i've asked for an oral hearing i dont know if the request will be granted but if anyone can please tell me what happens at these hearings

3. I dont have a lawyer either so representing myself which is probably not very good and what are the success rates of refused applications anyway.

4.If appeal is succesful how long before they stamp your passport.

5. Finally worst case scenario but most likely in my case How much time you have to leave the country after an AIT refusal I want to leave this country with dignity but would an ait refusal mean i will be forcefully
deported.

Any responses will be greatly appreciated. Any students out there making student visa applications I would recommend you attach a a print out from the dfes register with your college name on it when you make your application or you will probably end up where I'm.

[John]

It is a shame your started this new topic, rather than continuing to post in this one.

Have you been in contact with the college about this? Have you asked them when they went on to the Register? If so, what do they say?

I suspect that the existence of the word "The" in the title of this college has caused the problem. That College with its many branches needs to standardise on its name on the Register!

[HHH99]

I'm really sorry about that john I'm new to this site so please forgive me. The college did give me a letter saying they have been on it since jan'05 and also said in it that they have been bac accredited since 2002 but I'm sure the home office will find some way to discredit that too can you advice me on any of the questions I had about AIT as I've been searching like crazy over the internet about all this and couldn't find anything

[flyez]

As far as I know, for granting your student visa by HO, you cannot registered a lower level one than the previous one without a good reason. For example, it will be ok if you studied a diploma degree last year and tend to study a master degree this year.

Also, it should be ok say if you got an engineering master degree last year but want to get a management degree this year although they are the same level but in different field. Actually, its should be no problem if the course you want to pursue is formal degree such as GCSE, A/S level, diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate degree, etc.

Today, for non-degree course or register with a private sector, its likely Home Office will take a detailed microscope to examine whether you have any intention to stay in UK after the course end.

I don't know your details but obviously it will be easier to get a visa if you can register with a degree-level course such as some diploma course at a uk university.

[Smit]

You may find your answers in the AIT website http://www.iaa.gov.uk/

I have heard of the FTC and am sure it was on the Dfes list when it was first published.

Good luck with the appeal. If the only ground for rejection is that the FTC was not on the list and you can prove that it was at the time of lodging your original application, I am sure your appeal will be successful. If there are any other grounds for rejection, please tell us.

[HHH99]

on the initial letter this is the only reason that they stated. It says leave is refused on grounds that the college is not on the dfes list. They did not state any other grounds, my attendance was over 90%, i passed 2 out of 3 exams, the previous college was on the list too and I had about £3000 in my bank account at the time when I applied. Are they allowed to change the refusal of leave between now and the time of appeal.

Thanks for the AIT website I will check it in a sec. From next year students dont have a right of appeal although I'm not sure this is only applicable when you apply from abroad but however if it applies to applicants here applying to the home office can you imagine what fun that will be ! All i can say is pray that you do not get a moronic officer like mine

[HHH99]

Hey peeps,

Just thought I would let you guys know that I had my appeal heard yesterday and my visa has been approved. My appeal was over in less then 5 minutes !!! the judge walked in and as soon as he came in he said everything seems to be in order and that my visa will be granted. I'm so relieved its all over finally. I'm really grateful to all the members here for their valuable contributions. Once again thank you to all of you.

John buddy noticed I used the same topic so hopefully that keeps you happy now ! well have a great day all of you.

[Chess]

HHH99,

Congratulations - i am sure you are now eagerly awaiting the 10yrs to ELAPSE NEXT YEAR

good luck for the future