If you have been refused an ILR for whatever reason......
Posted: Sat Mar 13, 2010 4:12 pm
My case in point. I applied for an ILR (after 10 yrs of residency) in summer of 2008. I applied through a solicitor. Almost a year letter (summer 2009) we got a response. My application was rejected because during my student days, i had made "two out of time" applications. I was astonished by this decision as i had never sent my passport late. 95% of the time of renewing my student visa, i went to the Liverpool PO two weeks in advance and the remaining 5% i sent it via post a month before. So i had no recollection because i am always meticulous.
We discussed the way forward and decided to wait until my visa expired and then put in a fresh application or go to the AIT. Months passed and nothing. The solicitors wrote a reminder letter and got no response (i think they have a three month waiting rule) so in October of 2009, i got feed up with the pace of my application and decided to write to the HO. I wrote a heartfelt letter basically asking them to reconsider. Two weeks later i got a response asking for my passprt back etc. I sent everything and after a few remainder letters later (nice words of course) i got it last month.
I felt i undermind the solicitor because i wrote to the HO behing his back. If i had waited on his options, it might have taken a further year before everything gets sorted. Then again i don't care.
Till this day, i don't know why my application was rejected seeing as it was a straight forward application. When they asked for my stuff back, i sent them the same stuff i sent in the first place. The only difference been new bank statements. Weirdly enough the caseworker asked for bank statements for the last ten years.. I wrote in the cover letter that i could only provide statements that far (who can?)
I suppose the moral of the story is: if your application is rejected (regardless of whether you use a solicitor), write to the HO and plead with them nicely. Like in my case, they might reconsider.
Take care all
We discussed the way forward and decided to wait until my visa expired and then put in a fresh application or go to the AIT. Months passed and nothing. The solicitors wrote a reminder letter and got no response (i think they have a three month waiting rule) so in October of 2009, i got feed up with the pace of my application and decided to write to the HO. I wrote a heartfelt letter basically asking them to reconsider. Two weeks later i got a response asking for my passprt back etc. I sent everything and after a few remainder letters later (nice words of course) i got it last month.
I felt i undermind the solicitor because i wrote to the HO behing his back. If i had waited on his options, it might have taken a further year before everything gets sorted. Then again i don't care.
Till this day, i don't know why my application was rejected seeing as it was a straight forward application. When they asked for my stuff back, i sent them the same stuff i sent in the first place. The only difference been new bank statements. Weirdly enough the caseworker asked for bank statements for the last ten years.. I wrote in the cover letter that i could only provide statements that far (who can?)
I suppose the moral of the story is: if your application is rejected (regardless of whether you use a solicitor), write to the HO and plead with them nicely. Like in my case, they might reconsider.
Take care all
