How Does a Spouse Visa Holder Prove Domestic Abuse so They Can Stay in the UK?
Immigration Advice for Domestic Violence
If a victim of domestic abuse is in the UK on a Family Visa an application can be made to stay in the UK if the relationship has ended because of the abuse.
This article focuses on what needs to be proved to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain using the domestic violence concession.
Our Immigration Solicitors and Family Law Solicitors can help by providing legal advice on specific circumstances.
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Solicitors and Indefinite Leave to Remain Lawyers
For immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi
Domestic violence as a route to stay in the UK
If you are in the UK on a Family Visa such as a Spouse Visa, Unmarried Partner Visa or Civil Partner Visa and your relationship has ended because of domestic abuse you can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain even if you have not lived in the UK for 5 years.
The immigration rules are contained in Appendix: Victims of Domestic Abuse.
Has your relationship ended because of domestic abuse?
The immigration rules say your relationship with your sponsoring partner must have ended – it can't be a temporary or trial separation. However, you do not need to have started divorce proceedings before you can apply to use the domestic violence concession.
What is classed as domestic abuse to use the Indefinite Leave to Remain domestic violence concession?
Many potential applicants for Indefinite Leave to Remain using the domestic violence concession don’t realise that this route to settlement is an option for them. Our Immigration Solicitors say that’s because:
- There is a misconception about the meaning of domestic violence – in the UK it is widely defined and no level of domestic abuse is acceptable in a relationship
- There is an assumption that a Family Visa holder doesn’t have enough evidence of domestic abuse to be able to use the concession – an arrest by the police and conviction is not necessary in all cases
- The Spouse Visa holder hasn’t taken specialist family law advice or their Family Law Solicitors have been unaware of the need for the victim of domestic abuse to take expert immigration legal advice
Our Immigration Solicitors provide Immigration Law Training to help spread the word about this often misunderstood route to UK settlement to help professionals encourage victims to take legal advice on their family law rights and their immigration options.
What is domestic abuse under Appendix Victims of Domestic Abuse?
To understand the evidence required to support an Indefinite Leave to Remain application using the concession you first need to know what counts as domestic abuse so you can then work out what evidence you have.
Domestic abuse includes:
- Physical violence
- Sexual abuse
- Psychological or emotional abuse
- Threats of violence
- Controlling or coercive behaviour
- Economic abuse or financial control
- Dowry-related abuse
- Abuse by family members such as in-laws. This can be non-physical domestic abuse such as restricting the ability to leave the family home or to meet other people outside the family or regulating what can be worn
Our Immigration Solicitors and Family Law Solicitors prefer to talk to people about their experiences to be able to advise them on whether they have been subjected to domestic abuse. For example, some applicants for Indefinite Leave to Remain have said that they had thought sexual abuse within marriage was not a form of abuse or that for domestic violence to count you needed to be badly beaten and end up in hospital. Neither of those things is true but we understand why applicants may believe that their lived experiences ‘’don’t count as domestic abuse‘’ even when they do under UK family law and the immigration rules.
What evidence is needed to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain using the domestic violence concession?
There is often no independent witness to domestic abuse because normally it takes place within the home behind closed doors.
No one should be put off from taking immigration or family law legal advice because they don’t think that they have compelling evidence of domestic abuse. It's best to speak to an expert who can work out how best to help.
The Appendix Victims of Domestic Abuse doesn’t say you must have a particular type of evidence before you can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain. Instead, the rules talk about evidence that is classed as either conclusive or compelling to show that on the balance of probabilities a relationship ended because of domestic abuse.
The balance of probabilities means more likely than not. A different standard of proof applies if you are making an application from outside the UK. For example, if a spouse took their partner overseas supposedly on a holiday but then abandoned them and returned to the UK alone.
The evidence needed and the balance of probabilities does not depend on nationality or where the ILR applicant is from. It is one test, whether the applicant is from the EU, the US, India or Pakistan. The law on domestic abuse and what counts as domestic abuse in the applicant’s home country is also not relevant – what is important is what the applicant experienced and whether that meets the wide definition of domestic abuse.
Whilst it helps to have conclusive evidence of domestic abuse under Appendix Victims of Domestic Abuse most Indefinite Leave to Remain applicants can't produce this. Examples of conclusive evidence include:
- Domestic abuse criminal conviction
- Domestic abuse police caution
- Non-molestation injunction order or occupation injunction order where the family law judge made a finding of domestic abuse
- Child arrangement order where a family law judge made a finding of domestic abuse
- Domestic abuse charging decision by the CPS
Examples of compelling evidence include a family law order where the judge made the order but did not make a finding of domestic abuse.
Our Immigration Solicitors prefer to speak to Indefinite Leave to Remain applicants or organisations to help the applicant understand the evidence requirements or to assist an organisation in supporting victims of domestic abuse in the UK on Family Visas and Spouse Visas. For example, letters from charities and organisations assisting victims of domestic abuse carry more weight with the Home Office if the letter does not focus on what the applicant has said to the organisation (classed as self-reporting) but instead is based on professional assessment.
How OTS Solicitors can help you
Even if no evidence in support can be provided the Home Office can sometimes be persuaded to grant an Indefinite Leave to Remain application using the domestic violence concession if a good case can be put together to show why no evidence could be obtained by the ILR applicant. For example, if the applicant was not allowed to leave the family home and could not get medical help or report injuries to the police.
Our Family Law Solicitors can also help ILR applicants with:
- Applying for an injunction
- Applying for a child arrangement order or prohibited steps order to protect your children
- Starting divorce proceedings
- Advising on family law rights and financial settlements
UK Online and London-Based Immigration Solicitors and Indefinite Leave to Remain Lawyers
For immigration law advice call London-based OTS Solicitors on 0203 959 9123 or contact us online.
Our lawyers speak Arabic, Armenian, Farsi, French/Mauritian Creole, Spanish, Tamil Tagalog/Ilonggo, Urdu/Punjabi
Related Posts
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Spouse Visas, Domestic Violence and Applying to Settle in the UK if Your Relationship Ends
Refusal of Indefinite Leave to Remain Application: Your Options Explained