Legal Lab

Sham Marriages Encouraged by Amendment to Immigration Law?

Law is a constantly changing field. Ask immigration solicitors Leicester or in other parts of Great Britain, and they will confirm that this is especially the case with immigration law. Since the face of Europe is changing as we speak and the notion of borders has become much more flexible than it once was, it is understandable that laws also need to change, in order to accommodate current conditions, socio-economic trends and events. To this end, the Border Agency from UK has come up with all-new policy guidelines. The new policy emerged after a publicized case, which involved two defending spouses brought to court by the Secretary of State for the Home Department. The case raised the issue of the legality and ethics of marriages to foreign spouses, as well as the latter’s status in the UK.

Issues Raised

The situation of Quila and Bibi (defended by immigration solicitors Leicester) versus the Secretary of State for the Home Department, essentially challenged one particular provision of the immigration law, or the Immigration Rules—specifically paragraph 277. Those who are not familiarized with the text should know that the paragraph addresses the issue of the youngest possible age accepted by law for foreign spouses. Also discussed in the text is the minimum age for the age of the spouses’ local, United Kingdom-based sponsors. It says that all parties involved must be at least twenty-one before the spouse can obtain a visa, either to simply enter the country, or to set up a more permanent arrangement. This paragraph was amended on 27 November 2008, together with several other provisions of the Immigration Rules. In 2008, the minimum age was increased from eighteen to twenty-one.
The Supreme Court admitted that the aim pursued by the Secretary of State was reasonable and made sense, as they meant to put a stop on sham or forced marriages. However, changing the law in order to raise the minimum age needed to obtain a marriage visa to twenty-one would eventually come to interfere with the rights of spouses involved in actual marriages.

Notable Amendments

The changes to the Immigration Rules were recently debated in Parliament. According to the new policy guidance, eighteen is the minimum age for all types of partnerships romantic and sexual in nature, be they sanctioned by law or civil partnerships. The same rules apply both to heterosexual and homosexual relationships, as well as to UK-based sponsors. The rules entered force and started being applied on November 28, 2011. Additionally, they also explain how applicants whose living arrangements in the UK were impacted by the decision could ask for a reevaluation of the previous decision, which resulted in their application being denied, no later than May 31, 2012.

Sham marriage cases are rather frequent in the United Kingdom, as proven by a recent event in Leicestershire, which ended in the arrest of two Indian ethnics and a British citizen. Essentially, the two people of Indian origin had wed in India, with the Brit as their witness. The husband applied for a marriage visa and eventually gained entrance in the UK, while his supposed ‘wife’ had a baby… by her sponsor and former wedding witness. When the legal husband applied for a permanent visa, local police started an investigation and eventually uncovered the fraud.

December 21, 2011  Leave a comment

Recent Immigration-Related Arrests in Leicester

Immigration issues have recently returned to the forefront of the British legal scene, as two major immigration-related events made headlines in several British newspapers. The two occurrences prove the efficiency of local police, as well as the fact that the legal and criminal apprehension system can work in perfect conjunction. One situation involves thirty-seven year-old Polish citizen Slawomir Jasiecki, previously convicted for drug trafficking back in his native Poland. The second incident relates to a sham marriage, discovered in early December. There were three citizens arrested in the latter case: thirty-seven year old Suchinsth Kayasth, thirty-four year-old Meena Tailor (both of Indian ethnics) and Errol Kincarr, a thirty-two year-old British citizen.

The Polish Connection

Local Police officers from Leicester and officers from the UK Border Agency collaborated, in order to apprehend Slawomir Jasiecki. The convicted criminal was tracked down and located in hiding at his home in Anstey Lane. He was arrested on October 7, 2011. Polish tribunals had already tried and convicted the man for trafficking illegal substances, with a European Arrest Warrant previously issued in the man’s name. The arrest warrant prompted a long and strenuous search for the convicted criminal across Europe. Upon apprehending and arresting the man, police officers discovered the man had forged Lithuanian identity documents to conceal his actual country of origin. The documents were found at the Anstey Lane property, yet it is unclear to what extent or to what ends they had been used. Jasiecki appeared in court on October 8, 2011. He was bailed and subsequently extradited from the United Kingdom on October 18, 2011. Sergeant Pete Copple, who works for the Leicestershire criminal and financial immigration team, told the press that the police want to make sure that criminals understand they cannot simply use Leicestershire as a hide-out. According to Copple, all “foreign criminals, fraudsters” and those involved in sham marriages must face the consequences of their criminal actions in their homelands. Copple then went on to argue in favor of the importance of intelligence to the success of any police operation. The officer called on all citizens who hold or think they might hold relevant information pertaining to immigration-relate crime to contact the fully anonymous, free Crimestoppers phone service.

Bollywood-Like Drama

The arrest involving the two Indian ethnics and one British citizen has a long and complex back story. Essentially, it all started on the day Kayasth married Tailor in India, in early 2006. Kincarr was their marriage witness. Kayasth applied for an entry visa to the United Kingdom twice—he was first turned down, but his application was eventually accepted in 2007. It all got complicated when Tailor had a baby with Kincarr in 2008. This, however, did not stop Kayasth to apply for a permanent visa in 2009, when he argued he was still in a relationship with the woman. This actually prompted the investigation, which led to the discovery of the sham marriage.

Legal Assistance

Immigrants who are in need of legal assistance are also provided for. If you need solicitors Leicester, as well as most other areas in Britain, will put a wide range of options at your disposal. Most good firms provide the whole range of options, from property and personal injury to employment and family law.

December 21, 2011  Leave a comment