IA010752015

The Respondent refused the Appellant's application on the basis that she did not meet the Immigration Rules as her application was submitted whilst she was in the United Kingdom as a visitor. She had not lived in the United Kingdom for at least twenty years. She had travelled to the United Kingdom after living in Ghana for 76 years. The Respondent was not satisfied the Appellant had no remaining ties to Ghana. The Appellant had family and property in Ghana and there were no exceptional circumstances on which to grant the application outside the Immigration Rules.

The Appellant told the Judge she had a daughter who had died in the United Kingdom in 1999 and was buried in Wandsworth. The Appellant could not live in Ghana because she wished to have the opportunity to visit her daughter's grave and place flowers there. She could not leave her husband to return to Ghana. She had been lied to by her husband's lawyer in or about 2014 who incorrectly advised her to apply for a visit visa rather than a settlement visa.

In closing submissions the point was made by the Appellant's representative that the Appellant had been wrongly advised. The parties had no intention to deceive the immigration authorities. The Appellant and Sponsor wanted the Appellant to settle but were advised wrongly to apply for a visit visa instead. The Appellant accepted that she was unable to meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules as she had entered the United Kingdom as a visitor and applied while she had that status.

In rejecting the Appellant's claim that the lawyer's bad advice should be taken into account the Judge wrote at paragraph 14:

The Appellant renewed her application for permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal and the matter came before Upper Tribunal Judge Plimmer on 15 th February 2016. Granting permission to appeal she wrote: