IA201532013

For the Appellant: Ms C Bexson, Counsel, instructed by Immigration & Work Permit Ltd

Following an error of law hearing at Field House on 29 May 2014 I decided that the decision of First-tier Tribunal Judge Troup, allowing the appeal on Article 8 grounds, following a hearing in Newport on 13 February 2014, had to be set aside. My reasons were set out in the following error of law decision and directions, sent to the parties on 7 July 2014.

This is an appeal that was allowed at the First‑tier. The appellant before the Upper Tribunal is therefore the Secretary of State. For clarity and convenience, however, I will refer to the parties as they were for the First‑tier appeal.

The appellant, a citizen of the Philippines, studied in the UK between 2008 and 2010, and was then given leave for post-study work (Tier 1) between November 2010 and 8 November 2012. Before the expiry of this leave she applied for indefinite leave to remain on human rights grounds. The factual history is complex. The application was initially put forward on grounds that had altered by the time of the appeal, and had altered again by the time of the hearing.

The judge heard evidence from the appellant and her British fianc�. The judge found that the appellant could not succeed under the Immigration Rules, but he allowed the appeal on Article 8 grounds, with reference to the principle in Chikwamba v SSHD [2008] UKHL 40 . The judge found that it was disproportionate, and not in the public interest, to require the appellant to return to the Philippines solely for the purpose of making an entry clearance application.