OA015152014

For the Appellant: Mr Taimour Lay, Counsel instructed by Tower Hamlets Law Centre

The appellant appeals to the Upper Tribunal from the decision of the First-tier Tribunal dismissing his appeal against a decision by an Entry Clearance Officer to refuse to issue him with entry clearance as the spouse of a person present and settled here. The First-tier Tribunal did not make an anonymity direction, and I do not consider that the appellant should be accorded anonymity for these proceedings in the Upper Tribunal.

The appellant is a national of Somalia, whose date of birth is 24 January 1953. In December 2013 he applied for entry clearance from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In his application form, he said he had resided at his current address in Addis Ababa for three years. He had come to Ethiopia in 2009 due to the civil war in Somalia. His sponsor was Amina Abdi Ali, a British national whose date of birth is 1 February 1949. She had been born in Somalia, and had been living in the UK since 20 April 2002.

On the topic of the English language requirement, they were instructed that as a result of the appellant�s mental condition he was unable to meet this requirement and so he requested an exemption on this basis. A medical report was attached.

He also considered whether his application raised or contained any exceptional circumstances which, consistent with the right to respect for family life contained in Article 8 ECHR, might warrant consideration by the Secretary of State of a grant of entry clearance to come to the United Kingdom outside the requirements of the Rules. He had decided that it did not.