Select Committee on Home Affairs Additional Written Evidence


48.  Memorandum submitted by the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal

IMPROVEMENTS TO THE ENTRY CLEARANCE APPEALS PROCESS

BACKGROUND

  1.  HASC visited the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal (AIT) hearing centre at Taylor House on 20 April.

  2.  A number of questions were put by members of the committee related to the entry clearance appeals process and what improvements to the process are being implemented. This note summarises the background of the issue and the work in progress to streamline the current entry clearance process.

SUMMARY OF ISSUE

  3.  The key issue and concern raised has been the time taken to advance an appeal to hearing following the lodging of the appeal form with either the entry clearance post or the AIT.

  4.  A submission was provided to ministers in December setting out a range of options for streamlining the entry clearance appeals process including legislative and non-legislative measures.

  5.  The intentions were to maintain the flexibility in the entry clearance lodging arrangements to lodge appeals with EC posts or with the AIT in the UK, whilst introducing administrative measures to streamline the process and save an average of seven weeks from the end to end process.

  6.  Process improvements are being implemented by an Entry Clearance Working Group, comprising officials of the DCA, UK Visas and IND.

WORK IN PROGRESS

  7.  Under practice agreed with the Tribunal, and published in UKvisas' Diplomatic Service Procedures (DSP) the respondent has one month to compile their bundle in non-settlement and family visitor cases, and three months in settlement cases.

  8.  These time limits are adhered to in directions set by the Tribunal. However, as the Tribunal's procedure rules provide for 28 calendar days for the service of documents, both from and to the Tribunal, where a party to the appeal is outside the country, the time set out in directions has to effectively be 56 days longer than the actual time allowed to prepare the bundle although in practice bundles may be received earlier than this because of actual delivery times. The improvements of a streamlined appeals process will be realised by:

—  Appeals being treated as lodged when they are received at the entry clearance post, and not after they have been forwarded to and received by the AIT.

—  Timescales allowed for compiling appeal bundles beginning from the date the entry clearance post sends the notice of appeal to the AIT, or in any event no later than 10 days following receipt of the appeal at the entry clearance post. These two measures will result in a saving of 56 calendar days from the current process timescales.

—  Use of electronic systems for appeal notification with posts and for deciding issues relating to timeliness or validity of appeals.

—  Production of clearer guidance and appeal forms by the DCA for all parties in entry clearance appeals.

—  Consideration of methods of transiting documents between the Tribunal and entry clearance posts.

IMPLEMENTATION

  9.  Implementation of the streamlined process reduce timescales by seven weeks will be staggered, beginning with the smaller entry clearance posts on 1 June 2006. Larger entry clearance posts will adopt the streamlined process from 1 October 2006.

  10.  The Entry Clearance Working Group is continuing work on the use of electronic systems for document exchange as a number of IT issues need to be resolved.

11 May 2006





 
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