A blind Nigerian pensioner who has spent 26 years living in the United Kingdom has been informed by the Home Office that she can safely “go home” to India.
Comfort, 67, arrived in the UK in 2000 and, shortly after settling, lost her sight to acute glaucoma.
After two decades of residence, she was granted leave to remain under the long residence rules. Those on this route must renew their visa every 30 months for a period of 10 years before they become eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain. Under the new settlement rules announced by Shabana Mahmood this week, Comfort is likely to face a further 20 years of visa renewals, meaning she would not qualify for indefinite leave to remain until she is in her 80s.
Citing her age and disability, lawyers at Refugee and Migrant Justice applied to the Home Office on her behalf, requesting indefinite leave to remain now rather than after a wait of two more decades. Immigration rules allow applications to be fast-tracked in exceptional circumstances.
The Home Office refused the request. The first part of its letter stated that she could return to Nigeria, where services exist for blind people. The refusal concluded, however, by referring to India: “Your circumstances are not so severe or lacking in potential treatment in India that it would warrant indefinite leave to remain in this case.”
Migrant rights organisations have voiced alarm at the lengthening of the settlement period following the home secretary’s announcement. For some applicants, the wait has risen sixfold.
Freedom of information data obtained by Refugee and Migrant Justice shows that many people of pensionable age have applied for settlement but are likely to die before meeting the stricter Home Office waiting requirements. One applicant listed in the data is a 103-year-old woman from Pakistan who will not be eligible for settlement until she is 123.
“In 2022, I was granted permission to stay here on the basis of my long residence in the UK,” Comfort said. “I am deeply disheartened that I may now have to wait nearly 20 years to secure indefinite leave to remain.
“I have lived in this country for 26 years. I have made my home here and settled well. I have my friends, my church and my voluntary work. I am a law-abiding citizen, and I am pleading with the Home Office to show me mercy and grant me indefinite leave to remain now, rather than making me wait another 20 years.
“I do not understand why the Home Office said I could go back to India. It is a country I have never visited and have no connection with.”
Nick Beales, head of campaigning at Migrant and Refugee Justice, who is supporting Comfort, said: “This woman is blind, in her late 60s and has lived in the UK for a quarter of a century. She meets the rules to remain here, and there is no public interest in forcing her to keep renewing her visa.
“Rather than treating these vulnerable people as human beings, the government is fixated on appearing tough. Shabana Mahmood’s plans to double the length of settlement routes will only worsen the problem, particularly when her decision-makers cannot even tell the difference between India and Nigeria.
“Government data shows that people over 80 are applying to enter these settlement routes. Although few of them are likely to survive a 10-year period, Mahmood has not explained what she hopes to achieve by making octogenarians and older applicants wait two decades for settlement. The government should admit that its earned settlement model is cruel and counter-productive, and scrap these plans once and for all.”
Home Office sources said corrective action was being taken to reissue an updated letter to the woman.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “We do not routinely comment on individual cases. All applications for permission to stay in the UK are carefully considered on their individual merits, in line with the immigration rules and based on the information and evidence provided by the applicant.”
Name has been changed.