The Home Office has conceded it had acted unlawfully in imposing a study restriction as a condition of bail on two individuals simply because they had failed in their initial asylum claims and exhausted their appeal rights. The concession has come less than a week before the substantive hearing due to be held on 26 November 2019.

City of Sanctuary welcome the news and congratulate all including legal representatives involved to ensure people seeking sanctuary are treated with dignity and respect.

In settling the claims, the Home Office has agreed to review and revise its Immigration Bail Guidance, conceding that:

• There is no requirement to impose a study restriction in all cases where a person is ‘appeal rights exhausted’ (ARE);
• A decision to impose any bail conditions, including a study restriction, must be made on the basis of the person’s individual circumstances, conduct and compliance; and
• That the ‘Quick Guide on Usage’ in the Immigration Bail Guidance is not intended to direct the imposition of a study restriction in all cases falling with a particular category – for example, individuals who are ‘appeals rights exhausted’.

Law firm Duncan Lewis solicitors represented two asylum-seeking university students, who won competitive Sanctuary scholarships in order to fund their studies

Full report of this case can be accessed here