WEIGHTMANS – 15 May 2023
”Therefore this COVID-19 concession was of no assistance to our client at the material time of your involvement when proper advice was required i.e. between 1 February and 10 February 2021.“
OUR COMMENTS
It was of assistance if UK Migration Lawyers had:
- Not misrepresented our immigration history and current status – https://lawsjaws.co.uk/?p=6443
- Applied for exceptional assurance – 39E(5) to prevent overstaying – https://lawsjaws.co.uk/?p=7741
Coronavirus extension concession (CEC) and exceptional assurance concession
The Exceptional Assurance Concession: 1 September 2020 to 28 February 2023
Exceptional assurance was introduced on 1 September 2020 as a response to ongoing international travel disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. It followed the Coronavirus Extension Concession and the grace period which had come to an end.
Exceptional assurance offered individuals a short-term protection against any adverse action or consequences after their permission had expired, where they were unable to leave the UK due to COVID-19.
It was an assurance given upon successful request to the Home Office. Individuals were required to email the Home Office’s Coronavirus Immigration Team (CIT) providing details including their full name, date of birth, and the reason(s) for requesting an exceptional assurance. Exceptional assurance did not grant any form of immigration permission to individuals, but instead prevented current or future adverse consequences from overstaying during the period of assurance given.
Where there were COVID-19 travel restrictions in place or another reason to prevent them leaving the UK, such as self-isolation required due to COVID-19, a person was granted exceptional assurance for a period of ten weeks. If there were no travel restrictions or other reasons for being unable to leave the UK, requestors were given a short-term period of assurance referred to as a short-term assurance, for a period of two weeks, to allow them time to leave the UK.
The policy intent was that during a period with exceptional assurance or short-term assurance the holder would not be regarded as an overstayer or suffer any detriment in future applications relating to that period. Those granted exceptional or short-term assurance were informed they could apply for permission to stay or leave the UK before the expiry of their assurance.
Where a request for exceptional assurance was approved, the requestor was issued a letter confirming they had been granted an exceptional assurance or short-term assurance that would allow the requestor to stay in the UK until a specified date, upon which the assurance would end. A person could be granted multiple consecutive exceptional assurances, so a person could request exceptional assurances consecutively between September 2020 and February 2023, until such a time that they were able to leave the UK.
Paragraph 39E(5) of the Immigration Rules was amended so that overstaying during periods where the person held an exceptional assurance or short-term assurance will be disregarded and will not break continuous residence. This period however does not count as lawful presence.