The High Court has quashed a decision refusing to reconsider a late appeal of a join-family visa refusal, finding that the Minister for Justice had not meaningfully engaged with a later request for more time.
Mr Justice Barr’s judgment concerns an application by S.F. and S.M.F. The first applicant, an Irish citizen and the second applicant’s cousin, had sponsored a visa application for the second applicant, who was born in Afghanistan. The visa was refused on 29 April 2022 because of insufficient documentation, an allegedly unclear link to the sponsor and insufficient finances.
The refusal letter said an appeal had to be made within two months and that appeals sent by email would not be processed. The applicants’ solicitors emailed a brief notice of appeal on 5 July 2022, then sent appeal documents by courier in August. The Minister’s office said it would accept only a hard-copy appeal received within the time allowed. The court accepted that the Minister could require hard-copy documents and reject the July email as stopping the appeal deadline.
The applicants did not formally seek an extension of time until 9 September 2022. They cited their solicitor’s workload and personal circumstances as reasons for the delay, and argued that the humanitarian circumstances warranted an exception. The Minister replied on 12 September that the position remained as stated in August and that the appeal could not be accepted.
The court held that the Minister had discretion under paragraph 1.12 of the family reunification policy to extend the appeal deadline in appropriate cases. Once the applicants requested an extension, the Minister had to consider the request and the circumstances put forward. The September reply did not acknowledge that an extension had been requested or show engagement with the reasons given. The judge found the discretion had been exercised rigidly and unlawfully.
The court quashed the 12 September decision and remitted the extension request to the Minister for reconsideration. It made no finding on whether an extension should be granted or on the merits of the visa application. It refused the other relief sought. The parties were invited to make written submissions on the final order and costs, and the matter was listed for mention on 13 December 2023.