The High Court has set aside a decision refusing family reunification visas for the mother and five siblings of an Afghan man living in Ireland, and sent the appeal back to the Minister for Justice for fresh consideration.
In a judgment delivered electronically on 8 April 2025, Mr Justice Barr found that the Minister had failed to consider two material matters when deciding whether exceptional humanitarian circumstances justified granting visas despite the sponsor not meeting the financial threshold.
The sponsor, anonymised as SK in the judgment, arrived in Ireland in 2015 aged 17 and was granted subsidiary protection in 2019. He earns about €26,000 a year. His family’s visa application was refused on appeal on 20 September 2023. The judgment records that the required weekly income was about €960, compared with his earnings of approximately €500 a week.
The judge found that the appeal decision referred to the sponsor’s protection status in its introductory section but did not show that the status had been weighed when considering exceptional circumstances. The Minister’s argument that the decision implicitly took account of it was speculative, the court said. Protection status did not itself require visas to be granted, but it was a material factor that had to be considered.
The court also accepted the challenge concerning the circumstances in Afghanistan. The sponsor had submitted that his family faced danger because of their connections to the previous regime, and that his widowed mother faced difficulties caring for the younger children under Taliban rule. The judge found no evidence in the appeal decision that the Minister had considered these submissions when assessing humanitarian circumstances.
The refusal had also cited concerns about the sponsor’s income, accommodation costs, and evidence of financial support and family relationships. The court did not determine the remaining grounds of challenge, finding that the decision could not stand and a fresh appeal was required.
The court ordered the 20 September 2023 decision set aside and the appeal remitted for fresh consideration. It did not order that visas be granted. The parties were given three weeks to make written submissions on the final order, costs and other matters. The case was listed for mention on 13 May 2025.