Immigration Fees

We set out below our fees for conducting the Immigration applications and procedures undertaken by our Immigration team. In conducting your matter, you should expect our fees to be in line with the information given below, but there may be specific circumstances relating to your case which mean that it will be necessary to agree different rates with you – and these will be discussed and agreed on a case by case basis.

The following rates only show our fees for conducting work. They do not include application fees, Tribunal or Court fees or Immigration Health Surcharge fees. The figures are exclusive of VAT – although VAT is not applicable to you if the UK is not your normal country of residence or if you have no status in the UK.

Hourly rates

  • Director/Solicitor with more than 7 years experience – £250 per hour
  • Solicitors & Caseworkers with less than 7 years experience – £150 per hour
  • Trainee Solicitors & Paralegals – £120 per hour
We also reserve the right to charge the following fees where required:
  • Postage costs as required

Estimates of Costs

At the beginning of a matter, we will usually try and give you the comfort of some certainty with regards the costs of your matter by providing an estimate of costs. These estimates are based on our experience of the amount of time that it will normally take for us to complete particular types of work. Where we provide you withan estimate of costs, we will do our best to do so on the basis that this estimate will be the fixed price for the work to be undertaken. However, in the event that your matter becomes more complex or protracted for any reason, we will discuss with you if we need to revise the estimate for the work.

APPLICATIONS

STANDARD MODEL FOR APPLICATIONS

Applications “generally” follow the procedures outlined below:

  • Stage 1: Request for inform and documentation.
  • Stage 2: Complete an online form and lodge this to the Home Office (before any expiry of leave).
  • Stage 3: Upload evidence and book an appointment for you to enroll biometric data (which could occur several weeks after your online form is lodged).
  • Stage 4: decision (normally between 2 and 6 months, although you can pay for priority services with the Home Office to speed this process up where a decision is made a couple of days after you enroll biometric data).

Preparing applications can take from several weeks to months to prepare, draft and lodge an application. It is all dependant on the urgency, deadlines,complexity, whether third parties are involved (such as experts or medical assessment required) and how quickly information and documentation can be provided by the applicants. Decisions by the Home Office are normally made between 2-6 months unless where indicated.

The fees outlined below generally cover from the start of your instructions to reaching a decision, unless anything happens outside the scope of your contract. Home Office application fees, Immigration Health Surcharge fees and if applicable, BRP appointment user fees, are additional (see below).

APPLICATIONS OUTSIDE THE UK

  • Standard family applications (to seek entry to join a partner): £2500.00 (VAT not charged due to having no status in the UK and because you are applying outside the UK). A decision is normally made within 90 days following lodgement of your application (and validation via your biometric appointment).
  • Standard visit visa applications (for a visit to the UK): £1000.00 (VAT not charged due to having no status in the UK and because you are applying outside the UK). A decision is normally made within 15 days following lodgement of your application (and validation via your biometric appointment).

APPLICATIONS INSIDE THE UK

  • Standard private and family life applications (to obtain status if you are currently unlawful, under the 10 year route to settlement): £2500.00 (VAT not charged due to your status in the UK).
  • Switching applications (from the above to other routes such as the 5 year route to settlement): £1,500.00 plus VAT.
  • Extension applications (to apply for an extension under the family or private life route): £1,500.00 plus VAT.
  • Settlement applications (under the 5 or 10 year route to settlement): £2000.00 plus VAT.
  • Counsel Opinion: £500.00 (plus VAT if applicable).
  • Applications normally take a week to prepare with advice provide by Counsel normally within a couple of weeks, depending on urgency and complexity. Counsel fees are additional (see below).
  • Travel Documents: £750 plus VAT
  • Applications can take a couple of days or weeks to prepare and lodge to receive a decision within 1-4 months following lodgement.
  • Naturalisation: £1000.00 plus VAT
  • Applications can take a couple of days or weeks to prepare and lodge to receive a decision within 1-4 months following lodgement.
  • Passport applications: £600.00 plus VAT
  • Applications can take a couple of weeks to prepare and lodge to receive a decision between 1 – 2 months following lodgement.

OTHER CASES

  • Deportation cases: £2,500.00 (plus VAT if applicable)

To draft a response to any notice of intention to deport. Responses are normally due within 20 working days (although an extension can be applied for) to receive a decision between 6 – 12 months following lodgement (depending on the Home Office).

  • Asylum cases: £1500.00- £2500.00,(plus VAT if applicable)

To register with the Home Office can take a couple of days. The Home Office will then arrange an appointment for you to attend to “enrol”. Supporting evidence (such as taking statements, translation of documentation) can take a couple of weeks to months to prepare and lodge. An interview will then be arranged by the Home Office before a decision is made. These are all determinative upon the Home Office and can take 12-24 months to complete.

HOME OFFICE REFUSAL

  • Appeal to the Tribunal: £500.00 (plus VAT if applicable).

Notice of Appeal are to be completed and lodged within 14 days from date of refusal (or 28 days if applying overseas). The Tribunal will then respond to the notice of appeal generally within 1 – 3 months. Please note that a disbursement (counsel fee) and a Tribunal fee, if applicable, (£140.00 per person) is also required for this section of work (see below).

Some applications do not carry a right to appeal but you can seek reconsideration.

 

  • Reconsideration applications are estimated at £500.00 (plus VAT if applicable). Please note that a disbursement (counsel fee) is also required for this section of work (see below).

FIRST-TIER TRIBUNAL HEARINGS – IMMIGRATION AND ASYLUM CHAMBER

  • Full Tribunal hearings and bail applications: £2,200.00 (plus VAT if applicable).

The Tribunal will provide directions on when evidence is required. Generally, advising on information and evidence required, submitting contact details to the Tribunal, compiling and providing your appeal bundle (the evidence required to support your appeal) plus your appeal skeleton argument, to preparing you, represent you at a full hearing to advising on the outcome. Please note that a disbursement (counsel fee) is also required for this section of work (see below).

  • Case Management Hearings: £850.00 (plus VAT if applicable).

Should the Tribunal seek a management hearing before any substantive work is required or to ascertain the position of a case. Please note that a disbursement (counsel fee) is also required for this section of work (see below).

  • Adjourned Hearings: £500.00.

If your appeal is adjourned for any reason. Please note that a disbursement (counsel fee) is also required for this section of work (see below).

  • Permission applications: £300.00

If you seek permission to appeal any decision of the Tribunal, then you must do it within the guide the Tribunal sets (7, 14, 21 or 28 days). Please note that a disbursement (counsel fee) is also required for this section of work (see below).

Judicial Review applications

Price provided upon instructions.

VAT

“Generally speaking”, you are subject to VAT if you have status over 6 months in any category or hold settlement or British citizenship status.

You are not subject to VAT if you hold no status inside the United Kingdom, applying from outside the United Kingdom or have status of less than 6 months.

Once instructed, you matter will be handled by a qualified and experienced solicitor under supervision of our director.

A note on value added tax (VAT) – All the figures given to you include VAT charged at 20% unless specifically stated. However, charging VAT in relation to immigration matters may depend on where you live and what immigration permission you have. We will confirm whether VAT (at a rate of 20%) is payable when you instruct us, and we can work out if VAT is properly chargeable.

Parents and Partners

If we are instructed by a parent on behalf of a child, the full file is opened in the name of the parent (with whom we have the retainer) with the child’s name as the person subject to Immigration Control.  If the parent does not fall within the exemptions below, the fees will be subject to VAT, based on the parent’s residence. 

If we are instructed through a UK settled spouse/partner on an entry clearance, our client is the person overseas and so not subject to VAT.  The spouse/partner is a named third party on the file and only acts with the client’s written authority. 

However, sometimes a consultation file is opened in the name of the contact/sponsor/spouse/partner based here in the UK because that is who is seeking the consultation. In that case, VAT is chargeable on the consultation because the person instructing at consultation stage is subject to tax in the UK.  When the full file is opened in the name of the person subject to Immigration Control, if he/she is in the exemption list below, that will be VAT exempt.  

Employer/Sponsors

With a UK based employer client, even though the ultimate goal may be to obtain entry for a person subject to Immigration Control, if the UK employer is deemed as our client, then they will not be VAT exempt.

Exemptions 

VAT is not chargeable if the client has not been granted permission/right to remain in the UK and often this is easier to ascertain if they have an ongoing overseas residential address. Therefore, the following clients are exempt from VAT:  Those on a visit visor because that, by definition, does not allow for UK residency.

Overstayers

If an over-stayer or otherwise a person without immigration status in the UK previously was granted leave, they are generally treated as resident for the purposes of VAT.  General Immigration status changes throughout matters could give rise to different VAT treatment on matters subsequent to the change.

Disbursements

In addition to the above, you may have Home Office fees to pay such as application fees and an Immigration Health Surcharge, if applicable. You will also have a biometric enrolment fee.

Fees vary enormously for leave to remain or enter applications, and whether you seek a standard or priority service. They range between £1,033.00 (for a standard leave to remain application) to £2,389.00 (settlement), and are too numerous to set out here. We can advise, upon application, of which fee applies and what it is, alternatively the full list of fees can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/visa-regulations-revised-table/home-office-immigration-and-nationality-fees-31-january-2021

APPLICATIONS MADE INSIDE THE UK

Most common application fees that we deal with are (not subject to VAT):

  • Leave to remain: £1,033.00.
  • Settlement: £2,389.00.
  • Naturalisation: £1,330.00
  • Registration: £1,012.00
  • Travel Document: £75.00 – £280.00
  • NTL: £229.00
  • Biometric fee: £19.20

There is an additional Home Office fee for applicants wishing to seek priority service. Although there may be a possibility of getting a free appointment, there may be a small fee charged by the Home Office or a service provider for appointments to provide your biometrics (around £100.00). These will be confirmed upon instruction.

APPLICATIONS MADE OUTSIDE THE UK

Most common application fees that we deal with are (not subject to VAT):

  • Leave to enter: £1,523.00
  • Visit: £95.00.
IMMIGRATION HEALTH SURCHARGE

There is also an Immigration Health Surcharge fee required to be paid in non-asylum and non EUSS cases, for applications seek longer than 6 months leave. The fee is £624.00 per person, per year up to the amount that you will be granted. For example, (the most common fee charged for this is if you are to be granted 30 months, the fee will be £1,560.00 per person).

OTHER DISBURSEMENTS

Below are some disbursements you might have within an immigration case or an asylum case. These are dependent upon what your claim is and what you are relying upon (for example, if your claim is based on medical condition, then expert medical reports would be required).

  • Psychiatric / Psychology reports: £1,500.00 to £2,000.00 upwards.
  • Independent Social Workers reports: £1,500.00 to £2,000.00 upwards.
  • Expert Country Reports: £950.00 to £1,500.00 upwards.
  • GP Medical reports: £50.00 to £250.00 upwards
  • Translations: £25.00 to £50.00 per page or document upwards.

The above disbursements may also be required for an appeal hearing.

Appeal Hearings
  • Counsel’s fees vary upon the experience and seniority of the individual chosen, we will discuss the choice of counsel with you but in general the fees charged for an average case (from Counsel that we utilise) range around £450.00 to £1,500.00 per hearing. This fee will enable Counsel to draft an appeal skeleton argument and to represent you at your hearing.
  • If the Tribunal seeks a telephone Case Management Hearing, the fee is ranged around £250.00 to £500.00.
  • In person Case Management Hearings are normally around £450.00.
OTHER
  • Counsel Opinion: Counsel fees: £350.00 to £850.00 upwards (to give an opinion or draft grounds to lodge an appeal)
  • Tribunal fees if you are appealing to the First-tier Tribunal: £140.00 per person.

Upon consultation and from the onset of instructing us, we will confirm all fees within your application, including disbursements payable.