An asylum seeker is a person who flees his or her country because of a fear of persecution and who, as a consequence, is seeking the protection of the UK Government. Such protection is granted if that person is given the immigration status of a refugee. Otherwise, on human rights grounds, he may be granted what is known as humanitarian protection or discretionary leave.
Asylum claims are dealt with by the Home Office. Anyone in the UK can make an asylum claim, whatever their immigration status. The person may be someone who has arrived without a visa or someone who has obtained limited leave to enter for a different reason, an overstayer or even an illegal entrant. The claim can be made on entry or after entry to the UK.
After making an asylum claim with the Home Office you will attend your screening interview in order to establish your identity and nationality and your fingerprints and photographs will also be taken. You will be asked basic questions about your claim and your claim is then transferred to ‘New Asylum Model’ (NAM Centre).
Our services regarding your asylum claim includes perusing your documents, assisting in submitting your detailed statement and supporting evidence to the Home Office. It may also include instructing experts or interpreters for any translation of documents on your behalf. We will liaise closely with the Home Office in order to establish what further evidence is needed. You will then be required to attend an asylum interview with the Home Office and we will be present to support and advise you during this interview.
The Home Office will usually have up to 6 months to make a decision on your application.
At Chris Alexander Solicitors we carry out publicly funded work and offer legal aid, however, we do not offer legal aid for Immigration and Asylum cases. We therefore charge privately for the work we undertake on asylum applications.
At Chris Alexander Solicitors our fee for making a legal representation on your behalf in support of your asylum claim is £1,500 (+ 20% VAT) for our professional immigration services. This standard fee will cover the following: Perusing your documents, Research on relevant country of origin information reports, Advising on your rights, Drafting your detailed statement and Legal Representation in support of your claim, Legal Attendance at your Asylum Interview, and all our work done until a decision is reached by the Home Office on your asylum claim.
The standard fee will not cover any disbursements which are incurred e.g. translation of documents, or subsequent appeal rights. If you cannot afford to pay our fee in full at the time of instructing us in relation to your application, you can pay in instalments within 30 days.