'Mean' visa charge slated

Proposals could come into force by autumn

A Labour MP has added his voice to criticism of government proposals to charge hundreds of pounds to appeal against a UK visa refusal.

David Winnick MP, who sits on the Commons home affairs select committee, described a proposed fee of almost £600 as "totally out of the question".

The Citizens' Advice Bureau (CAB) has said the fee could deter many people from exercising their right to appeal and was "miserable and mean".

I would imagine a good number of my colleagues, most Labour MPs, would certainly be opposed to anything like £500

David Winnick MP

The proposals are out for consultation but could come into force this autumn.

Labour says those who want to appeal must pay £280 for a decision made on paper, £580 if they want to put their case face-to-face.

Plans dropped

But the CAB says people have a right to appeal against a refusal for a visa free of charge.

It says the move is a dishonest way of implementing a manifesto commitment to restore the right of appeal, which the Conservative government abolished.

Although the Home Office and the Foreign Office have agreed not to charge for their services in these cases, the Lord Chancellor's department wants to cover the court costs.

Labour MP David Winnick told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I would rather have a system, like previously, where no payment was involved at all.

"But if there is to be payment, and I think the reality of the situation is that almost certainly there will be, the charges should be moderate."

The MP added: "Now the sums which have been mentioned are certainly not moderate, and I would imagine a good number of my colleagues, most Labour MPs, would certainly be opposed to anything like £500, totally out of the question."

A spokesman for the Lord Chancellor's Department said no final decisions had been reached on the charges and other government departments were being consulted.

The comments follows fierce criticism in recent months of other government proposals for changes to visas for visiting the UK.

Human rights and refugee organisations had criticised a declaration requiring Sudanese visa applicants to acknowledge that they had not been harassed or persecuted, and had no reason to seek refuge abroad.

The government withdrew the declaration earlier this month, after the United Nations refugee agency said the document amounted to the signing away of the legitimate right to ask for asylum.

Bond scheme abandoned

British officials said the scheme was a local initiative at the Khartoum consulate.

It added that only a few visa applicants had been asked to sign, for instance those suspected of trying to follow the example of relatives who had gone to Britain and sought asylum.

And an immigration bond scheme which would have forced certain visitors entering the UK to hand over about £3,000 has also been dropped by the government.

Officials decided not to press ahead with the returnable deposit scheme after it stirred angry reaction among anti-racist and immigration support groups.

A pilot study of the proposals, aimed at people from some Asian and African countries whose visa applications might be considered borderline, was due to be introduced in the autumn.