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Legal Aid Services

The Immigration Advice Service conducts both private and publicly funded work. We are an approved legal aid service provider and have been awarded the Legal Aid Agency Specialist Quality Mark (SQM) for our work as a Legal Aid immigration solicitors.

Whilst under the new rules (April 2013) there has been a reduction in the types of immigration and asylum cases eligible for Legal Aid. As a general rule, the following matters will qualify for some advice, assistance and/or representation:

Detention & bail cases
Applications for leave to remain under the domestic violence rule
Applications for leave by those identified as victims of trafficking
Proceedings before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, ie; deportation and deprivation of citizenship cases where information is to be kept confidential for reasons of national security
Many asylum cases & appeals
Applications for leave to remain or settlement as a refugee with humanitarian protection/discretionary leave under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, ie; freedom from torture or inhuman and degrading treatment
Some judicial review applications, in limited circumstances.

In addition to falling into an eligible category, you will also have to satisfy the means and merits tests to qualify for Legal Aid for immigration. The merits test looks at whether, on the balance of probabilities, your application will succeed. The means test examines whether you satisfy the financial criteria.

Unfortunately, most mainstream non-asylum immigration cases are no longer eligible for Legal Aid, including entry clearance visas eg, for a spouse/partner or family member, or applications made under Article 8 of the ECHR (right to a family or private life), except where you qualify for exceptional case funding.

If you are unsure whether you qualify for publicly funded immigration assistance then contact us here at IAS to find out more or speak to one of our Legal Aid immigration solicitors. Even if you are not eligible for Legal Aid our specialist immigration lawyers can advise, assist and represent you at very competitive rates.

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Customer Reviews

What our clients say about us

4.65 Average

258 Reviews

Anonymous

Superb service - Natalie Dolan is a legend!

Posted 2 months ago

Ralph M

From the very first contact, the advice given was helpful and the ensuing meetings were prompt and professionally carried out by our advisor Miss Kirsty Hindes. She was working under a tight time frame yet managed to get everything done within that frame. We are very grateful for her support and will be using her again I hope when the next application time comes round in 30 months time.

Posted 2 months ago

Mark

Thanks for helping me sort my wife's Spouse Visa. You made the process very stress free and always found the time to answer my emails & phone calls. I will be using IAS again when I have to reapply in a couple of years time.

Posted 2 months ago

Anonymous

Answered all my questions promptly and I'm going to attempt applying for the Visa myself. I'll definitely use IAS if I get stuck.

Posted 2 months ago

Senad

IAS, with their dedicated team of lawyers and counselors, managed to help me join my partner in UK. I had no experience, noone to ask for guidance nor to help me in the process of applying for a Dependant Visa in UK. IAS lawyers dedicated their time and put an effort in guiding me through every step of the, somewhat, complicated process, and they put an emphasis on special circumstances, considering the fact that I am coming from a "third world" country, which was complicated enough. After couple of months I was granted the Dependant Visa to join my partner who started working in UK six months before I applied, thus enabling us to be together again. I heartly recommend IAS to everyone that is lost in the process of applying for Visa, feeling helpless in the number of mixed and unclear regulations or needs someone to relly on during the process of applying for visa. IAS team, and lawyer Uche in my case, are not just an advice service agency - they are the beacon in the darkness of regulations and uncertainties. Thank you, for joining me with my life partner again...

Posted 3 months ago

Mursaleen

Saimah dealt my case in a fast and sufficient manner. She understood my concerns and didn't delay with documents that that were needed. She made the process easy and helped me beyond her duty. Due to her attentiveness my spouse was granted a visa and I can't thank Saimah enough. I would definitely recommend Saimah for spouse visa applications as she made the process very easy and efficient. Many thanks, again.

Posted 4 months ago

abiodun

I was so overwhelmed with the outcome of immigration issue, I have moved from one solicitor to another but when I consulted IAS and Saimah Razzaq advised me on my immigration issue and the proper next step to take I knew I was at the right place and everything came out successfully. Thank you so much. IAS 'Best immigration advisory to consult when you are confused'

Posted 4 months ago

Trifon

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Immigration Advice Service (IAS) and to Ms Agnes Tunde in particular. I needed assistance with the application for permanent residence, which is 100 pages in length. I’ve received the necessary guidance from Ms Tunde throughout the whole process of applying. She was extremely helpful, answered all of my questions regarding the application and always responded to me when I contacted her. I will recommend Ms Tunde and IAS, because of the professionalism and expertise that she used to assist me and will definitely recommend their services. Trifon

Posted 4 months ago

Melissa

Knowledgeable, experienced and very professional lawyers that are very organised when it comes to the important days. Very contactable, I don't think there was ever a time that I couldn't get through to my designated lawyer. To top it all off, our case was won in the end.

Posted 4 months ago

Ezenogha

I hired the services of IAS due to the complicated nature of my case. I was in the UK for 7 years as a student and voluntary returned when my visa was refused and all appeals right was exhausted. On getting engaged to my fiancé, we both agreed to use professional help to apply for the visa. After checking reviews online, we agreed to contact IAS and we were not disappointed. We were assigned to Agnes Idowu-Taylor as our immigration adviser. She contacted is immediately to better understand our situation and provided vital information on the entire process. Agnes sent us a checklist which we adhered to as we gathered the required documents. After marriage in December 17 2016 and completion of honeymoon, my wife returned to London with all the documents while Agnes structured her cover letter whilst giving guidance on our personal letters. We completed the online application on the 6/01/17 and I did my biometric on the 13/01/17. Our documents were returned on the 20/01/17, received TLS email on the 24/02/17. Though perplexed and worried why the documents were quickly returned, Agnes continued to encourage us that my application will be successful and so it was. I collected my visa on the 27/02/17. WE DID NOT PAY FOR PRIORITY SERVICE. Buying my ticket this week to join my darling wife. I definitely recommend IAS to everybody and specifically Agnes Idowu-Taylor. Thank you so much Agnes.

Posted 4 months ago