Government reverses immigration tribunal fee increases

The Minister of State for Courts and Justice, Sir Oliver Heald, has announced today that the Government is reversing the massive increase in fees for the Immigration Tribunal introduced in October.

Image credit: UK GovernmentThe Government says it will now take stock and review the fees.

It means that from today all applicants will be charged fees at previous levels. Any applicant who paid the new fee will be reimbursed the difference.

In a written statement to the Commons, Heald said: "we have listened to the representations that we received on the current fee levels and have decided to take stock and review the immigration and asylum fees, to balance the interests of all tribunal users and the taxpayer and to look at them again alongside other tribunal fees and in the wider context of funding for the system overall.

"From today all applicants will be charged fees at previous levels and we will reimburse, in all cases where the new fees have been paid, the difference between that fee and the previous fee.

"We will bring forward secondary legislation to formalise the position as soon as possible. That legislation will come into force shortly, but in the meantime the changes will be effected through the use of the Lord Chancellor's discretionary power to remit or reduce fees."

The statement continued: "Alongside the fee changes introduced we extended the fee exemptions offered in the First-tier Tribunal, to include:

"• those in receipt of a Home Office destitution waiver in respect of their initial application;

"• parents of, and those with parental responsibility for, children receiving support from local authorities;

"• children in local authority care; and

"• those appealing a decision to revoke their humanitarian protection or refugee status.

"The Government believes that these exemptions are proportionate measures that protect some of the most vulnerable users of the Tribunal. For this reason the extended system of fee exemptions will remain in place.

"We also took the opportunity when introducing the fee changes to expand and clarify the guidance around the application of the Lord Chancellor's power to remit or reduce fees in exceptional circumstances. This revised guidance is not affected.

"The role of fees in the Upper Tribunal will also form part of the review. The focus of our work is now on carrying out that review. We will bring forward any new plans for Tribunal fees, including in the Immigration and Asylum Chambers of the First-tier and Upper Tribunals, for consultation in due course.

"The Government's belief is unchanged that it is right that those who use our courts and tribunals should pay more, where they can realistically afford to do so, to ensure that the system is properly funded to protect access to justice and to relieve the burden on the taxpayer."

The Guardian's Alan Travis said on Twitter that MP Bob Neill, the chair of the House of Commons Justice Committee, welcomed the withdrawal of the fee increases, saying they were unwise, dangerous and unrealistic.

Neill said in a statement: "On behalf of the Justice Committee I warmly welcome the Government’s decision. We concluded in our recent report that the cost-recovery aim of the proposed six-fold increases would not be realistic; that there was a danger that the increases would deny vulnerable people the means to challenge the lawfulness of decisions taken by the state; and that it was unwise for the Government to have brought forward these proposals before its review of the impact of employment tribunal fees has been published. It is very good to see the Government prepared to listen and take action as a result."

Martha Spurrier, Director of Liberty, welcomed the Government's announcement, saying: “This astronomical hike in tribunal fees was the latest divisive measure from a Government determined to ration justice on the grounds of nationality. It left people unable to right serious state wrongs or challenge notoriously poor quality Home Office decisions. The Government’s rethink is welcome – but it must now end this all-out assault on access to justice.”

The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) announced in October that it would take legal action against the increases, arguing that they were unlawful and a disproportionate restriction on access to justice and the protection of human rights.

JCWI said today that it was "overjoyed" to see Sir Oliver Heald’s unexpected announcement.

JCWI noted, however, that a Ministry of Justice spokesperson had told the Guardian: "Our commitment to fee reform is unchanged, and we will bring forward new plans in due course".

JCWI said: "This intent stems from a fundamental problem with the Ministry of Justice’s approach to court fees. They want to make the courts and tribunals system financially self-sufficient, so that the users of the justice system pay the full cost, and there is no additional cost to the taxpayer. Taking a broad view, this is antithetical to the most basic functions of a democratic state. One of the primary purposes of having a nation state, civilisation, and the rule of law is that everyone is able to settle disputes or challenge unlawful actions before an independent systems of courts and tribunals. All of us are ‘users’ of the justice system, whether we happen to be involved in court proceedings at the moment or not. All of us have an interest in a society governed by laws that protecting everyone rather than just those who can afford to pay for them."

With this in mind, JCWI continues to request that anyone who was affected by the increases to contact them at policy@jcwi.org.uk as a matter of urgency. Lawyers whose clients won their appeal, but would be unable to pay the increased fees or to get an exemption are also asked to contact JCWI.