What is the same

The Immigration Rules, visa categories, fees, the immigration health surcharge, English language and financial requirements, settlement and naturalisation are all United Kingdom matters. Guidance written for England applies equally in Scotland on these points.

What is different in Scotland

Appeals to the First-tier Tribunal, Immigration and Asylum Chamber, are heard in Glasgow for Scottish cases. Judicial review of an immigration decision, where it is not a matter for the Upper Tribunal, is made to the Court of Session rather than to the High Court, and the procedure and time limits are Scottish.

More often, the immigration question sits on top of a Scots law question. A spouse visa application may depend on a Scottish divorce being properly completed and recognised. A right to remain may turn on the arrangements for a child under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995. A sponsor licence may sit within a Scottish company. In each of those cases you need someone who can see both halves.

The common situations

If you have been refused

Deadlines in immigration are short, often fourteen days from a decision made in the United Kingdom, and they are enforced strictly. Whether the right route is an appeal, an administrative review or a fresh application depends entirely on the type of decision, and choosing the wrong one usually means the deadline for the right one has passed. This is the point at which advice matters most and at which people most often try to manage alone.

What to do now

1. Find the decision letter and note the date on it.
2. Check whether the adviser you are speaking to is a solicitor or regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority.
3. Do not submit a further application before you know whether it forfeits a right of appeal.
4. Keep every document you have submitted, because you will be asked to account for it later.