Under UK law, refugees have the right to apply for their dependant family members to join them in safety. However, drastic cuts to legal aid left families to complete this complex and daunting process alone, without any legal support.
Alex Fraser, head of refugee support at the British Red Cross says: “Bureaucracy is keeping refugee families thousands of miles apart.
“Women and children are being left in limbo because of these cuts – cuts that mean what was supposed to be a simple process is now anything but.
“People’s lives are being put at risk because of a convoluted paper trail.”
When sweeping cuts were introduced in 2013, the application process families must complete to be reunited was described as a ‘straightforward’ – however a report released today by the British Red Cross reveals new evidence that this is not the case.
The research highlights the range of complexities people come up against when making a family reunion application which includes difficulties gathering essential documents like marriage certificates or wedding photos to prove their relationship with family abroad.
Of the cases surveyed, 74 per cent were missing at least one key document and so had to turn to legal advisors to provide alternative evidence to support their application.
“For many families, getting hold of these documents is impossible” Fraser said. “Families making applications have escaped from places like Syria, Eritrea or Sudan. They may have fled in the middle of the night or their home could have been destroyed, while some are from countries that don’t produce these documents in the first place.”
Since legal aid was withdrawn, people are forced to turn to charities like the Red Cross – which has scaled up its family reunion services to try and fill ‘advice deserts’ left by the cuts – or even take out high-risk loans to hire a solicitor.
The Red Cross is calling for a simplified form with easily available, consistent guidance as well as funding for families to access vital legal advice, giving them the best chance of being reunited with their loved ones.
The report found that in almost half of the cases surveyed, loved ones overseas – mainly women and children - were exposed to risks such as abduction, arrest and imprisonment and violence.
To submit essential documents families are required to travel to their nearest British Embassy. For some that means journeys across areas of violence and armed conflict or even crossing borders into neighbouring countries.
Fraser explains: “The process must be made simpler and safer.
“Families abroad are often left living in warzones, refugee camps or other highly dangerous circumstances – or have no alternative but to make life-threatening journeys like those we’re seeing in the Mediterranean to reach safety.”
The report has won the backing of lawyers, including solicitor and Open University law lecturer Jennifer Ang.
“The report highlights risks and complexities that are typical of the challenges faced by refugee families. They are the rule, and not the exception.
“It is imperative that the government take steps to ensure early access for all to high quality legal advice for family reunion work, from initial application to appeal stage, for refugee families across the UK.”
View the full report here [PDF]
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The report will be launched on Wednesday 15th July in committee room 15, Houses of Parliament in an event hosted by Daniel Kawczynski MP. Please RSVP to advocacy@redcross.org.uk