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Immigration

Awards and Recommendations for the Immigration Department
Duncan Lewis - Chambers UK Duncan Lewis - Legal 500

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors is the leading practice in all the big strategic litigation around immigration, asylum, protection, deportation, and modern slavery. The team frequently helms the most high-profile challenges of government departments and decisions. They are the team to beat. Totally top end and completely brilliant - the advice that is given is nothing but the best."

Legal 500 2024 Edition.
Immigration / London; South East; West Midlands; East Midlands

"The market-leading, energetic and responsive team at Duncan Lewis Solicitors has developed a leading reputation representing clients in immigration and asylum claims, at both first instance and appellate levels. The level headed and energetic team goes above and beyond in order to come up with solutions for complex matters, often for very vulnerable clients, including those that are the victims of trafficking and torture. They have scored numerous victories over the years in judicial review claims, frequently achieving success for clients where appeal rights had previously been exhausted."

Legal 500 2024 Edition.
Immigration / Wales

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors is particularly well known for its work on behalf of legal aid clients, including vulnerable individuals such as LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and those with mental health conditions."

Chambers UK 2024 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, Asylum and Deportation / UK-wide

"The breadth and depth of the team makes Duncan Lewis a real market leader for immigration matters". "The team focuses on personal immigration, and handles high-stakes matters in the areas of human rights, detention, asylum, and civil liberties, with significant experience acting on judicial review cases....The "innovative and courageous" team "are one of the most successful and effective immigration practices in the UK". "They are a credit to the profession".

Legal 500 2023 Edition.
Immigration / London / South East / West Midlands / East Midlands

"Able to access legal aid funding, the 'knowledgeable and professional' immigration team at Duncan Lewis Solicitors is adept at representing often extremely vulnerable claimants in asylum, judicial review and human rights. The team 'builds up relationships of trust and empathy with even the most vulnerable of clients', and handle a significant amount of pro bono advice."

Legal 500 2023 Edition.
Immigration / Wales

“Duncan Lewis Solicitors' 'very attentive and passionate' team is well-positioned to handle a wide range of high-stakes personal immigration cases, including judicial reviews involving human rights, civil liberty and social welfare issues faced by migrants travelling to the UK. It is also well known for advising companies on business immigration work, ranging from points-based system applications and appeals to securing entrepreneur and investor visas…”

Legal 500 2022 Edition.
Immigration / London; Wales; South East; East Midlands; West Midlands

"Particularly well known for its work on behalf of legal aid clients, including vulnerable individuals such as LGBT+ asylum seekers and those with mental health conditions. Active across the spectrum of human rights-related immigration cases, including unlawful detention challenges and leave to remain applications. Routinely appears before the higher domestic courts, including the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court."

Chambers UK 2022 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, Asylum and Deportation / UK-wide

"They are very involved in broad strategic challenges, particularly regarding immigration detention. They are very creative and keen to think outside the box."

Chambers UK 2021 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, Asylum and Deportation / UK-wide

“The immigration team at Duncan Lewis Solicitors is well-regarded for its work in asylum, human rights and nationality law. Public law director Toufique Hossain has extensive experience representing asylum seekers, many of whom are vulnerable clients. The practice has a strong track record of acting for victims of modern slavery, trafficking, torture, and domestic violence and for unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors. Other key areas of work include ECHR cases and cases involving civil liberties.”

Legal 500 2021 Edition.
Immigration: human rights, appeals and overstay / London

Duncan Lewis Solicitors excels in public law immigration matters, where its team 'is not afraid to challenge accepted norms, take risks in advancement of its client's case and push boundaries in the client's favour'. The practice acts for businesses and individuals on the full range of personal immigration, asylum and human rights, and nationality matters, as well as assisting high-net-worth individuals with points based system applications and appeals. In an illustration of its public law expertise, the practice acted in the lead case challenging removals to Bulgaria under the Dublin III Regulations.

Legal 500 2019 Edition.
Immigration / South East

The 'knowledgeable and well organised' team at Duncan Lewis Solicitors 'punches well above its weight – litigating points of law with both national and international importance'. 'Second-to-none in the publicly funded arena in Wales', the firm handles a broad range of immigration, asylum and nationality matters including handling high-profile claimant judicial review matters.

Legal 500 2019 Edition.
Immigration / Wales - Cardiff/Swansea

Duncan Lewis Solicitors’ business immigration team is instructed by SME clients on a range of matters such as the PBS, sponsorship licence applications, and compliance. It also acts for high-net-worth individuals from Asia, Russia and the Middle East on Tier 1 and investor visas. The firm also handles a range of asylum, nationality, detention, deportation, bail, human rights, detention, Judicial Review, and trafficking cases for business, individual and vulnerable clients.

Legal 500 2019 Edition.
Immigration / London

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors’ ‘diligent’ and ‘professional’ team ‘is prepared to go the extra mile’ for its clients. "

Legal 500 2017 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay [Top-Tier] / London

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors' immigration and asylum practice specialises in contentious matters. It represents vulnerable clients such as trafficking or torture victims in detention-related matters, handles judicial review applications and proceedings, and assists individuals with appeals and higher court cases. The team also acts for unaccompanied asylum seeking children in asylum fast-track cases."

Legal 500 2017 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay / East Midlands / Leicester

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors is known for its expertise in all aspects of personal immigration, frequently advising on publically funded immigration services for asylum, immigration detention, deportation appeals and EC law issues. The team also represents high net-worth individuals on points-based system applications and appeals, including entrepreneur and investor visas. The firm has a niche specialism in legal aid, and represents vulnerable clients in detained asylum cases, and in matters involving unaccompanied asylum-seeking children."

Legal 500 2017 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay / South East / Milton Keynes & Luton

"For some, Duncan Lewis Solicitors is ‘in a class of its own’.

Legal 500 2017 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay [Top-Tier] / Wales / Cardiff & Swansea

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors is best known for its legal aid practice, and specialises in immigration, asylum and public law, and has offices across London and the UK."

Legal 500 2017 Edition.
Civil Liberties and Human Rights / London

"At Duncan Lewis Solicitors, Sangita Shah regularly advises on immigration and asylum matters, and is commended for her ‘passion’ for her work."

Legal 500 2016 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay / East Midlands / Leicester

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors has ‘an excellent grasp of immigration and asylum law’."

Legal 500 2016 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay [Top-Tier] / Wales / Cardiff

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors’ ‘dynamic and very well-organised’ group specialises in acting for clients in judicial review proceedings before the High Court, as well as handling Upper Tribunal and Court of Appeal cases"

Legal 500 2016 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay [Top-Tier] / London

"Duncan Lewis Solicitors’ ‘very good’ team has a strong track record representing SME clients on business immigration, and a stellar reputation for handling test cases"

Legal 500 2015 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay / London

"Specialist immigration firm Duncan Lewis Solicitors is renowned for asylum and human rights work…"

Legal 500 2015 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay [Top-Tier] / Wales / Cardiff

"The ‘very good' Duncan Lewis Solicitors is valued for its ‘commitment' to clients, especially in human rights…"

Legal 500 2014 Edition.
Immigration: Human Rights, appeals & overstay / London

Immigration Services

 

Duncan Lewis has one of the largest legal aid immigration practices in the UK and is ranked and recommended as a top tier practice by The Legal 500 directory for its services including, business immigration, human rights, appeals and overstay. Our immigration lawyers have an established reputation in acting for high net worth individuals, new and established business men and women, and innovative and skilled individuals under the Tier 1 visa categories.


With over 160 specialist immigration lawyers nationwide, we bring the highest level of expertise to all immigration matters. The department has a number of highly skilled lawyers who have trained as barristers, and undertake complex appeal cases up to the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.


Our Immigration team is renowned for their extensive experience in asylum claims and challenging human rights violations for unaccompanied minors and victims of torture, trafficking, and domestic abuse. In these cases, we are committed to assisting no matter the individual client’s circumstance.


In some cases, our immigration solicitors can provide free legal advice and assistance, through Legal Aid funding which is free to you. This can cover the most straightforward applications, but also includes complex cases in the First Tier / Upper Tier Tribunal of the Immigration and Asylum Chambers and the Higher Courts. Our immigration lawyers provide specialist immigration services at all of our offices throughout London and across the UK. So wherever you are, we will be able to offer you a local service with nationally recognised excellence.


The quality of our work is repeatedly demonstrated by the very high success rates achieved in cases that we take on. We strive to make our services as accessible as possible to everyone, taking on some cases at no cost, on a pro bono basis where legal aid is not available. We consistently strive to provide high levels of legal advice and service to all those in desperate need of good quality immigration advice. We pride ourselves on the diversity of our staff that can provide you with legal services in over 70 languages. The services our immigration solicitors provide can be categorised as follows:-

  1. Individuals (settling, working or studying in the UK)
  2. Asylum, Human Rights & Appeals
  3. Detention & the Fast Track Process
  4. Business Immigration

 

Individuals (Settling, Working and Studying in the UK)

You may wish to come to the UK to take up employment, study or join family and partners that are already here. Our immigration solicitors can assess your eligibility under the Points Based System (PBS) and help you submit a successful visa application if you require one. More information on PBS and what types of visa may be available to you can be found here.

Individuals settling in the UK or Joining Family and Partners who are already here
  1. Naturalisation and Citizenship
  2. Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR)
  3. EEA (and Swiss) Nationals: Registration certificates
  4. Partner visa
  5. Dependants
  6. Family of EEA (and Swiss) Nationals
Individuals Work/Study in the UK:
  1. Introduction to the Points Based System
  2. Tier 1 Visa
  3. Tier 2 Visa
  4. Tier 4 Visa
  5. Tier 5 Visa

Asylum, Human Rights & Appeals

We have a number of immigration solicitors and lawyers who specialise in asylum law. If you have been detained in a detention centre or prison pending a decision, we may also be able to make an application for bail on your behalf. We offer a 24 hour hotline for emergency cases so we can provide you with legal assistance outside office hours. More information on how we may help with an asylum matter is available here:

  1. Applying for asylum
  2. Human Rights Applications
  3. Unaccompanied Minors
  4. Appeals
  5. Advocacy / Upper Tribunal
  6. Judicial Review
  7. Reuniting refugees with their family members

Detention & the Fast Track Process
  1. Applying for bail (immigration detention)
  2. Detained asylum seekers
  3. Unlawful detention – Immigration – Claim for Damages

 

Business Immigration

If you employ a foreign national or are hoping to do so, you will need to know whether or not they have the right to work in the UK. Our immigration lawyers can advise you on the status of your employees and how you can sponsor them should it be necessary to do so.
Information on who has automatic rights to work in the UK and how you can sponsor foreign nationals to come to the UK to work is available here.

  1. Does your employee have the right to work in the UK?
  2. Tier 2 and 5 sponsor’s licence

For all Immigration related matters contact us online now.Contact Us

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