Immigration Law

Immigration Law

Our immigration department is geared up to meet all your requirements both in terms of costs efficiency and swift turn-around. We aim to be as competitive as possible, and we do pride in providing a professional service, where you are in control.

Immigration (excluding Asylum)

When you have an immigration issue, it may be a very worrying and stressful situation where you need an expert lawyer to guide you in the right direction as it may have a profound effect on your family or professional future.

Our immigration department is geared up to meet all your requirements both in terms of cost efficiency and swift turn-around. We aim to be as competitive as possible, and we take pride in providing a professional service, where you are in control. Our solicitors have over 7 years combined experience in dealing with range of immigration issues and have a success rate of over 95%.

V.E. White & Co Solicitors offer a transparent fee structure and personal service to our clients for UK Visa Applications, Legal Advice on specific immigration issues, immigration applications of a miscellaneous nature and immigration court work to include Appeals against the Home Office’s decision. Our service includes advising you on your issue, taking instructions and dealing with the Home Office and/or Tribunal/Court until a decision is received. Every matter is unique and the process therefore varies from one matter to the next. You will be advised in detail as to the complete process of your case and an estimated time scale when you formally instruct us.

The prices listed below are for guidance only and an accurate quote will be provided upon reflection of the complexity and urgency of your case before we undertake any work on your behalf.

Legal Fee Information for Immigration Services

We have set out below the issues you need to consider in relation to Legal Fees and disbursements for the preparation and submission of immigration applications. Our Legal Fees cover all of the work required to handle your case from instruction to conclusion. 

We offer a high quality, cost effective legal services. We will give you a clear indication at the beginning of your case how much your costs will be. In straightforward cases we can offer fixed fees. Our fees only cover the costs of preparing and making the application. Should an appeal or challenge be necessary we will agree separate fees with you. We will require payment on account upon instruction and accept payment by cash, cheque or bank transfer.

We provide competitive fees for immigration services and our fees are as follows, with VAT only applicable where indicated.

VAT, currently 20%, will be payable on all our fees and some disbursements, unless exempt, and we will clearly confirm which disbursements carry VAT in formal quotation or as we advise you to incur them.

VAT is not payable;

1. If you are resident overseas
2. If you are an asylum seeker
3. If you don’t have leave to remain in the United Kingdom
4. If your immigration application is refused and you are appealing and have no leave to remain in the UK

For other services, please contact us.

Legal Fees and action we will take

Legal Fees are the amount you will be required to pay for all the work performed by us in actioning your instructions from commencement of your case to conclusion.

The fees supplied below include the following services:

• Consideration of documents
• Client attendance
• Taking instructions and providing advice
• Preparing and submitting the application
• Advising on the outcome of the application

Service	Typical Legal Fees Excluding VAT	Including VAT @ 20%
Consultation by Appointment	£150.00	£180.00
Further Leasv to Remain or ILR (indefinite Leave to Remain)	£1,200.00	£1,440.00
Initial Applications or Extension of Stay	£1,200.00	£1,440.00
PBS Dependant’s Visa	£1,000.00	£1,200.00
Entry Clearance Applications	£1,000.00	£1,200.00
Spouse Visa Applications	£1,200.00	£1,440.00
Applications for Leave to Remain Outside of Immigration Rules	£1,500.00	£1,800.00
Applications for ILR under 10 Year Rule, Long Residency	£1,200.00	£1,440.00
Applications for Leave to Remain Under the Family or Private Life Route	£1,500.00	£1,800.00
Applications for an EEA Residence Card for a Partner or Child of an EEA National	£1,200.00	£1,440.00
Applications for British Citizenship	£750.00	£900.00
Applications to be Registered as a British Citizen Minor (MR01)	£750.00	£900.00

Every case is different and so we can only estimate the costs of our service once we’ve discussed your situation and seen your paperwork.

All fees are average:

Our fees in respect of immigration matters will vary based on the amount of work involved. 

For a more specific quote, kindly email us with details of your immigration matter and we will be happy to provide you with a quotation. 

We will charge the sum of £35.00 plus VAT (a total of £42.00 Inc. VAT) for electronic money transfers.

If at any stage our fees change, we will notify you and discuss the reason for any changes. This would typically occur if you change your instructions or your case involves an unforeseen complexity.

Our average fees assume that:

1. The transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise.
2. All parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from any parties providing documentation.

What service is included in the price and key stages

• Taking your instructions and providing advice
• Considering documents
• Preparing and submitting the application/appeal
• Managing instruction and payment of third parties such Managing instruction and payment of third parties such as country experts, medical practitioners, and translators liaising with the Home Office on any further enquiries;
• Advising about the outcome of the application, conditions of your visa and any immediate further steps you need to take.
• Advising you on timelines and the outcome of any application/appeal

Disbursements and Other Costs

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as visa fees. You will pay these directly to the Home Office. We handle the payment of disbursements on your behalf. Most disbursements attract VAT at the prevailing rate which we will add to the bills we receive. We pass the total cost on to you. We do not add VAT on to disbursements where VAT has already been added by the relevant third party. Certain disbursements such as official fees are not subject to VAT. You will be notified of such fees or anticipated fees at the start of your matter. Typical disbursement costs may include:

• IHS Surcharge – additional fee levied by the Home Office to pay for the NHS. For current charges (details here)
• Home Office Fees, which vary depending on your application. You will pay these to the Home Office directly as part of the application process: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/visa- regulations-revised-table
• Scanning Fee £75.00 per person
• Archiving/storage fee £60.00 plus VAT (£72.00 Inc. VAT)
• Administration fees for appointment, telephone calls etc. £70.00 Plus VAT (£84.00 Inc. VAT)

• Court representation at Case Management Review Hearings, First Tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal will be chargeable at counsel’s rate. If Counsel is required to be instructed a quotation for their services will be obtained from them and discussed with your before they are instructed to ensure you are fully aware of the fees that will be charged. However, we have given examples of costs below:

• The fees of a barrister vary depending on the experience of the advocate and their expertise. In our experience, the initial fee for a barrister and the first day of the hearing (known as the brief fee) will be in the region of £1,000 – £3,000 plus VAT (£1200 – £3600 Inc. VAT). Each subsequent day would be an additional £500 – £1,500 plus VAT (£600 – £1800 Inc. VAT).

• If you want a very experienced barrister, then the cost is likely to be more. You may also incur additional charges such as travel costs for us to attend meetings and hearings.

Interpreters Costs

• Where an interpreter is required, you will be responsible for the costs at the interpreter’s hourly rate. Fees of interpreters can vary depending on, for instance, the experience and qualifications of the interpreter. A typical hourly fee range for interpreting into and/or from English, based on our previous research, may be c.£30 – £70 + VAT per hour (£36.00 – £84.00 Inc. VAT) and plus any disbursements (such as any costs they need to pay to third parties, such as travel-related costs) the interpreter may incur in providing their service.

• It is up to you who you choose to interpret, and you can, if you wish, bring a friend, family member or community figure etc to come and help interpret.

The costs quoted for our fees do not include:

• Home Office immigration health surcharge
• Any Home Office fees for making the application. You will pay this to the Home Office directly as part of the application process.
• Costs for English language tests, Tuberculosis tests, criminal record certificates, biometrics.
• Immigration Skills Charge
• Independent Expert Reports
• Independent Medical Reports
• Attendance at and travel to/from a Home Office interview: Interviews are rare in most categories, if the Home Office ask you to attend an interview, we can give you clear advice (and discuss the possibility of us attending with you) at the appropriate time. We can give you an additional quote for this, if required.

How long will my matter take?

The time scale from inception of the file to completion for each immigration application will mainly depend on the processing times by the UK Border Agency or Home Office. We aim to process your file and application and prepare it for submission within 1-4 weeks depending on the complexity of your case. Although the UK Border Agency and Home Office provide guidelines on the waiting times or processing times, there are many cases where an application take much longer for them to process or make decision. Therefore, it is difficult to give a precise timescale. However, we recommend you refer to the UK Border Agency and Home Office websites for their estimated turnaround times for further information. An estimated time scale for each service we offer is as follows but please bear in mind these can vary on a case-by-case basis:

Nationality	2-3 months
Registration as British Citizen as a child under 18	Outside the UK: 5-6 months	Inside the UK: 2-3 months
EEA law settlement scheme and pre-settlement scheme	4-6 weeks
ECAA Application in the UK (Ankara Agreement)	usually 6 months
Extend your leave or settle in the UK as a partner or parent of a dependent child	2-3 Months
Apply for a travel document	4-6 weeks
Entry clearance for spouse or fiancée visa	2 months (expedite service available)
All visitor visa	2-4 weeks
Application remains in the UK under your family life or private life	2-3 months
Human Right Appeals (Hourly Rate of £200.00 plus VAT per hour)	Variable
Administrative Review	1-2 months
General Immigration Appeals Tribunal Review	Variable

This is just an estimate, and we will of course be able to give you a more accurate timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses. Details of current processing times can be found here: https://visa-processingtimes.homeoffice.gov.uk/

We ask clients to instruct us at least 2-6 months before their intended visa start date, or expiry date of their current visa to ensure they have enough time to qualify under time sensitive requirements in relation to financial evidence and prepare complex documents adequately.

Fee Earners

The following fee earners handle Immigration matters:

Depending on the type of transaction, complexity and experience required we will allocate the most appropriate member of our immigration team to your transaction once you instruct us. Regardless of who works on your case, they will be supervised by the head of our immigration department in the Rainham branch, Abdul Waheed Chaudhry, a Solicitor and Partner of the firm, or head of our immigration department in the Strood branch, Steve Vedat Kocak, a Solicitor and Partner of the firm.

You can see details on all members of our immigration team here. 

Questions

If you have any questions relating to our services and our fees, please contact us by email to enquiries@vewhitesolicitors.co.uk or call our Strood Office on 01634 739195 or our Rainham Office on 01634 376555. You can also complete an enquiry form on our Contact Us page.