I’m supporting my friend Emmanuel Tawiah in bringing a judicial review against unfair Entry Clearance decision-making practices which lead to a denial of visas to a wide range of genuine visitors to the UK.

We’re challenging, amongst others, the fact that – despite undertakings from UK sponsors to pay for visits (in this case by myself) – applicants such as Emmanuel are still unlawfully denied a visa based on their own economic conditions and lack of previous travel. These refusals cause untold misery. I believe that success in Emmanuel’s case should lead to better practices in other cases. Please contribute now and share this page with your friends, family and on social media.

My name is Reverend Louise Morrissey and I am a Minister in the British Methodist church.  During my working life I have met many church members who have wished to invite family from overseas for funerals, baptisms and ordinations who then are heartbreakingly turned down for visit visas.  

Imagine not being able to attend the funeral of your mother or the ordination of your son. There is no right of appeal for visit visa applications and for many the family occasion passes by without the presence of their loved ones.  And many do not have the resources to mount a legal challenge.  

We must fight this injustice.

Specifically I would like my friend to be able to visit me from Ghana.  I  have had the privilege of visiting the Methodist church there  on  many occasions. I met Emmanuel Tawiah when he was assigned to work with me as he is a lay employee of the church there and we have remained friends.  I first invited him to visit me in the UK for a holiday, as a return courtesy for the fantastic hospitality I have received there.  Highlights of his visit would include the wedding of my son, visits to Methodist heritage sites, general sightseeing and a visit to a premiership football match. Emmanuel is a family man who has worked for the Methodist church for nearly 20 years.  He loves the church and football!  

However, we encountered the same problems as many other applicants, finding the hostile environment of UKVI which treats all potential visitors with suspicion and aggressive accusations.  After five applications for a visitor visa were turned down we had the sixth application prepared by a solicitor which was detailed and highly professional with above and beyond all the supporting documentation required.  It was still turned down!  The refusal letters contained many errors. We therefore proceeded to the first Judicial Review and permission was granted in our favour on the grounds that the Entry Clearance Officer “irrationally failed” to take into account Emmanuel’s income, savings, settled life in Ghana and sponsor’s support. A sealed order was issued in which UKVI undertook to re-examine the sixth visa application and pay all reasonable costs within three months. UKVI broke the court order by not acting within three months and although the costs were finally paid and they finally made a decision on the visa, they once again refused it (for different reasons!)  They claimed the delay was because the supporting documentation was “unavailable” to them.  They couldn’t explain how this was possible since all documentation was both with the application and contained within the JR bundle!

The cost of the proposed trip is very small.  I am Emmanuel’s sponsor and the only cost to him is for souvenirs and toiletries.  He has more than enough savings to cover this.  UKVI have acknowledged that my income is enough to host him while he is on holiday.  They seem to believe that he won’t go home afterwards.  They allege that this respectably-employed family man would abandon all his responsibilities in Ghana and cause irreparable harm to the Methodist church we both serve to overstay and live illegally in the UK.  

Every time a badly written visa refusal letter arrives with its implications that Emmanuel is a liar or a scrounger, it hurts him deeply.  The only thing which will put this right is for him to be allowed the visa for his holiday after all, even though my son has now been married for three years! 

We are raising £2124 to apply for a second Judicial Review. We believe UK Visas and Immigration has acted unlawfully in relation to our application and should be challenged.  

We are determined to keep fighting this injustice.  We hope and believe that if we challenge UKVI in another Judicial Review it may lead to a reconsideration of the whole visit visa system.  We hope our challenge will help other people too.

We need your support: please contribute and share this page now!