When is a “False Document” Not a “False” Document?

London: Appeal judges clashed over false document rules. In LLD v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2020] NICA 38, the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland held that a document cannot itself be dishonest. Dishonesty requires an assessment of the state of mind of the person submitting the document as part of their immigration application. That finding deliberately contradicts the line taken by the Court of Appeal in England and Wales: see Hameed v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2019] EWCA Civ 1324. The NI Court of Appeal was referred to its counterpart’s decision on the issue, but — in a judgment written by former chief immigration judge Lord Justice McCloskey — politely declined to follow it. (The judgment was handed down over the summer but has only recently appeared on Bailii.)

The appellant, LLD, had applied to join her mother in the UK. The mother had submitted a birth certificate for her daughter which, after checks with the Philippine authorities, turned out to be bogus. The visa application was turned down under paragraph 320(7A) of the Immigration Rules, which requires a refusal: … where false representations have been made or false documents (or information) have been submitted (whether or not material to the application, and whether or not to the applicant’s knowledge), or material facts have not been disclosed, in relation to the application, or in order to obtain documents from the Secretary of State or a third party required in support of the application. Lawyers for LLD said that submitting a false document was not enough to trigger paragraph 320(7A): there had to be a “dishonest promotion” of that document. The Home Office said that a dishonest document was, by itself, sufficient to refuse, arguing there was no need to look at the intention of the applicant.

Read more: Freemovement, https://is.gd/Yzvfp3