If your case is refused (‘dismissed’) by the judge, you may be able to appeal that decision at the Upper Tribunal.

If you cannot appeal to the higher courts or your appeal fails (you are ‘Appeals Rights Exhausted’ or ‘ARE’), you may also have other legal options available to you, such as a fresh claim – see next stage.

If all your appeals fail and you cannot submit a fresh claim, the Home Office will expect steps to be taken for your return. Social services may have to discharge you from their care (they will no longer have a duty to support you).

However, before care is stopped, social services need to provide the reasons for doing so in writing and conduct a Human Rights Assessment (HRA). If the HRA confirms that there is no legal or practical obstacle for taking away social services support, try to find out what agencies can provide support in your area as soon as possible.

These include local churches and refugee community organisations. They may be able to help you apply for asylum support for refused asylum seekers (called Section 4 support) until you are returned to your country of origin. This does not apply if you are under 18 and social services should keep looking after you.

Your social worker and/or Personal Advisor (PA) will go through the stages of the asylum process so you know what to expect. They will also explain all possible asylum claim outcomes and the support they will provide in a written document called a pathway plan. See Your Plan card on the People Who Can Help page.

Note that social services cannot withdraw leaving care support, even when you are ‘Appeal Rights Exhausted’, if you have claimed asylum at port of entry and were not granted UASC leave.

You will need to wait for around 14 days to find out if the Home Office is going to appeal the Judge’s decision.

If the Home Office applies for permission to appeal, and that application is granted, your case will be heard by an Immigration Judge at the Upper Tribunal.

Ask your lawyer for a letter, setting out their reasons for refusing to take your case further. Show this letter, along with a copy of the Judge’s decision, to a different lawyer, and ask them for a second opinion. It may be that the new lawyer takes a different view about the strength of your case. It is very important to find a new lawyer quickly, as you will only have 14 days from the date of the Judge’s decision to apply for permission to appeal. If you are not able to appeal the judge’s dismissal of your case, you could speak to a lawyer about a fresh claim (see next stage).

If you are over 18, without permission to stay in the UK because all your appeals have failed (you are Appeal Rights Exhausted) and you cannot submit a fresh claim either, the Home Office will expect steps to be taken for your return to your country of origin and social Services may have to stop supporting you (stop caring for you, giving you housing and food maybe).

If this happens to you, talk to an advocate as soon as you can. Your social worker or PA would have also explained what happens in this case and this should be written in your pathway plan (please see Your Plans in the People Who Can Help section).

Before they stop their support, social services will have to carry out a Human Rights Assessment. This means social services will have to check if stopping support would breach (go against) your human rights. For instance, if you cannot return to your country for specific reasons beyond your control and they stop supporting you, you may have nowhere to go and could be at risk of sleeping in the streets or may have no money for food. This would be against your human rights.

To avoid (not to do something) breaching your human rights, social services will have to check that there are no legal, practical, or medical barriers to a return to your country of origin before they can stop any support.

• They will check that there are no legal barriers to your return. This means they will have to make sure your claim is closed and that you have appealed to the highest level possible and nothing more can be done to help you remain legally in the UK (you have no new evidence or information to give the Home Office). Your lawyer would have to confirm this.
• They will check that there are no practical barriers to your return. For example, this means they will have to make sure that you have travel documents and that travel to your country is authorised. If this is not the case, they will have to continue supporting you until this is resolved.
• They will also have to check that there are no medical barriers to your return. For example, you may not be able to travel back to your country because you are very sick and would risk terrible suffering or be at higher risk of death due to lack of treatment in your country of origin. In this case, they will have to continue supporting you until this is resolved. Note that medical barriers are very limited. Talk to your advocate or lawyer for more information on this.

If there is a legal, practical or medical barrier to return, they cannot stop their support until the barrier is removed (gone).

However, if the Human Rights Assessment confirms that there is no legal, practical or medical barrier (obstacle) to your return, social services can withdraw (take away, stop) their support. The reasons should be put in writing.

If this happens to you, talk to your advocate or lawyer for more information on this, try to find out what agencies can provide support in your area as soon as possible. These include local churches and refugee community organisations (please see Community Organisations in People Who Can Help section). They may be able to help you apply for asylum support for refused asylum seekers (called ‘Section 4 support’) until you are returned to your country of origin.

This does not apply if you are under 18 – social services should keep looking after you.

Note that social services cannot withdraw leaving care support, even when you are ‘Appeal Rights Exhausted’, if you have claimed asylum at port of entry and were not granted UASC leave.