The government wants to profit off grieving widows

In the week of the Conservative Party Conference, Suella Braverman’s hate-filled speech – replete once again with white nationalist talking points and transphobic attacks – dominated headlines.

However, that same week – to less fanfare – the Government massively increased visa fees – some as high as 35%. 

The UK already had some of the highest visa fees in Europe. But Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) application fees, for example, rose from £2,404 to £2,885.

These fees must be paid upfront and cannot be waived or paid in instalments. This has devastating consequences for long-term residents and vulnerable people. 

One such person is Esther*. Originally from West Africa, she has lived in the UK since 2020 after relocating here to live with her British husband.

Towards the end of 2021, she lost her husband, and so was eligible to apply for ILR under the government’s bereaved partner concession.

Over a two-year period, Esther sacrificed everything to raise the money for the application fee.

Her child, Belle* wears school uniforms she has long since outgrown, broken shoes are repaired instead of replaced and family food is kept to the bare essentials. 

Things like birthdays, milestones and school achievements have been ignored too, which has contributed to a sense of alienation for Belle as she navigates her teenage years. 

Meanwhile, Esther herself has survived on one meal a day, consequently contracting diabetes and regularly experiencing extreme fatigue. Facing depression, she has become ever more isolated, foregoing the traditional support network – such as church and friends – due to the costs associated with socialising.

This was all done in the pursuit of immigration status, to which she is unquestionably entitled to but simply cannot afford – especially now with the higher, unexpected cost.

Conscious of the fee increase, and after working with Esther ever since she lost her husband, my organisation, the Refugee and Migrant Forum of Essex and London (RAMFEL), made an application for her, two days before the price hike.

She now faces an uncertain and undetermined wait for this application to be processed, and for permanent and secure immigration status to finally be granted.

The Government has cynically claimed that this general visa fee increase will benefit the wider public and fund other services, pitting workers against each other and ignoring the fact that migrants already pay tax and work in critical sectors like the care industry.

As with many of this government’s immigration policies, no Economic Assessment has been published supporting this.

And as far as I can see,  they have also remained silent on the impact on those who have lived here for decades, those brought to the UK as children and parents of British citizen children, all of whom must pay this increased fee if they hope to ever secure permanent status in the UK.

ILR fees were already so prohibitively high that many people who qualified were priced out – and instead remain stuck on temporary visas, usually issued for 30-month intervals.

Renewing even those visas every 30 months is an extremely stressful ordeal.

Most people must wait 10 years before qualifying for ILR, meaning they need to pay £2,500 four times for these 30-month visas before finally qualifying for permanent immigration status. 

The total cost therefore runs well over £10,000 even before forking out the final £2,885 application fee. Not to mention the perpetual worry that comes as part of wondering if you will be able to remain in the country you now call home.

This coming January, in the midst of a cost of living crisis, the government is increasing the overall cost for these 30-month visas to a staggering £3,884 due to a hike in the health surcharge applicants must pay. 

Applying even one day late to extend these visas leads to people inadvertently becoming so-called ‘overstayers’ and deprived of the right to work. 

Even those who apply in time are potentially wrongly suspended from their jobs due to lacking proof of their immigration status while waiting for the government to process their application.

The Government has cynically claimed that this general visa fee increase will benefit the wider public and fund other services

Permanent immigration status makes an unimaginable difference to a person’s ability to flourish in the UK, meaning people, like Esther, make heart-breaking sacrifices to try and fund ILR applications. 

This is especially stark with grieving widows  living in the UK on the basis of their relationship with a now-deceased partner. The Government’s bereaved partner concession in theory, allows people in this position to secure their status. 

Grieving the loss of your nearest and dearest is already an awful ordeal, yet imagine also worrying about the Government deporting you from the UK if you cannot pay them thousands of pounds.

Women are disproportionately affected by this; 68% of people on family visas are female and in 2020, the last year in which data was collected, 90% of people granted indefinite leave under the bereaved partner concession were women.

Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick has callously accused such women of ‘benefiting directly from the Migration and Borders system’. Nothing could be further from the truth. 

These women were living in the UK with their British partners, invariably working and often raising British citizen children. 

Braverman and Jenrick are currently using public money defending the fee for the bereaved partner concession. The court is currently considering whether this will proceed to a full hearing, with a decision expected in the next couple of months.

It is difficult to imagine that the general public would support the Government profiting off grieving widows and the hardship and suffering Esther went through. 

An immigration system causing this much harm to anyone – let alone grieving widows – is seriously broken. 

The Government could take steps to fix it, making it easier and more affordable for people who have made the UK their home – who we often unknowingly interact with every day, who care for our sick and elderly – to obtain secure and permanent immigration status. 

A simple but consequential first step would be allowing grieving women who have lost their British partners to preserve their status in the UK without having to near-starve themselves to pay extortionate fees. 

As Braverman’s recurrent speeches and Jenrick’s treatment of grieving widows demonstrates though, the cruelty really seems to be the point. 

If you want to raise Esther’s plight and that of other women in her position, you can contact your local MP here.

*Names have been changed

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing jess.austin@metro.co.uk. 

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