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Certificate of approval to be abolished in the near future
The UK Border Agency has announced its intention to abolish the 'certificate of approval' scheme. A Remedial Order under the Human Rights Act 1998 has been laid in Parliament to achieve this aim.
At present, any migrant who is already in the UK and is subject to immigration control must apply for a certificate of approval or permission to marry before they can get married or register a civil partnership in this country (unless they are getting married within the Anglican Church).
The government is now seeking to remedy the declaration by the UK courts that the scheme is incompatible with Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights (read with Article 12). The Government expects the scheme to end in late 2010 or early 2011, subject to Parliamentary scrutiny.
Since 31 July 2009, migrants who applied for a certificate of approval between 2005 and 2009 have been able to apply for their fee to be repaid. They must show that paying the fee caused them real financial hardship at the time of payment. The formal repayment scheme has also come to an end on 31 July 2010.
