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UK visa refused: appeal, administrative review or reapply?

Your refusal letter says whether you can ask for an administrative review (£80; 14 days in the UK, 28 days outside, 7 if detained) or appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (£82 or £144; 14 or 28 days). Appeals are only for refused protection or human rights claims and a few other decision types. Making a new application withdraws a pending administrative review.

A refusal is frightening, and the clock starts on the day you receive the letter. The UK system has three main responses, and they are not interchangeable: an administrative review checks for a caseworking mistake, an appeal puts your case to an independent judge, and a fresh application starts again. Which ones are open to you depends on the type of application and where you were when you applied.

This guide explains how each works, the deadlines and fees as published on 9 October 2026, and the traps people fall into in the first two weeks. It does not tell you which to choose; your decision letter and, if needed, a regulated adviser do that.

Start with the decision letter

GOV.UK says you will be told in your decision letter whether you can ask for an administrative review, and you will "usually be told" in the letter if you have a right of appeal. Read it for four things:

  1. The date you received it: deadlines run from receipt.
  2. Whether it mentions administrative review, appeal, or neither.
  3. Each reason for refusal, quoted against a paragraph of the Immigration Rules.
  4. Whether it says you must leave the UK before appealing.

Keep the envelope or the email showing when it arrived.

Option 1: administrative review

An administrative review is a Home Office check of whether the decision "was wrong due to a case working error" (Appendix Administrative Review). The reviewer looks at whether the caseworker failed to apply, or wrongly applied, the Immigration Rules or published guidance (AR 3.1). It considers your original application only (AR 3.2) and, in most cases, does not look at new evidence (AR 3.3 lists narrow exceptions, such as deception findings).

It is only available for decisions on routes listed in AR 1.1. Those include Student, Graduate, Skilled Worker, Global Business Mobility, Global Talent, High Potential Individual, Scale-up, UK Ancestry, Youth Mobility, the Temporary Work routes and Hong Kong BN(O), among others. Appendix FM family routes and Appendix Visitor are not on that list.

  • Fee: £80.
  • Deadline: 14 days if you were in the UK, 28 days if refused entry clearance outside the UK, 7 days if detained (AR 2.6).
  • How: online only.
  • Timing: GOV.UK currently says it "can take 12 months or more" for in-country and out-of-country reviews, with a Home Office update if there is no decision within 6 months.

Our administrative review guide covers this in detail.

Option 2: appeal to the First-tier Tribunal

An appeal is heard by an independent judge. Section 82(1) of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 gives a right of appeal where the Home Office decides to refuse a protection claim, refuse a human rights claim, or revoke protection status. GOV.UK's appeal page also lists EU Settlement Scheme decisions, deprivation of British citizenship, frontier worker and S2 healthcare visitor permits, and certain EEA decisions.

Whether a family refusal (for example as a partner or parent) carries an appeal depends on whether the Home Office decided it as a refusal of a human rights claim; the letter will say. Work and study routes appear instead on the administrative review list.

  • Fee: £82 without a hearing, £144 with a hearing. You may not have to pay if you get asylum support or legal aid.
  • Deadline: 14 days from receiving the letter if in the UK; 28 days if outside; 28 days from leaving if the letter says you must leave first. Late appeals need an explanation and the tribunal decides whether to accept them.
  • How: online, or by post or email on form IAFT-1. Representatives use MyHMCTS.
  • After the hearing: GOV.UK says you will usually get the decision within 4 weeks. Winning "does not automatically mean you'll be able to enter or stay"; it may mean the Home Office has to reconsider.

Option 3: a new application

You can usually make a fresh application that deals with the refusal reasons, paying the full application fee and any Immigration Health Surcharge again. Check current fees on the GOV.UK fee table before budgeting.

The trap: a new application and a review do not run side by side. Under AR 4.4, if you make a new application while an administrative review is pending, the review is treated as withdrawn the day before. AR 2.16 says a review requested after a new application is not valid. GOV.UK also says the in-country review is withdrawn if you ask for your passport back to travel or leave the UK.

Some refusals give a reason that affects future applications, such as a finding of deception or a previous breach of immigration law. Those are the cases where a fresh application without addressing the reason is most likely to meet the same answer.

If neither review nor appeal is offered

Some refusals carry no administrative review and no appeal; a standard visitor refusal is the common example, because Appendix Visitor is not on the AR 1.1 list and a visit application is not usually a protection or human rights claim. The options then are a new application, or judicial review if the decision was unlawful (not merely wrong).

Judicial review in the Upper Tribunal must be applied for no later than 3 months after the decision. The application fee is £179, with £897 for a final hearing if permission is granted. GOV.UK is clear: "Do not apply for a judicial review if you believe that the decision was wrong – only if you think it was unlawful." Representatives must hold rights of audience in the High Court.

Your status while you wait (in the UK)

If you applied in the UK to extend your permission before it expired, section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971 extends your existing leave on the same conditions while the application is undecided, while an in-country administrative review could be sought or is pending, and while an in-country appeal could be brought or is pending. Section 3C leave lapses if you leave the UK, and while it lasts you cannot make a new application to vary your leave (you can vary the pending one).

Appendix AR 4.1 adds that you will not be removed while an administrative review of an in-country decision is pending. GOV.UK says if your visa has expired, you will not usually be removed until the review is completed.

If you applied late, after your permission had already expired, section 3C does not apply in the same way. Our section 3C guide explains it.

Common mistakes in the first 14 days

  • Missing the deadline by counting from the date on the letter rather than the date you received it (or the reverse). Keep proof of receipt.
  • Applying for administrative review on a route that is not eligible, so the request is rejected as invalid (AR 2.13) and time passes.
  • Lodging a new application and losing a pending review automatically.
  • Sending new evidence to an administrative review, where in most cases it will not be considered.
  • Travelling while an in-country review or appeal is pending, which ends it.
  • Relying on an adviser who is not registered. Check them first.

When people use a regulated adviser

Refusals are the point where many people who applied alone bring in help, because the choice between review, appeal and reapplying turns on the exact refusal reasons and the deadlines are days, not weeks. A typical first step is a review of the decision letter and the original application, followed by a written client care letter setting out the work and fee. Administrative reviews need at least an IAA Level 2 adviser or a solicitor; tribunal representation needs Level 3 or a solicitor or barrister.

The Migratio directory lists IAA-registered advisers and SRA-regulated solicitors with their regulator, level and registration number. Migratio is not regulated by the IAA or the SRA and does not give immigration advice. This page explains how the rules work; it does not tell you what to do in your case.

Questions people ask

How long do I have to challenge a UK visa refusal?

For administrative review: 14 days if you were in the UK, 28 days if refused entry clearance outside the UK, 7 days if detained. For an appeal: 14 days from receiving the letter in the UK, 28 days outside the UK. Judicial review: no later than 3 months after the decision.

Can I appeal a UK visitor visa refusal?

Usually not. Appeals are for refused protection or human rights claims and a few other decision types, and Appendix Visitor is not on the administrative review list. Your refusal letter says whether any review or appeal applies. Otherwise the options are a new application or, if the decision was unlawful, judicial review.

What is the difference between administrative review and appeal?

Administrative review is a Home Office check for caseworking errors in applying the Rules or guidance, usually without new evidence, for £80. An appeal is heard by an independent judge at the First-tier Tribunal, for £82 or £144, and is only available for certain decisions such as refused human rights claims.

Can I reapply after a UK visa refusal while waiting for an administrative review?

You can make a new application, but under Appendix AR 4.4 a pending administrative review is treated as withdrawn the day before the new application is made.

Can I stay in the UK while my refusal is reviewed or appealed?

If you applied in time to extend your leave, section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971 extends your leave while an in-country administrative review or appeal could be brought or is pending. It lapses if you leave the UK. Appendix AR 4.1 says you will not be removed while an in-country review is pending.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-09.

Related guides

  • Administrative review of a UK visa refusal — Administrative review is a Home Office check of whether a refusal was caused by a caseworking error. It costs £80 and must be requested online within 14 days if you were in the UK, 28 days if you applied from outside, or 7 days if detained. It only covers routes listed in Appendix AR, usually ignores new evidence, and GOV.UK says results can take 12 months or more.
  • Immigration appeal to the First-tier Tribunal — You can only appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) if the decision carries a right of appeal, mainly a refused protection claim, a refused human rights claim, or a revoked protection status. The fee is £82 without a hearing or £144 with one, and the notice of appeal must reach the tribunal within 14 days if you are in the UK or 28 days if you are outside it.
  • Section 3C leave: your status while a decision is pending — If you apply to extend or change your UK leave before it expires, section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971 extends that leave on the same conditions until the application is decided, and while an appeal or administrative review is possible or pending. It does not apply to late or invalid applications, and it ends if you leave the UK.
  • Spouse visa refused: options and deadlines — A refused UK partner (spouse) application is not on the administrative review list. You can appeal to the First-tier Tribunal only if the decision refused a human rights claim, which your decision letter should say; the deadline is 14 days in the UK or 28 days outside it and the fee is £82 or £144. Otherwise the usual step is a new application at £2,064 (outside the UK) or £1,407 (inside), plus the healthcare surcharge.
  • UK visitor visa refused: what you can do next — A refused UK Standard Visitor visa application has no administrative review (Appendix Visitor is not on the list in Appendix AR) and visitor refusals do not usually carry an appeal. The usual next step is a new application, which costs £135 for a 6-month visa and is decided on the evidence it contains. Judicial review is only for unlawful decisions and must be started within 3 months.
  • Skilled Worker visa refused: options and deadlines — A refused Skilled Worker application can be challenged by administrative review (£80; 14 days if you applied in the UK, 28 days if you applied from abroad) because Appendix Skilled Worker is on the eligible list. A certificate of sponsorship that has been used in a refused application cannot be used again (SW 5.1(d)), so a fresh application needs a new certificate and a new visa fee.
  • Who can represent you at an immigration appeal — At the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) you can be represented by anyone not prohibited by section 84 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999: in practice a Level 3 IAA-registered adviser, a solicitor, a barrister or another authorised lawyer. You can also represent yourself. Judicial review in the Upper Tribunal needs a representative with rights of audience in the High Court.