Housing worker blocked from seeing family abroad due to eVisa issues
A community worker was left unable to prove his refugee status or travel to see his family due to eVisa problems in the latest in a string of issues facing foreign nationals.
Jorge Gomez, 29, has had the right to live and work in the UK since December 2022, when he was granted refugee status on the grounds he experienced political persecution in his home country of Nicaragua.
He applied for an eVisa at the beginning of November last year after the Home Office told millions of foreign nationals in the UK to move to a digital immigration system before 31 December 2024.
However, despite applying three times, he was left waiting for an eVisa for months, with the delay ending his plans to see his family abroad in January. His eVisa problems were finally fixed, only after The Independent contacted the Home Office.
Mr Gomez, who lives in Chesham in Buckinghamshire, said: 'I've applied for the eVisa three times. I've tried to create an account, tried to link it up, and it doesn't work.
'I got an email from the Home Office, saying it was sorted, but in reality it wasn't. I got another email saying IT is working on your eVisa. But we are already in February and this is still not working.'
Emails show that Mr Gomez's case was referred to the Home Office's technical support team on 31 December 2024. He was then told 'not to make any travel arrangements until you have received confirmation your eVisa has been corrected'.
Mr Gomez, who supports people struggling with housing issues, had been planning a trip in early January to central America to see his siblings, mother and grandmother. He is unable to return to Nicaragua, so had been hoping to see them in nearby El Salvador or Costa Rica.
He said: 'I haven't seen my mum or siblings in seven years. I started applying for my eVisa early last year because I wanted to get it done so I could go and see my family. I was looking forward to it and it has been a rollercoaster of emotions.
'That whole journey is gone now.'
This is not the first time that Mr Gomez has encountered problems with the Home Office. He spent around 15 months from 2023 to 2024 unable to generate a share code, which is needed to prove immigration status to landlords or employers.
'I would say I made over 100 calls to the Home Office trying to sort it out,' he said.
A couple of hours after The Guardian wrote about his situation, his share code was fixed, Mr Gomez said. Referring to the latest issue, he said: 'It is literally deja vu with the eVisa.'
The Independent has been documenting problems facing foreign nationals after the rollout of electronic visas. Some travellers have reported difficulty boarding UK-bound flights and some refugees have been left without any way to prove their immigration status.
While Mr Gomez is fortunate that his employer knows he has the right to live and work in the UK, many new refugees who are waiting on eVisas have been left unable to open bank accounts or access housing.
Andreea Dumitrache, chief executive at citizens rights group The3million, said: 'It's disgraceful how Jorge's eVisa was broken for a second time, pushing him into insecurity, waiting for months on end, unable to even make plans to visit his family who he's not seen for so many years.
'We've received hundreds of reports of countless eVisa errors in the last few months alone.' She added that the system was 'inherently flawed and authoritarian, denying people their personal freedom and rights, pushing migrants into destitution, taking away job opportunities and causing travel chaos'.
She added: 'We urge ministers to reconsider and prevent further harm by providing people with a physical back-up of their eVisa, safeguarding against a scandal on the same scale as Windrush.'
A Home Office spokesperson said: "We are listening carefully to people's concerns and ensuring that anyone who is having trouble accessing their eVisa is supported.
'eVisas bring significant benefits. They cannot be lost, stolen, or tampered with, unlike a physical document, and also increase the UK immigration system's security and efficiency."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
29 minutes ago
- Telegraph
If Sadiq Khan wants money for policing, he could trim his legions of overpaid bureaucrats
The Mayor of London is not happy. Despite the Chancellor's alarmingly profligate Spending Review announced this week – with commitments worth an estimated £600 billion – the Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan remains 'concerned' with insufficient funding for the Metropolitan police. If Sir Sadiq's concern is keeping London safe, funding need not be a problem. We can provide him with a catalogue of fat to trim, which would free up taxpayers' money to better serve the public. In its City Hall Rich List published last year, the TaxPayers' Alliance revealed that the Mayor-led Greater London Assembly (GLA) and its subsidiary bodies employed at least 1,146 people who received over £100,000 in total remuneration in 2022-23. A whopping 143 of these employees received over £150,000. The same report also revealed that the number of employees at the Met Police (including the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime or MOPAC which oversees it) who received total remuneration of over £100,000 totalled at 301 in 2022-23. The number had almost quadrupled compared to that in 2018-19, when 80 employees received that amount. However, the crime rate per 1,000 people in London had gone up in that period. Could the money instead have been spent more efficiently on simply recruiting more old-fashioned bobbies on the beat? There are more savings to be made. In January, the Conservatives in City Hall put forward an amendment to the GLA budget that would see £22.4 million from the MOPAC fund being reallocated to the Metropolitan Police. Alas, it did not pass. Compared to the rest of England and Wales, the Met already 'receives the most funding per head of population' according to the Home Office. In 2024-25, it received up to £3.5 billion, which was an increase of up to £119 million on the previous year. However, early this year, the Met's Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley warned that his police force needed an extra £140 million 'to address the racism, misogyny and homophobia identified by the Casey Review '. It would appear that the nearly £3.7 million the Met spent on 'staff (and the number and cost of those staff) and non-staff initiatives for Diversity, Equality and Inclusion' between April 2024 to Feb 2025 had fallen short of delivering the intended results. In the light of these revelations, Waste Watch readers might be wondering if instead of demanding more money, the Mayor might have better luck keeping the capital safe by carrying out an audit of his priorities. I have every confidence that the Mayor would take this advice in the spirit in which it is meant, being the humble man he is. After all, he did graciously forgive the King for taking so long to dub him a knight.
BBC News
32 minutes ago
- BBC News
Mum of Charlene Downes welcomes grooming inquiry plan
The mother of a 14-year-old girl believed to have been murdered more than 20 years ago has welcomed the announcement of a national grooming Downes went missing in Blackpool in 2003, but no-one has ever been convicted over her disappearance despite numerous arrests, trials and a £100,000 believe Charlene was one of a number of girls who were sexually exploited in the Lancashire to Sir Kier Starmer's announcement there would be a full, national statutory inquiry, the schoolgirl's mother, Karen Downes, said it was "about time". Charlene disappeared near the town's North Pier on 1 November 2003, but has never been mother told the BBC: "I'm no fan of the prime minister but hopefully some good will come out of it."But all this has been going on for so long."I'd never heard of grooming gangs when Charlene went missing."I was shocked by the scale of it. "Hopefully this inquiry will shed more light on it and more will be done."The search for Charlene has been one of Lancashire Police's longest-running missing person of people have been spoken to by officers and almost 7,000 statements 2008, a man who ran a local takeaway was cleared of Charlene's murder when a retrial collapsed due to a judge's "grave concerns" about the first trial had ended when a jury failed to reach a verdict. Ms Downes has said she is "living in limbo" but was still "optimistic" and hopeful that "we can get justice for Charlene".Lancashire Police have said inquiries into Charlene's disappearance were ongoing and urged anyone with information however "insignificant" to get in touch. The government has been under pressure to launch a full statutory inquiry into grooming gangs for months. At the start of the year, the government dismissed the calls, arguing it had already been examined in a seven-year inquiry led by Professor Alexis instead announced the creation of a number of investigations to be conducted by local authorities. Sir Keir Starmer said he had accepted the recommendations of an audit by Baroness Louise Casey into the data and evidence on the nature and scale of group-based child sexual Casey has recommended a national inquiry is required, he said. The inquiry will cover England and Wales. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
The Independent
32 minutes ago
- The Independent
Government advises against all travel to Israel amid Iran conflict
Britons are being told not to travel to Israel amid the ongoing conflict with Iran. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office updated travel advice on Sunday to advise 'against all travel to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories'. Israel and Iran continued to exchange fire overnight, after Sir Keir Starmer said that the UK was sending more RAF jets to the region amid the increasing hostilities. The FCDO website warns that 'travel insurance could be invalidated' if people travel against the advice, and described the current status as a 'fast-moving situation that poses significant risks'. Earlier on Sunday, Rachel Reeves said that sending more jets to the region 'does not mean' the UK is at war. Additional refuelling aircraft have been deployed from UK bases and more fast Typhoon jets will be sent over, it is understood. The Chancellor also indicated that the UK could 'potentially' support Israel, but declined to comment on 'what might happen in the future'. Asked whether the announcement from the Prime Minister means the UK is at war, Ms Reeves told Sky News: 'No, it does not mean that we are at war. 'And we have not been involved in these strikes or this conflict, but we do have important assets in the region and it is right that we send jets to protect them and that's what we've done. 'It's a precautionary move.' Oil prices surged surged on Friday after Israel's initial strikes against Iran's nuclear programme, sparking fears of increasing prices in the UK. The Chancellor told the BBC that there is 'no complacency' from the Treasury on the issue and 'we're obviously, monitoring this very closely as a government'. Sir Keir has declined to rule out the possibility of intervening in the conflict entirely, and the Chancellor indicated on Sunday that the UK could 'potentially' support Israel in the future. Britain last announced it had deployed fighter jets in the region in last year, when the Government said British aircraft had played a part in efforts to prevent further escalation. Asked whether the UK would come to Israel's aid if asked, the Chancellor told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: 'We have, in the past, supported Israel when there have been missiles coming in. 'I'm not going to comment on what might happen in the future, but so far, we haven't been involved, and we're sending in assets to both protect ourselves and also potentially to support our allies.' Pushed again on whether the UK would deploy assets in support of Israel if asked, she said: 'What we've done in the past (…) is help protect Israel from incoming strikes. 'So a defensive activity.' She added: 'I'm not going to rule anything out at this stage (…) it's a fast moving situation, a very volatile situation.' It comes after Iranian state media said Tehran had warned it would target US, UK and French bases in the region if the countries help Israel thwart Iran's strikes, according to reports on Saturday. Conservative shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride has backed the Government's decision to send further RAF jets to the region, telling the BBC it is the 'right thing' to do. He told the BBC: 'We've got assets out there in the UAE, Oman, Cyprus, they need to be protected given that Iran has suggested they may be under threat.'
