Home Office rejects Palestinian Jerusalemite woman’s UK visa but approves husband’s | Home Office
A Palestinian Jerusalemite living in London was left devastated after a trip planned by her family was canceled after the Home Office ruled her mother was not a “bona fide visitor”.
Karim Abdallah, who has been living in England since 2019, was looking forward to hosting his parents Therese Abdallah, 69, a retired English teacher, and his father Ghassan Abdallah, a psychologist, for a few weeks.
Both parents had previously traveled to the UK for academic visits without any visa problems, but a Home Office employee said in the rejection letter that they could not be sure Therese would return home at the end of the trip.
The decision was even more surprising when the visa of his wife of 40 years, who applied during the same process, was also approved.
Palestinian Jerusalemites have a unique status. They are not Israeli citizens but have Israeli and Jordanian travel documents. Since Karim’s mother needed separate visas for their trip to London and a family wedding in Ireland, she submitted one application with an Israeli travel document and the other with a Jordanian travel document.
According to Karim, his UK visa application was rejected in 2019 due to a technical issue with submitting his bank statement in Hebrew as proof of his financial situation.
However, when Therese applied this time, the Home Office refused her current visa application, stating: “I note that your UK outweighs your ties with your own country.”
The official was unsure if he would leave England at the end of his visit. “I am not satisfied on the balance of probabilities that you are a genuine visitor,” they said in the rejection letter. It was said that he had no right to appeal the decision or administrative review.
He actually has only one immediate family member living in the UK: his son. He has another son who is an oncologist; He lives with his wife and children in East Jerusalem, along with extended family members, friends, and the broader community.
Therese was born in East Jerusalem, has lived there all her life, and, according to her son, does not want to lose her resident status, which would be at risk if she was away for too long.
Karim said: “My parents have both applied for UK visitor visas at the invitation of my partner and I. We have provided them both with the same evidence of our financial means to support them during their visit. I have been living, working and paying taxes legally in the UK for the last eight years and have no access to any benefits in the UK. I am proud of my contribution here.”
He added: “As well as the family wedding in Ireland, I was looking forward to showing my family places like Kew Gardens, not far from where we live. The Home Office ruined our summer holiday plans.”
A Home Office spokesman said: “We do not routinely comment on individual cases. All visa applications are assessed on the individual merits and evidence presented, including representations regarding previous visa refusals.”
