KG (Turkey) (appellant) v The Secretary of State for the Home Department (respondent)
Thursday 24 November 2022
By appellant’s notice filed on 10 February 2022, the appellant appeals the decision of Upper Tribunal Judge McWilliam dated 4 October 2021 and promulgated on 2 November 2021, which dismissed his appeal.
The appellant, a national of Turkey, challenged the SSHD’s decision of 1 February 2019 to refuse his asylum claim of 4 October 2018, on the basis that he is at risk on return because of his affiliation to the Gülenist Movement (GM). The appellant arrived in the UK in 2006 and was granted indefinite leave to remain in 2011 under the EC Association Agreement (ie the Ankara Agreement). In 2014 the applicant was charged with grievous bodily harm and sentenced to 14 months’ imprisonment. As a consequence, the SSHD made a decision to deport him on 18 July 2015, and a deportation order was issued on 11 January 2017. The appellant made a human rights claim, which was dismissed by the First Tier Tribunal in 2018. He then claimed asylum.
On 13 March 2020 the First Tier Tribunal allowed his appeal. On 24 February 2021 UTJ McWilliam set aside the First Tier decision on the basis there has been inadequate consideration of the applicant’s delay in claiming asylum. In the decision of 4 October 2021 UTJ McWilliam dismissed the appeal on protection and Article 8 grounds, finding that the applicant had not provided a credible reason for the delay in his claim, and not accepting that he was a genuine member or supporter of the GM.