NRPF and Gender-Based Abuse

GBA is an umbrella term used to describe harmful acts committed against an individual based on their gender; such acts are deeply rooted in historical socio-economic inequality, sexism and power imbalances.  

The Scottish Government does not have a definition for GBA but has a clear definition for a similar terms; Gender-Based Violence (GBV). They define GBV as the following; “any form of violence used to establish, enforce or perpetuate gender inequalities and keep in place gendered orders”. Although not exclusively a male-on-female crime, the vast majority of GBV-related acts are perpetrated by men against women, given that concepts like GBV overlap in terms of definitions and usage with other terms like Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) 

GBA can be physical, financial, emotional or sexual. Examples include the following: 

• Rape 
• Domestic abuse (an incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, bullying, threatening or violent behaviour, by a partner, ex partner or family member)
• Stalking 
• Forced marriage 
• Coercive Control 
• So-called “honour-based abuse” 
• Threats of any of the above 

Much of the support afforded to victims of domestic abuse in the UK is locked for migrant victims, who are unable to access much of this support as it’s listed as a “public fund” for immigration purposes.  

Without the safety net afforded to those with secure immigration status, migrant victims of gender-based abuse are forced to rely on the perpetrator for food and accommodation, as they may struggle to flee and support themselves and their families. This results in situations where victims of abuse are forced to choose between prolonging abuse or facing poverty and homelessness. 

Perpetrators of abuse often weaponise their partners’ insecure immigration status. Often, victims are legally in the UK as dependents on their abuser’s visa. This allows the abuser to falsely threaten the victim with deportation should they confront or challenge the abuser and their conduct. This can be described as “dual perpetration” where a victim’s vulnerabilities are shaped by their abuser and the hostile environment policy. 

The term ‘immigration abuse’ was popularised in the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s 2021 report titled ‘Safety Before Status‘; where they define the term as “a form of perpetration that uses the ‘insecure’, ‘uncertain’ or ‘unknown’ immigration status of an individual (or their dependents) to threaten, coerce, exploit and/or subjugate them (or their dependents) as part of a pattern of control and/or abuse and violence”.

An individual (more likely than not, a woman) perceives her vulnerability as increased by the perception or threat of immigration enforcement and the accompanying powers that immigration authorities possess.

An example of immigration abuse is when a perpetrator may confiscate, hide, or destroy passports, visas, and other legal documents, severely limiting the survivor’s freedom of movement and ability to identify themselves to authorities. Given that the UK has moved entirely to an e-visa system for migrants, this also includes confiscating a partner’s phone, changing access codes and other coercive behaviour. If the perpetrator is a British citizen or settled resident acting as the visa sponsor, they may deliberately delay, sabotage, or withdraw immigration applications to maintain coercive control over their partner.

Immigration Protections exist for survivors of this sort of conduct who have an eligible visa. We break them down im the “Immigration Protections for Survivors” toggle.

Reports from the Scottish Government defines ‘so-called’ Honour-based Abuse (HBA) as abuse that is justified to protect the so-called honour of family. The use of the suffix so-called is included to emphasise that there is never honour in abuse. This form of abuse is not a cultural tradition or religious practice and can take place in any community. 

HBA takes many forms and can at times be incredibly complex to identify but almost all cases originate from the controlling behaviour of an individual who uses force to compel someone to act in a certain way or subscribe to a certain set of beliefs. Forms of HBA include the following 

• Domestic abuse
• Domestic abuse (an incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, bullying, threatening or violent behaviour, by a partner, ex partner or family member)
• Child Marriage 
• Forced Marriage
• Virginity Testing 
• Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) 

For more information, resources and training focusing on HBA please visit Karma Nirvana’s website.

The two videos below – produced by Karma Nirvana and Hemat Gryffe Womans Aid introduce HBA in a simply and visually appealing animation.

Transnational marriage abandonment is a form of gender-based violence; it refers to a situation where a sponsoring partner or their family members abandon or strand a visa-dependent partner abroad, usually without any financial support to prevent the partner from returning to the UK. 

The abandoned partner is often misled on this journey and has items such as their immigration documents and passports taken away. Thereafter, the sponsoring partner may contact the Home Office to cancel the abandoned partner’s permission to stay without their consent, thereby denying them the opportunity to apply for a stay under the Appendix Victim of Domestic Abuse (VDA).

We discuss Appendix VDA in greater detail below – see “Immigration Protections for Victims”. 

Options available to victims of GBV will differ substantially depending on their immigration status – therefore, it is advised that they seek qualified solicitor before making any decision. 

Migrant Victims of Domestic Abuse Concession (MVDAC) 

The Migrant Victims of Domestic Abuse Concession (MVDAC) allows individuals with leave to enter or remain dependent on their partner to access public funds for three months following a breakdown in their relationship. Applicants do not need to be destitute to apply. The MVDAC is particularly beneficial to victims as it allows them to access benefits and local authority housing support, enabling them to leave their abuser. Applicants can include any dependent children under 18, or those aged 18 on the date of application, if they were last granted dependent status and are not living an “independent life”. 

During the three months of support, applicants must do one of the following: 

• Apply for ILR if they are eligible to do so 
• Make a different application for further leave to remain under the Immigration Rules 
• Leave the UK 

Should an applicant not do one of the options listed above before the MVDAC expires, they will be deemed an overstayer and thus have no recourse to public funds, lose the right to work and may be at risk of enforcement action from the Home Office, creating a cliff edge for those applying. 

Should an individual make an application for ILR or a different form of leave during the period of support, their leave will be extended by section 3C if their MVDAC leave expires before the Home Office makes a decision on their application – meaning individuals will continue to have the right to work and access benefits whilst awaiting a decision on their application. 

It is advised that applicants consult with an immigration solicitor before making any decision.

Appendix Victims of Domestic Abuse (VDA) 

Individuals in the UK on a spousal visa with a partner that has leave to remain (LTR), has served in the HM Forces for over four years or is a British citizen, have the option to prolong their stay in the country should  relationship breakdown force them to lose permission to remain in the UK. Individuals in this situation may be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) under Appendix Victims of Domestic Abuse (VDA) through a SET DV Application; if successful, victims are granted ILR with recourse to public funds. Applicant must be in the UK, unless the applicant is overseas because they are a victim of transnational marriage abandonment. Applicants must provide evidence of the abuse from their partners or their partner’s family, which is one of many reasons why it is advised that they seek legal advice. 

Fear of separation from children is a common fear for those seeking to flee domestic abuse. As mentioned above, those seeking support through the MVDAC or leave to remain through Appendix VDA can include their dependent children in their applications.  

Should an individual be fleeing abuse with a child and face destitution, there may be scope to apply for a change of conditions (CoC), which may allow for the NRPF condition to be lifted for the remainder of your immigration stay. For more information on the the Change of Conditions process please see can see ‘can you remove the NRPF condition’ tab on the What is NRPF page. 

You should seek legal advice before applying for the MVDAC, Appendix VDA or CoC. 

For more information about the relationship between and entitlements for Families with NRPF, view the “NRPF and Families” page.

Home Office policy applies to all survivors of GBV who have an active asylum claim and some survivors who have been refused. All survivors must be eligible for asylum support, read more about this here. 

Should someone seeking asylum report abuse, the accommodation provider must immediately offer alternative, safe accommodation for the victim and any children. Under no circumstances can the victim return to accommodation with the abuser. Accommodation providers do not need to wait for Home Office approval. Should the victim want to remain in the accommodation, the accommodation provider may need to relocate the perpetrator. The Home Office has a duty to remind the victim that they can access free legal advice, where they can discuss the possibility of claiming asylum independent of the abuser. 

Alternative accommodation must meet the specific needs of the victim and any children, in practice, this means, amongst other things, accommodation near specialist services like a rape crisis centre.

The Asylum Support Appeals Project hosts an extensive factsheet focusing on Asylum Support for Victims of Domestic Abuse.

For more information about NRPF and Asylum, view the “NRPF and Asylum” page.

If you work in this space and are interested in learning more and contributing to the design of best practices and policies to protect victims of GBV with NRPF in the North East, then you should consider joining our NRPF and GBV working group. This is one of three working groups hosted by the partnership. This group meets every 6-8 weeks, with meetings lasting around two hours.

If you are interested in participating or would like to know more about the group and how it functions, please get in touch with [email protected]