Adewale Akibnitede v Entry Clearance Officer

Facts

The appellant is a citizen of Nigeria, born on 23 November 2007, who was aged 15 when, on 15 October 2023, he applied for entry clearance to join his mother, the sponsor, who holds limited leave to remain in the United Kingdom. The Entry Clearance Officer refused the application by letter dated 15 January 2024, and the appellant appealed to the First-tier Tribunal on human rights grounds. The family relationship was initially disputed but, following the production of a DNA report, the respondent accepted that the appellant is the sponsor's son. What remained in issue were the relationship requirements in paragraph E-ECC.1.6 of Appendix FM to the Immigration Rules: whether the sponsor has had and continues to have sole responsibility for the appellant's upbringing, and whether there are serious and compelling family or other considerations making his exclusion undesirable. The respondent did not accept the family's circumstances in Nigeria were as presented, taking issue in particular with the documents relied on to show that the appellant's father died in 2016, and did not accept that refusal would produce unjustifiably harsh consequences. The sponsor gave oral evidence at Hatton Cross with the assistance of a Yoruba interpreter, and the appellant relied on a witness statement dated 1 September 2026.