Bahjat Tahir Abdulla v The Secretary of State for the Home Department

Facts

The appellant, an Iraqi national, arrived in the United Kingdom in June 2002 and claimed asylum under a false name, a false date of birth of 17 December 1984 and a false place of birth, Kirkuk. With the false date of birth he would have been treated as a 17-year-old unaccompanied minor, when he was in fact 20. He did not challenge the Home Office's case that giving Kirkuk as his birthplace brought him within its policy at the time of granting exceptional leave to asylum seekers from Government-Controlled Iraq. He used the same details when he applied for a travel document in August 2002, for indefinite leave to remain in June 2006 and for naturalisation on 29 October 2008. In that last application he declared himself to be of good character, and he was naturalised on 28 April 2009. The discrepancies were identified in January 2023, in connection with his daughter's passport application. On 17 February 2025 the Secretary of State gave notice that she was considering depriving him of citizenship under section 40(3) of the British Nationality Act 1981. He replied on 9 March 2025, expressing regret and saying he had acted out of fear for his life. On 25 March 2025 she decided to deprive him of his citizenship. He appealed and represented himself, giving evidence by video from Iraq. He has lived there since 2012 with his mother, his wife and two daughters who are British citizens. He accepted his true identity but denied any deliberate deception. It was accepted that he retains Iraqi citizenship.