Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will (a) amend the Immigration Rules entitled Child staying with or joining a Non-Parent Relative (Protection), published on 25 February 2016, to allow children to join wider family members and (b) take other steps to increase the number of refugees who are reunited with their family members in the UK.

Our refugee family reunion policy is intended to allow those granted protection status in the UK to sponsor their partner or children to stay with or join them here, provided they formed part of the family unit before the sponsor fled their country of origin to seek protection. Appendix CNP (Child Staying with or Joining a Non-Parent Relative) allows for a non-parent relative with protection status in the UK to sponsor a child to stay with or join them, where there are serious and compelling circumstances. This can be in situations where the child has no family other than the non-parent relative that could reasonably be expected to support or care for them.

Appendix CNP requires sponsors to demonstrate that suitable arrangements have been made for the child’s care which serves to both ensure that children may only come to the UK through this route where it is in their best interest and prevents additional pressures on local authorities. Immigration Rules changes were introduced to Appendix CNP as part of the Autumn 2024 rules changes to simplify existing requirements and provide greater clarity to applicants and decision makers. These changes take effect from 8 November 2024.