Immigration

The Immigration Team provides advice, representation and advocacy on all aspects of personal immigration and nationality law, including refugee/asylum claims, human rights claims, EU free movement law and the EU Settlement Scheme, family reunion, investors, students and other aspects of the points based system, general refusal grounds and challenges to unlawful detention.

The Immigration Team also advises on all aspects of business and commercial immigration, including sponsor compliance and challenges to the revocation of sponsor licences and challenges to civil penalties in relation to illegal working.

Members of the Team are experts on Brexit and are able to provide practical advice on its effect on UK immigration laws and individual personal and business immigration cases.

Team members appear regularly in the Immigration and Asylum Chamber of the First-Tier Tribunal and Upper Tribunal, as well as in the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, the Administrative Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. We also work regularly in the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union. Team members have been involved in many of the leading European and domestic cases in immigration and asylum law. Our emphasis is on quality, accessibility and value for money.

Team members are specialists in a wide range of related areas of law, such as crime, social security, community care, housing, mental health, employment, education, children, extradition and prisoners.

The Team includes authors/editors of Butterworths Immigration Law Service, Immigration Law and Practice, The Best Practice Guide to Asylum & Human Rights Appeals, the electronic update of the JCWI Immigration, Nationality & Refugee Law Handbook, and Foreign National Prisoners: Law & Practice. Members are actively involved in the Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association and regularly deliver seminars and webinars on immigration and related topics.

Several members of the team are able to accept instructions directly from members of the public in appropriate cases, without the need for a solicitor, and more information can be found on our public access page.

We have a team of practice managers who are extremely experienced in managing the full range of immigration cases. They understand the needs of immigration lawyers and clients for a prompt and efficient service. Please contact Sian Wilkins or Rachel Finch to find out more.

What the directories say

Chambers and Partners 2025

"Top-notch barristers for complex matters"

The team "have been able to help with all aspects of cases, and they have a huge expertise."

"The clerks from Doughty Street are amazing, super responsive and efficient."

The Legal 500 2025

'The clerks are extremely responsive and professional.'

'Doughty Street Chambers is one of the best, if not the best, in immigration law.'

'Doughty Street Chambers is fast becoming a go-to set for immigration and asylum work, as a result of the calibre of its leading counsel, as well as the up and coming juniors in the area. They also have great multi-disciplinary barristers, which is a rarity at this level.'

Immigration Detention Group

Doughty Street barristers are at the forefront of work holding the state to account in its use of immigration detention powers and its conduct towards those it detains. Our barristers appear at all levels in public and private law challenges and have been involved in much of the major litigation in this area. We also act in inquests arising out of deaths in detention and in related civil litigation, as well as in public inquiries relating to immigration detention.

To find out more, click here.