United Kingdom - Permanent Residency - Permanent Residency - Windrush Generation

Since World War II, many African-Caribbean people migrated to the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. As a result of the losses during the war, the British government began to encourage mass immigration from the countries of the British Empire and Commonwealth to fill shortages in the labour market. The British Nationality Act 1948 gave UK citizenship to all people living in the United Kingdom and its colonies, and full rights of entry and settlement in the UK. Many West Indians were attracted by better prospects in what was often referred to as the mother country. In 1998, an area of public open space in Brixton was renamed Windrush Square to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the ship bringing the first large group of West Indian migrants to the United Kingdom. The ship HMT Empire Windrush brought a group of 492 migrants to the port of Tilbury, near London, on 22 June 1948.

The number of people in Britain born in the West Indies grew from 15,000 in 1951 to 172,000 in 1961. In April 2018, it was reported that the British government had threatened the children of Windrush immigrants who arrived before 1973 with deportation if they could not prove their right to remain in the UK. Prime Minister Theresa May apologised to leaders of Caribbean countries about the controversy.

For over 20 years, Philip Gamble has been helping those UK residents who want to regularise their immigration status. It is a complicated area of UK immigration law because in many cases, there is limited documents and evidence to prove their residence. Our Level 2 OISC-regulated staff (Grace Matthews and Mehreen Kartak) are authorised to advise clients on such complicated matters, and offer a discreet and confidential service (including a consultation) for those looking to naturalise or register as a British citizen.