The Upper Tribunal ruled on 29 June 2026 that the Home Office's unpublished practice of granting 12 months' leave to some recognised modern slavery victims was unlawful, affecting victims whose treatment had no end date or no evidence of its duration.
Key facts
- Who: Recognised victims of trafficking or modern slavery who receive temporary permission to stay (VTS leave) to assist their recovery
- From: 29 June 2026 (date of judgment)
- Source: TK, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (VTS leave – unpublished policy) [2026] UKUT 316 (IAC)
Recognised victims of modern slavery can be granted temporary permission to stay under section 65 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 and Appendix VTS, supplemented by the published policy "Temporary Permission to Stay for Victims of Human Trafficking or Slavery".
Background
TK, the applicant, was granted 12 months' VTS leave by a decision of 8 January 2025, upheld on 17 February 2025. He brought judicial review proceedings on 8 April 2025. During those proceedings, on 27 October 2025, the Home Office disclosed an unwritten practice of granting 12 months' leave where a victim needed to stay to assist recovery but treatment had no specified end date, or no evidence of its expected duration was provided. The Home Office accepted that the late disclosure breached its duty of candour.
On 10 March 2026 the Home Office made a new decision granting TK 4 months' leave expiring 11 July 2026. His first two grounds were then settled by a consent order signed on 26 March 2026. Only the challenge to the practice itself (ground 3) remained. It was heard by Upper Tribunal Judge Rastogi on 31 March 2026.
The decision
The Home Office operated the practice until 17 December 2025. The tribunal held that the practice was unlawful on two main bases.
First, it was an unpublished policy that did not allow meaningful representations to be made about the length of leave. The tribunal applied R (Lumba) v SSHD [2011] UKSC 12.
Second, it operated as a rigid practice. The published policy says that where treatment has no end date, the decision on length of leave must be based on "all the available information". The tribunal said some evidence may fall short of giving an end date, yet still allow a decision-maker reasonably to choose a period under the published policy. A decision-maker applying the unwritten practice could not do that. The practice was therefore inconsistent with the published policy, fettered the policy maker's discretion and was irrational.
Where things stand now
Since 17 December 2025 the practice has appeared in the Current Circumstances Questionnaire sent to victims before a decision is made. It now says that 12 months is "generally considered to be" the appropriate period in these circumstances. The published policy has not been amended to mention the practice and still requires the decision on duration to be based on "all the available information".
What this means for modern slavery victims
- The ruling concerns how the length of VTS leave is decided where treatment has no end date or no evidence of its expected duration is provided.
- Where treatment has no end date, the published policy requires the decision on length to be based on all the available information.
- The published policy provides for reconsideration of an unfavourable decision.
- In the Home Office's 27 October 2025 letter in TK's case, it said an individual may submit a further VTS application at any time before leave expires, should additional medical evidence become available indicating the need for continued treatment.
Sources
- TK, R (on the application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department (VTS leave – unpublished policy) [2026] UKUT 316 (IAC), Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber), 29 June 2026