Brother died need immigration help

[purplepots]

Good morning,
My brother passed away on Friday very suddenly.
He was living in Cambodia with his wife, his step-daughter and his two biological daughters who were born there.
I need to find out if it is possible for all four of them to come to England so the girls can continue to study, it is too expensive over there and they have no income.
I know the two youngest will be able to get British passports (although haven't started that process yet, will call passport office today)
If they come over would they get any benefits to help them live?
It is all very raw still and I need to help these girls and women.

@madisonbridges

This is quite a specific situation and it really depends on the needs of the children. If the children can get British passports, they have a right to come and live here in the UK. Obviously they can't come alone so a parent or guardian can accompany them. The Home Office would have to be convinced that it was in the best interests of the children to live here. The parent would be given permission to stay but they would have to be able to support themselves and the children without recourse to public funds. However, if the parent doesn't have the money, they can still apply to live here and receive rights to work, access benefits and NHS, etc, if they can still convince the HO it's in the best interest of the child. Of course, that appeal can be rejected but the HO has to prove they have put the interest of the child above all other considerations. It's not an easy route but it is possible.

I imagine that with grandparents and their mother and a step-sister there in Cambodia it will be difficult to argue that their best interests lie in a foreign country.

OP, how about asking for donations to support the girls in their education at the funeral? No flowers but money into an education fund for them? That might get them through the first difficult year.

The children have never lived in the UK, have no links to the UK, have never been to school in the UK. Their whole life is centred in Cambodia. Arguing best interests would be difficult, time consuming, and expensive. It's incredibly complex because the mother and step sister are not entitled to a British passport

prove they have put the interest of the child above all other considerations.

This isn't strictly true, they are given primary consideration but not the only consideration.

I don't want to be pessimistic but I don't think the op should be given false hope.

Also worth checking if the school has a hardship fund for current students whose circumstances change.

I wonder why your sister-in-law accepted such a lot of financial help from your mother and father when she could presumably worked and contributed herself

You don’t know that the woman didn’t work.

And even if she did I suspect her salary would be next to nothing considering where she’s from.

@Biscoffee

I wonder why your sister-in-law accepted such a lot of financial help from your mother and father when she could presumably worked and contributed herself

You don’t know that the woman didn’t work.

And even if she did I suspect her salary would be next to nothing considering where she’s from.

If her husband was on an expat package then yes - her working would not have helped at all. Presumably the grandparents’ help was due to Covid until he found a new job at a similar level.

Also based on your updates OP - the amount of money you spend on lawyers arguing whether or not the children can come to the U.K. would be better spent on their education in Cambodia.

Also as the step-daughter was never formally adopted and is soon to turn 18 she won’t be allowed in on any form of dependent visa. And unless she gets a scholarship she will have to pay the full international student fees to study in the U.K. which can be between 10 - 15K a year depending on uni

Sorry for your loss.

What the Random poster referred to as a humanitarian visa was probably the Access to a Child Visa, but I'm not sure it would be relevant in this case: www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-part-7-other-categories

I suspect it may be cheaper for you and your DPs to continue paying the girls' school fees in Cambodia.

I don't think there is any route to the UK for your DB's SD.

Good luck!