New hurdle for lesbian couple in visa fight as Hong Kong court grants government leave to appeal
Three Court of Appeal judges find director of immigration raised points of ‘great general and public importance’ in presenting questions for court’s consideration
A lesbian expatriate who won a landmark case to obtain a dependant visa for her partner will have to defend her application again after the Hong Kong government received the green light on Monday to lodge its last appeal at the city’s top court.
Leave to appeal to the Court of Final Appeal was granted after three Court of Appeal judges, who had presided over the initial appeal, found that the director of immigration had raised points of “great general and public importance” in presenting three questions for the court’s consideration.
The case centred on the director’s refusal to grant a British citizen, identified only as QT in court, a dependant visa after she moved to Hong Kong in 2011 with her partner SS, who had been offered a job in the city.
QT applied for a judicial review after the department rejected her application for a dependant visa, then appealed upon losing her case at the Court of First Instance. She won the appeal in September after the three judges found the director had “failed to justify the indirect discrimination on account of sexual orientation that QT suffers”.
Lesbian expatriate wins landmark appeal against Hong Kong Immigration Department to secure spousal visa
The director is now seeking another appeal on the grounds that the case involves great general or public importance that should be submitted for the higher court’s deliberation.