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Medical expert reports for immigration and asylum appeals.
Psychiatric, psychological and medical evidence for asylum and human rights appeals. Send the issues and your hearing date. The search is free, and we take legally aided cases before the First-tier Tribunal and the Upper Tribunal.
What you get for an appeal.
Start with the issues and the hearing date.
For the hearing date
You have CVs, fees and availability from experts who can report before the hearing. Reports usually take 1 to 2 weeks, or 2 to 3 days when urgent. Timescales are estimates and depend on expert availability, the appointment and receipt of the relevant records.
Legal aid and registration
Quotes come within the legal aid rates; where the case justifies more, the quote sets out why, ready for your prior authority application. We check experts for registration and insurance.
The assessment
The expert can see your client face to face, or by video where that suits the question. A named case manager arranges the appointment and manages the instruction through to delivery of the report.
What the Tribunal expects.
In the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber), section 9 of the Senior President’s Practice Direction of 1 November 2024 sets the rules. Reports should be as concise as possible and focused on the disputed issues within the expert’s field (9.1). A report must:
- not exceed 20 pages, unless the Tribunal allows a longer report on a written application (9.2)
- be addressed to the Tribunal, not to the party who instructed the expert (9.3(a))
- attach the letter of instruction, including the disputed issues as then understood (9.3(d))
- state that the expert understands and has complied with their duty to the Tribunal, and give the date it was signed (9.3(k) and (l))
- be verified by a statement of truth (9.4)
In the Upper Tribunal, under its 2018 Practice Directions, the expert’s duty to help the Tribunal overrides any obligation to whoever instructs or pays them (para 10.2). Send any directions on expert evidence with the outline.
Psychiatric evidence and the GP records.
Send the GP records with the instruction: the Tribunal expects the expert to engage with them, and to say so where the opinion differs from them (HA (expert evidence; mental health) Sri Lanka [2022] UKUT 00111 (IAC)).
Suicide risk on removal.
Where an Article 3 claim turns on the risk of suicide, the Tribunal applies the principles below. The medical report deals with the clinical side: the level of risk, the fear behind it, and what treatment or other measures would reduce it. If removal directions have been set, put the date in the enquiry.
- The threshold is the Paposhvili test as explained in AM (Zimbabwe) v SSHD [2020] UKSC 17. The principles in J v SSHD [2005] EWCA Civ 629 apply, as reformulated in Y and Z (Sri Lanka) v SSHD [2009] EWCA Civ 362 and applied after Paposhvili in MY (Suicide risk after Paposhvili) [2021] UKUT 232 (IAC). They include:
- Whether the fear of ill-treatment in the receiving state is objectively well-founded (J, para 30)
- Whether effective mechanisms exist to reduce the risk of suicide; if they do, that weighs heavily against the claim (J, para 31)
- A genuine fear, even without an objective foundation, may create a risk of suicide on an enforced return (Y and Z (Sri Lanka), para 16)
What the expert can say about the account.
Medical experts can offer an opinion, within their expertise, about how far their findings are consistent with the account. Decision-makers can gain valuable help from it (KV (Sri Lanka) v SSHD [2019] UKSC 10, para 20). There is no room for the expert to say whether they believe the account: the conclusion about credibility always rests with the decision-maker (para 25).
The Istanbul Protocol, now in its 2022 edition, sets the terms for that opinion. The Supreme Court said the expert should recognise the Protocol as authoritative, alongside the Tribunal’s practice direction (KV, para 24). If the Home Office disputes how your client’s scars or other injuries were caused, say so in the enquiry.
Appeals across the UK.
Appeals from Scotland and Northern Ireland come to the same Tribunal, and we arrange experts for cases in all three jurisdictions. Tell us where the appeal is heard and how it is funded.
England and Wales
- Legal aid: where Legal Aid Agency prior authority is required and you do not apply in advance, the cost may not be paid
- Where you need prior authority, each quote gives you the expert’s fee for the application
Scotland
- Legal aid: you need SLAB’s prior approval, with enough authorised expenditure for the report, before you instruct an expert
Northern Ireland
- Legal aid: prior authority for an expert is a condition of the certificate, unless a published General Authority already covers the expert (Legal Services Agency guidance, from 6 July 2026)
Questions about immigration and asylum evidence.
For anything else about your case, call us.
Call 0121 752 6061Can the report be ready for our hearing?
It depends on the hearing date. Send it with the outline. Reports usually take 1 to 2 weeks, or 2 to 3 days when urgent. Timescales are estimates and depend on expert availability, the appointment and receipt of the relevant records.
How long can a report for the First-tier Tribunal be?
No more than 20 pages, unless the Tribunal allows a longer report on a written application with reasons (Practice Direction of 1 November 2024, para 9.2).
Can the expert say whether the appellant is telling the truth?
No. The expert can say how far the findings are consistent with the account, but the conclusion about credibility always rests with the decision-maker (KV (Sri Lanka) [2019] UKSC 10, para 25).
Why does the psychiatrist need the GP records?
Because the Tribunal expects the expert to engage with them and to explain any difference between the opinion and the records (HA (Sri Lanka) [2022] UKUT 00111 (IAC)).
Send the case. We find the experts.
- The type of caseFamily, personal injury, criminal, immigration, employment…
- The specialty, or the issuesIf you are not sure who you need, describe the medical questions
- The court or tribunalAnd any directions already made about expert evidence
- Your deadlineHearing, filing or limitation date
- How the case is fundedLegal aid, private, CFA or insurer
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We send you the CVs, fees and availability of experts who can meet it.