A Supreme Court judgment could have positive implications for the rights of thousands of people from outside the European Economic Area who came here as students before 2011 and stayed on to work.

In a unanimous ruling today, the seven-judge court found the Minister for Justice, before deciding "change of status" applications by two applicants from outside the EEA who came here on student visas, must consider their rights to private and family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Mr Justice John MacMenamin stressed the court's judgement was based on the facts of the two appeals and requires only that “consideration” be given by the Minister to their Article 8 rights. The State and Minister are entitled to impose conditions on entry here but the Minister must lawfully determine whether or not there has been compliance with conditions, he said.

Read the full article on  the irishexaminer.com

Article By Ann O'Loughlin