Teacher may have to leave Scotland after husband’s visa refusal

A Scottish teacher may be forced to quit her job and leave the country in a row over her Canadian husband’s visa. Dawn Mcguire Reeves moved to Alford in Aberdeenshire from Canada with her husband Craig last August to teach at a primary school.

But they were shocked when his visa application was refused.

Ms Mcguire Reeves, 55, said: “I feel persecuted. I feel like it’s a hostile environment and I’m a UK citizen with a right to life and livelihood.

“I feel like all of that is being violated because their rules are so unclear that you tick the wrong box and no one helps you.”

Her husband, a carpet-fitter, entered the country on a visitor visa and applied for his spousal visa from within the UK. But in December this was refused.

Ms Mcguire Reeves said: “It seems to be the case that we couldn’t apply from the UK while he was on a visitor’s visa but that wasn’t clear.

“We are not asking for special treatment, we are not asking to bend the rules, we are asking that they stop changing the rules and moving the target because we have no idea how to hit the target if it keeps changing.”

After appealing, the couple were told to attend a tribunal hearing in Glasgow on 20 April, but he obtained permission for that date to be changed to 1 May while he was in Spain on a short-term work contract.

However, on his return to Aberdeen Airport on 20 April he was held in detention for four hours without being able to contact his wife and told to leave on 25 April.

Intervention from their MP Andrew Bowie got the deportation flight changed to 7 May.

The couple decided to take an adjournment to buy some time but Ms Mcguire Reeves’ husband will voluntarily leave on 3 June for a wedding in Canada and has been told he will be unable to return. If that happens, the couple will return to Canada.

Ms Mcguire Reeves said the teaching post she took had been unfilled for two years.

She added: “There is a huge need for teachers. The further north you go, the more it becomes a crisis. Some of the schools are short of teachers and you’ve got management staff having to be in classrooms.

“All I am asking is to be able to stay here with my husband for a couple of years.”

Mr Bowie is to meet the minister for immigration this week to discuss the case.

The Home Office said: “Each application is considered on its individual merits in line with the immigration rules.”