How does the Immigrant Council support people?
Camila is originally from Brazil. Her first contact with the Immigrant Council was in 2013. At the time she had boyfriend from an EU member state but he was being violent towards her. She did not know there were legal protections for woman experiencing domestic abuse.
The Immigrant Council helped her to understand her rights and supported her to ensure she did not lose her status. With our help she was, happily, granted leave to remain.
Since then Camila returns every year so we can support her renewal application. She has to show she is working and that she has not committed any crime. Camila has a stamp 4 visa which means she is permitted to work, which she has been doing regularly. She had to return to Brazil for three months earlier this year to care for her unwell mother and is now back and seeking work.
“My life is in Ireland. I have been here since 2009 and since then my life has changed for the better. I don’t know what I would have done without the support I get from the Immigrant Council. It made such a difference.”