The UK Home Office has issued a letter to a Brazilian family, informing Ana Luiza Cabral Gouveia (a senior NHS nurse) and Dr Hugo Barbosa (a senior lecturer at the University of Exeter) that their two young sons, Guilherme (11) and Luca (8), have no right to remain in the UK and must return to Brazil alone. This decision comes despite the parents being allowed to stay and work legally in the UK. The children, who have spent most of their lives in the UK and do not speak fluent Portuguese, are experiencing significant anxiety due to the uncertainty, with the family attributing the issue to the parents' divorce affecting their visa status.
UK Home Office tells parents their children should return to Brazil alone
Immigration and asylumHome OfficeBrazilUK
AI Summary
TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️The UK Home Office has issued a letter to a Brazilian family, informing Ana Luiza Cabral Gouveia (a senior NHS nurse) and Dr Hugo Barbosa (a senior lecturer at the University of Exeter) that their two young sons, Guilherme (11) and Luca (8), have no right to remain in the UK and must return to Brazil alone. This decision comes despite the parents being allowed to stay and work legally in the UK. The children, who have spent most of their lives in the UK and do not speak fluent Portuguese, are experiencing significant anxiety due to the uncertainty, with the family attributing the issue to the parents' divorce affecting their visa status.
Trending- 1 2019: Ana Luiza Cabral Gouveia and children arrived in the UK as dependants on Barbosa’s visa.
- 2 A couple of years after 2019: Parents divorced.
- 3 2022: Ana Luiza Cabral Gouveia secured a new skilled worker visa.
- 4 2024: Dr Hugo Barbosa was granted indefinite leave to remain.
- 5 June 18, 2025: Article published, detailing the Home Office decision.
- Children face forced return to Brazil alone
- Disruption to children's emotional and social stability
- Loss of Guilherme's grammar school place
- Anxiety for the children
- Distress for the parents
- Children potentially living illegally in the UK if they stay, leading to detention, prosecution, and restrictions on work/rent/driving licence
What: The UK Home Office has told a Brazilian mother and father that their young children, Guilherme Serrano (11) and Luca Serrano (8), have no right to stay in the UK and should return to Brazil alone, despite the parents being able to remain legally.
When: The article was published on June 18, 2025. The parents divorced a couple of years after arriving in the UK in 2019. Ana Luiza Cabral Gouveia secured a new skilled worker visa in 2022. Dr Hugo Barbosa was granted indefinite leave to remain in 2024.
Where: United Kingdom (specifically Exeter for the University of Exeter, and generally for NHS work); Brazil.
Why: The Home Office stated there are 'no serious or compelling reasons' to grant the children settlement, and that maintaining immigration control 'outweighs the possible effect' on them. The family believes the issue stems from the parents' divorce, as Home Office rules typically require both parents to be granted settlement simultaneously or one to be a British citizen/settled.
How: The Home Office communicated its decision through a 'refusal of permission to remain in the UK' letter sent to 11-year-old Guilherme.