Who Law Centre NI is#
Law Centre NI has given free, independent legal help since 1977 to people living or working in Northern Ireland, through three projects: migration justice and refugees, social security, and employment rights. It is regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority and says it gave 17,904 pieces of legal advice in 2024-25. It also convenes a refugee and asylum forum of more than 100 organisations and built Belfast's map of services for people seeking sanctuary. It does not advise on Irish immigration law, and covers no other areas of law.
Getting immigration advice#
Its immigration page says the work centres on forced migration: asylum claims, refugee family reunion, trafficking, settlement for refugees and people with humanitarian protection, and travel documents. It gives priority to people facing domestic abuse, exploitation or destitution, and does not normally take visit, study or work visa cases, or anyone who already has an immigration solicitor.
The advice line is open on Monday and Wednesday mornings, an interpreter can be arranged, and email enquiries are not accepted. When we checked on 26 October 2026 its online enquiry form was closed to new enquiries. There is no drop-in, and it aims to reply within three to five working days. It also notes that legal aid is available for immigration matters in Northern Ireland.
Its eVisa guide and names#
The eVisa guide, updated on 27 July 2026, is the closest Law Centre NI comes to the subject of names. It says:
- if your eVisa shows a wrong name, date of birth, nationality or photo, report the error to UK Visas and Immigration;
- keep your passport or national identity card details up to date in your UKVI account, or you may be delayed or refused boarding when you travel;
- from 11 March 2026 a Home Office travel document links to your UKVI account automatically, and a refugee should never travel on their old national passport;
- the Home Office treats an eVisa as an identity document that banks and others should accept, though it is worth checking with each one.
Its refugee move on guide, updated in March 2026, says the move on period is now 42 days and explains how to open a bank account and claim Universal Credit when eVisa errors or a missing proof of address get in the way. Its guide for parents of babies born in Northern Ireland adds that the long, or full, birth certificate is the one the Home Office needs.
Changing a name in Northern Ireland#
Correcting a Home Office error is not the same as changing your name. Under the Home Office's guidance on names, a change needs a deed poll or similar document plus proof of everyday use, and most people must first get their national passport reissued. Someone accepted as a refugee or stateless person, or holding humanitarian protection and unable to go to their own authorities, can skip the passport step, though a Home Office travel document in the earlier name is cancelled in the process.
A deed poll works in Northern Ireland whatever your place of birth, and anyone born there has a second option, recording the change with GRONI, the register office. Changing your name in Northern Ireland covers both routes, your eVisa and UKVI account the update, and the bank comparison what each bank asks for, including Danske Bank, which names only an enrolled deed poll.
This page describes what Law Centre NI publishes on its own website, read on 26 October 2026. Law Centre NI has not reviewed it, and listing a charity here does not mean it recommends this handbook or any deed poll service.
