Mum terrified she could be deported from UK after 'traumatising' Home Office letter

A mum has been told she could be deported from Britain, despite holding a and having lived in the country for 22 years.

Amika Brown, 41, said the letter - which she recieved from the two weeks ago - left her terrified that she'd be suddenly ripped away from her family after it said she could be "removed" from the UK and sent back to her native Jamaica. The government letter cited alleged identity fraud as the reason, claiming the mum-of-three had gained her using a false identity.

But the mum said officials printed the wrong surname and date of birth on the letter, meaning they are the ones who have confused her identity. Mrs Brown, who sent the Home Office proof of her identity is yet to receive a reply from them - and says the ordeal has left her traumatised.

Mrs Brown, who lives in Luton, Bedfordshire, said: "This has been absolutely traumatising. I am so stressed. I am terrified I am going to be ripped away from my family in the middle of the night. They are claiming that my identity is false - but I have all this proof of who I am."

Mrs Brown sent the Home Office her birth certificate to confirm her name and year of birth as 1982, instead of 1979, as the letter claims. She also sent officials her brother's birth certificate, showing he was born in 1979. This, she says, "proves" they have her date of birth wrong - as both she and her sibling could not have been born within three months of each other from the same mother.

Mrs Brown said: "What was so upsetting is it wasn't even a question of asking me to prove my identity. They accused me of fraud straight away. I am so anxious because I have seen people get wrongly deported before."

The mum-of-three is especially concerned about the potential impacts this may have on her career as she works as an accountant and is currently on the path to becoming chartered. She said: "You can't be an accountant if there's anything linking you to fraud. So that would be my whole career messed up."

Mrs Brown moved from Jamaica to the UK in 2002 at the age of 19. She arrived on a Visitor's Visa but soon married and became "legalised" in 2009. She was later given "Indefinite Leave To Remain" before being granted settled status in 2015. In 2019, Mrs Brown divorced and remarried, and successfully became a British citizen. She received her British passport the same year. She estimates that the entire process cost her £10,000 in fees. She currently lives with her husband and youngest daughter, who is 10.

Mrs Brown said: "I just want to be able to talk to someone - but there is no direct phone number and my letters have had no response. It's affecting my whole family. Everyone is worried. My eldest daughter in particular is concerned - as if I get deported they'll send her too.

"Having someone question my identity like this has just been so horrible. I don't know what I'll do. I've been here for most of my life. I've been to university and I've got a career. I've never been in any trouble. I just want them to see that I am who I say I am."

The Home Office said the case is still live and being looked into. A spokesperson added: “It is our longstanding position that we do not comment on individual cases.”