Polo player's immigration bid refused over time away

A professional polo player who claimed he was not in the UK because he was ill with coronavirus has seen an application for leave to remain refused.

Simon Bilbao Prado worked at Pangbourne Polo Club between May and July 2018 and carried out "some work on a self-employed basis" there in 2016, 2018 and 2019, an immigration judge said.

The dual Argentinian-Spanish national was absent from the UK between September 2019 and May 2021, and said he did not return because he was suffering with coronavirus from October 2020.

But a tribunal heard the 27-year-old played polo in the United Arab Emirates between January and April 2021.

He had an application for leave to remain in the UK rejected in 2023 and an appeal was turned down later that year.

Prado had argued he qualified for leave to remain because of time he had already spent in the UK.

People can be granted special coronavirus concessions if their immigration status was affected by the pandemic.

In Prado's case, he said he was "staying in a remote area" in Argentina "which was particularly affected by travel restrictions during the pandemic".

He said he suffered from Covid-19 for about 60 days while in in the country over October 2020 and November 2020, and "did not feel 100% recovered" when he played polo in the UAE.

But Judge Sarah Moon said there was "no evidence" to suggest he was suffering from the illness when he played polo in the UAE.

She said she could not accept that Prado could not return to the UK because he was suffering with the virus and refused his application.