Nelson Shardey, a retired 74-year-old Ghanaian man who has resided in the UK for nearly half a century, has been asked to wait for 10 years before the Home Office grants him permanent residency. The retiree, from Wallasey in Wirral, said for many years he has walked with the knowledge that he was British.

He however learned otherwise in 2019, despite meeting his tax obligations all his working life, and is now confronted with the tough task of looking for funds to remain in the country, including hefty NHS fees. The Home Office has refrained from commenting on the ongoing legal proceedings, according to BBC.

Shardey, a retired newsagent, arrived in the UK in 1977 to pursue accountancy studies on a student visa which permitted him to work. But, a coup in his native Ghana halted financial support from his family, leading him to take various jobs, including making Mother’s Pride bread, Kipling’s Cakes near Southampton, and Bendick’s Chocolate in Winchester.

In all of these struggles, his right to reside and work in the UK was never questioned. After marrying a British woman, Shardey relocated to Wallasey to establish his own newsagent business, Nelson’s News. Following the dissolution of that marriage, he married another British woman, with whom he had two sons named Jacob and Aaron.