The father of an Australian family threatened with deportation from Scotland says the UK government is "untrustworthy in their dealings with immigrants" after being allowed to remain in Britain until August but refused the right to work.
Gregg and Kathryn Brain, who have Scottish ancestry, moved from Australia to the Scottish town of Dingwall with their son Lachlan in 2011 under a Highland Homecoming scheme to encourage people to move to depopulated Highland areas.
Lachlan, who is now 7, has Gaelic as his first language.
Under the scheme, then backed by the Home Office, the Brains expected a post-study work visa after Ms Brain had completed her studies in Scottish history while on a student visa.
But in 2012 the British government changed the rules, meaning the work visa would no longer be forthcoming.
The family's case has drawn support from their local community and politicians, including Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon amid fears they were at risk of being deported on Tuesday but they have now been allowed to remain in the UK until August - but refused the right to work.
Mr Brain told BBC Radio 4's Today program: "If I can quote from (Immigration Minister) James Brokenshire's letter, he said that applicants should never assume that the provisions in place at the time of their initial entry to the UK will continue to be viable options in future years.
"Unfortunately, it seems that the UK government's stated policy on the matter is to be untrustworthy in their dealings with immigrants."
He added: "Well, at the moment we're essentially homeless but for the charity of friends. We're unemployed, our passports have been confiscated, the Home Office has said that they will be writing to the DVLA recommending that our licences be cancelled and they are considering freezing our bank accounts."
Mr Brain said the family were "very fortunate" in that Lachlan had a 7-year-old's understanding of what was going on, adding "that's shielding him to a degree".
He added that the family was taking an "enormous amount of courage and comfort" from the support of friends and across the political spectrum.
He said: "Britain prides itself on being the birthplace of the rule of law, that when you are dealing with the UK government, I think you have a right to assume that you will be dealt with honestly and ethically. The deal that you have done with them when you uphold your end of the bargain they would uphold theirs.
"Unfortunately, as James Brokenshire's letter seems to indicate, he seems to suggest that making that assumption is a dangerous thing to do."
Their MP, Scottish National Party member Ian Blackford, said the latest Home Office ruling was "simply wrong".
The MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber told Today: "It's a body blow both to themselves but also to the wider community. It's simply wrong and it just seems absolutely incredible that when both Kathryn and Gregg have job offers on the table that the government are really doing what they can to stymie them.
"And we need to remember that the family have to show that they have sufficient funds to support themselves. But their savings are being drawn down simply because of the fact that they can't work, you would almost take the view that the Government are trying to force them out the country."
The Home Office confirmed it had granted the family a further two-month extension to a grace period it was previously given, but said evidence of a relevant job in line with immigration rules had not been provided to date.
It said an application for the family to remain in the UK would be considered if submitted during the grace period.
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