A new in-country and overseas visa application processes has been hatched as part of the UK Home Office’s business user forum.
It is keen to show the door to the UK is still open for business, despite a tougher visa regime which saw Roman Abramovich quit the country.
The Russian billionaire and Anglophile Chelsea Football Club owner withdrew his visa application and moved to Israel earlier this year before apparently scotching plans to spend millions on a London stadium.
Tracy Evlogidis, head of Withers immigration team in London and a forum member, described the process as “revolutionary”.
The scheme
It is intended that applications for UK visas will be submitted online, with individuals invited to attend kiosks (for those submitted overseas) or enhanced service points (for those submitted in the UK), where they upload their documents electronically for submission to the Home Office.
Depending on the level of service chosen, individuals will then need to attend a “premium service centre” or a local Post Office to enrol their biometric information. It will no longer be necessary to submit original documents (including original passports) to the Home Office for applications to be processed.
As part of this trial, Withers submitted a client’s Tier 2 (work authorisation) extension application online, paying all the required fees. The client’s documents were then scanned and sent to the Home Office electronically for processing.
Once the application had been considered in principal and approved subject to their biometric data being provided, the Home Office sent an invite for the client to attend the premium centre in Croydon with their passport to have the required biometric information taken.
Evlogidis said: “The visa was granted shortly afterwards, with the entire process taking just a few days. Our client, an international businessman who needs to travel frequently, is delighted.
“The idea is that the new application process will be more efficient and streamlined, allowing UK visa applications to be decided within quicker time frames. This has certainly been our experience with the trial.”
The scheme, which will be made available to international clients in September, is expected to cost the same as the ‘same day service’ (£610, €687, $799), which has a long waiting list attached.
