[MarkandEbony]

Hi all

We applied for my wife's settlement visa and submitted documents on April 24th 2017. It was a very busy Hong Kong center so we chose to pay the 5500 HKD for the priority service.

On April 24th I received an email stating the application had been received in Manila
On May 2nd I received an email saying the application had been received in Sheffield
On May 9th after an email inquiry I received a reply saying that the decision had been delayed whilst further inquiries were being made.

As of today, May 17th, I have not received any requests for further information etc. So I have no idea what these inquires may be. And it seems there is no one to talk too that can give you specific advice. I have called the number in which you need to pay to speak to an adviser but basically they just read what is on the computer screen.

We are starting to worry a bit as much depends on a successful application.

Any suggestions or any UK contact numbers that may give me specific advice on our case or can tell me more clearly what inquiries are being made.

Also it seems the priority service does not work, or is it counting from the date they received documents in Sheffield?

Lots of anxiety

Thank you

Mark

 

[AshCasey11]

My supporting documents were received on the 21st April for a pirority spouse visa from Australia. Have not herd anything since then. My lawyer in the UK seems to think we might hear something this week but you just never no. Good lucky to you on your visa

 

[nyclon]

All priority does it put your application ahead of non-priority applications. There is no guarantee that it will be processed in a certain amount of time and processing times vary for a lot of reasons. Additionally, there is no mechanism to get the answers that you want. If waiting time becomes excessive, and 3 weeks is not excessive, you can try contacting your MP.

 

[millie_c]

Honestly I think all the email updates aside from the "application received" and "decision made" ones are lies. Week 2 I had emails saying my application was "in progress" then "delayed whilst further inquiries are being made." I HIGHLY doubt inquiries are being made. Our applications are just sitting there, untouched, since there's a huge volume of applications at Sheffield at the moment. I hate to be the Debbie Downer here but we're looking at several weeks here. I'm on Week 7 and I'm still waiting.

 

[MarkandEbony]

Yes and priority or non priority seem not to make much difference too. Which option did you choos

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[WestCoastCanadianGirl]

Just to put some perspective on this... until recently (7 December 2016) if I wanted to sponsor my UK born/raised husband to come to Canada to live, I would be looking at a wait of almost 3 (three) years for a decision to be made.

The application would have been two fold - I would have had to apply to sponsor him before he could submit his application - and there is no "Priority" processing.

Now, with current reforms in Canadian immigration, it'd still take up to 1 (one) year for a decision to be made (and still no "Priority" processing).

I'd love for IRCC Canada to process applications as quickly as the UKVI.

 

[millie_c]

Yes and priority or non priority seem not to make much difference too. Which option did you choos

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Yes I chose priority due to the misleading info they provided.

 

[ashkevron]

Yes I chose priority due to the misleading info they provided.

I don't think info is misleading, with no priority I would expect to wait up to six months, and certainly would not dream of having the decision in less than 2...

 

[millie_c]

I don't think info is misleading, with no priority I would expect to wait up to six months, and certainly would not dream of having the decision in less than 2...

There is literally a section on their website that says settlement applications will be processed within 10 days for a fee, unless the application is not straightforward. So yes, it is misleading.

 

[MarkandEbony]

Yes when we applied here on April 24th and paid 5500 HKD extra for Priority based on the website info plus recommendation from the VFS centre staff. This was the case when being processed in Manila. Now everything has moved to Sheffield so hence the delay.

 

[nyclon]

On the VFS Hong Kong site it says:

The priority visa service is available to customers who pay an additional fee to have their visa application placed at the front of the queue. Under normal circumstances, a priority service non-settlement visa application will be processed within 5 working days and a priority service settlement application will be processed within 10 working days.

"Under normal circumstances" is pretty vague and covers a lot of circumstances including holidays, increased number of applications, just about anything.

The VFS Singapore site says:

UK Visas and Immigration aims to return non-settlement priority applications within 5 working days (compared to the standard 15 days) and settlement priority applications within 10 working days (compared to the standard 12 weeks).

"Aims" isn't a guarantee.

Additionally, the declaration says:

The Priority Visa service is not a guaranteed service. We do not guarantee that your application will be processed or that your passport will be returned within the period specified.

 

[MarkandEbony]

Yes pretty vague but still the fee should give us a return earlier

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[hayleeonfire]

I understand that there is no guarantee on priority, but at the same time, government departments should be held to a higher standard. If they are not delivering on a service, they should not be charging for it. Or they should be honest about it. Unfortunately, they have us pigeonholed because we don't have much freedom when it comes to visas - we can't "choose" another company because we don't like their customer service. At the same time, it is so frustrating to feel like nothing can be done to ensure that a government is not ripping off their own citizens.

I know it probably won't do much good, but after the general election, my husband will be contacting his MP about UKVI and how miserably we've been treated. If the conservative party wins, I doubt his words will fall on listening ears, but what else can we do? It needs to change.

 

[mefal]

I know it probably won't do much good, but after the general election, my husband will be contacting his MP about UKVI and how miserably we've been treated. If the conservative party wins, I doubt his words will fall on listening ears, but what else can we do? It needs to change.

I'm with you there; unfortunately the last thing the UK government (with either party in charge) would care about is improving their visa process for people looking to immigrate to the UK. It's super irritating and they should definitely be held to their self-imposed deadlines, but in reality who are they beholden to?

 

[hayleeonfire]

I'm with you there; unfortunately the last thing the UK government (with either party in charge) would care about is improving their visa process for people looking to immigrate to the UK. It's super irritating and they should definitely be held to their self-imposed deadlines, but in reality who are they beholden to?

That's the problem, isn't it? We should have the power to change the institutions that ultimately serve us. But I understand the helplessness. Hell, I feel it every day here in the US.

What really gets me (and I'm definitely not an advocate for Brexit), but that EU citizens can just up and move their whole families to the UK without the need for sponsorship, but I have to go through this horrible process to join my husband who is a British citizen. And it is equally frustrating that settlement visas are essentially the scapegoat for this idea that they need to lower immigration.

I can't help but feel, though, if enough people rallied, the process could be changed. But I know I'm a little naive in my optimism.