ILR PEO deferred Apps - Further checks/Additional docs cases

1unicorn wrote:I have also received this stupid email long time ago. Around early April or end of March i think. I even faxed them about it. But i still havent received any decision from them. It has been almost three months and I am still waiting.

Thanks 1unicorn and shineangel. Although I was rather hoping for a different answer. That email was really rubbing our noses in it.

I know I shouldn't have got my hopes up but with the total lack of information, you try and grab hold of anything you can. I just don't understand what the problem is - our case should be straightforward. It seems that SET (M) is being particularly targeted at the moment (strange because it should be the most straightforward category). Do any of you have any inkling about why they might have stretched your cases out this long?

FireballXL5 wrote:

1unicorn wrote:I have also received this stupid email long time ago. Around early April or end of March i think. I even faxed them about it. But i still havent received any decision from them. It has been almost three months and I am still waiting.

Thanks 1unicorn and shineangel. Although I was rather hoping for a different answer. That email was really rubbing our noses in it.

I know I shouldn't have got my hopes up but with the total lack of information, you try and grab hold of anything you can. I just don't understand what the problem is - our case should be straightforward. It seems that SET (M) is being particularly targeted at the moment (strange because it should be the most straightforward category). Do any of you have any inkling about why they might have stretched your cases out this long?

From what I observed in this forum we should expect decision within 4-6months. I bet this is the period we will get decision.

FireballXL5 wrote:

1unicorn wrote:I have also received this stupid email long time ago. Around early April or end of March i think. I even faxed them about it. But i still havent received any decision from them. It has been almost three months and I am still waiting.

Thanks 1unicorn and shineangel. Although I was rather hoping for a different answer. That email was really rubbing our noses in it.

I know I shouldn't have got my hopes up but with the total lack of information, you try and grab hold of anything you can. I just don't understand what the problem is - our case should be straightforward. It seems that SET (M) is being particularly targeted at the moment (strange because it should be the most straightforward category). Do any of you have any inkling about why they might have stretched your cases out this long?

I have no idea.On the day the case worker told me everything looked fine and there was nothing to worry about. I asked her if there is anything held us back that I cant get the decision on the same day. She wouldnt tell me the reason, just said occasionally they cant make the decision on the same day and it is common. She just kept reinsuraning me there was nothing to worry about. She even said given my case was premiem one, the case will be treated with priority. Obviously it doesnt look like this is the case.

Is it true I can call them after 12 weeks of waiting? Any idea of this please?

1unicorn wrote:I have no idea.On the day the case worker told me everything looked fine and there was nothing to worry about. I asked her if there is anything held us back that I cant get the decision on the same day. She wouldnt tell me the reason, just said occasionally they cant make the decision on the same day and it is common. She just kept reinsuraning me there was nothing to worry about. She even said given my case was premiem one, the case will be treated with priority. Obviously it doesnt look like this is the case.

Is it true I can call them after 12 weeks of waiting? Any idea of this please?

Your case sounds exactly the same as ours. The same reassurances that everything was fine and that there was nothing to worry about but very little specific information (aside from something vague about file location, which sounds like more their fault than mine).

I really hope it isn't 4-6 months as shineangel suggests or else we're going to go totally mad (and have to cancel a lot of expensive plans). Earlier on in this thread there are examples of people who seem to have got theirs in 1-3 months (look into the cases of vtp11321 or mfb123 and more if you search) after having been served with the further enquiries letter, but these are mostly from 2012, so maybe they've made things even worse since then.

In terms of ringing them up, I don't think you have to wait that long, I have rung them up once already. But it'll do you a fat lot of good, they'll just look up your case on a database and tell you that your application is 'not completed'. The operators only have minimal information so they can't tell you anything else.

FireballXL5 wrote:

1unicorn wrote:I have no idea.On the day the case worker told me everything looked fine and there was nothing to worry about. I asked her if there is anything held us back that I cant get the decision on the same day. She wouldnt tell me the reason, just said occasionally they cant make the decision on the same day and it is common. She just kept reinsuraning me there was nothing to worry about. She even said given my case was premiem one, the case will be treated with priority. Obviously it doesnt look like this is the case.

Is it true I can call them after 12 weeks of waiting? Any idea of this please?

Your case sounds exactly the same as ours. The same reassurances that everything was fine and that there was nothing to worry about but very little specific information (aside from something vague about file location, which sounds like more their fault than mine).

I really hope it isn't 4-6 months as shineangel suggests or else we're going to go totally mad (and have to cancel a lot of expensive plans). Earlier on in this thread there are examples of people who seem to have got theirs in 1-3 months (look into the cases of vtp11321 or mfb123 and more if you search) after having been served with the further enquiries letter, but these are mostly from 2012, so maybe they've made things even worse since then.

In terms of ringing them up, I don't think you have to wait that long, I have rung them up once already. But it'll do you a fat lot of good, they'll just look up your case on a database and tell you that your application is 'not completed'. The operators only have minimal information so they can't tell you anything else.

Honestly it's sad PEO decision taking too long and we just need to be patient I only suggest 4-6 months because of my research on this forum and also it appears PEO deferred is on similar que with postal application. Fingers crossed.

FireballXL5 wrote:

1unicorn wrote:I have no idea.On the day the case worker told me everything looked fine and there was nothing to worry about. I asked her if there is anything held us back that I cant get the decision on the same day. She wouldnt tell me the reason, just said occasionally they cant make the decision on the same day and it is common. She just kept reinsuraning me there was nothing to worry about. She even said given my case was premiem one, the case will be treated with priority. Obviously it doesnt look like this is the case.

Is it true I can call them after 12 weeks of waiting? Any idea of this please?

Your case sounds exactly the same as ours. The same reassurances that everything was fine and that there was nothing to worry about but very little specific information (aside from something vague about file location, which sounds like more their fault than mine).

I really hope it isn't 4-6 months as shineangel suggests or else we're going to go totally mad (and have to cancel a lot of expensive plans). Earlier on in this thread there are examples of people who seem to have got theirs in 1-3 months (look into the cases of vtp11321 or mfb123 and more if you search) after having been served with the further enquiries letter, but these are mostly from 2012, so maybe they've made things even worse since then.

In terms of ringing them up, I don't think you have to wait that long, I have rung them up once already. But it'll do you a fat lot of good, they'll just look up your case on a database and tell you that your application is 'not completed'. The operators only have minimal information so they can't tell you anything else.

Hi FireballXL5 and shineangel, today I had a little update, but not quite a good one. I received a letter from home office when i got home today, they were asking us to attend an interview in Liverpool after a month. I guess they are suspicious about our marriage but i am not sure. I am a bit stressed out as i have to wait for another month, but at least they were looking into my case. Me and my other half are together for 7 years and I am not too worry about the interview. Although I do wonder how the interview is going to be like. Now the only thing i can think is probably my husbands financial situation. He is a contractor and self-employed, and for the last two years (unlucky) he didnt have much luck in job market, although he did have some short term contracts here and there, which means i am the main supporter for the house. I thought with the old 2- year policy, financial situation isnt a issue, plus even with my own income its beyond the new financial requirement anyway. and we did handed in a cover letter to explain that at the time, they know that already, which is why i dont quite understand. I wish they interviewed us three months ago instead. But anyway, I hope you guys dont need to go through the hassle! and fingers crossed to my own case lol.

1unicorn wrote:
Hi FireballXL5 and shineangel, today I had a little update, but not quite a good one. I received a letter from home office when i got home today, they were asking us to attend an interview in Liverpool after a month. I guess they are suspicious about our marriage but i am not sure. I am a bit stressed out as i have to wait for another month, but at least they were looking into my case. Me and my other half are together for 7 years and I am not too worry about the interview. Although I do wonder how the interview is going to be like. Now the only thing i can think is probably my husbands financial situation. He is a contractor and self-employed, and for the last two years (unlucky) he didnt have much luck in job market, although he did have some short term contracts here and there, which means i am the main supporter for the house. I thought with the old 2- year policy, financial situation isnt a issue, plus even with my own income its beyond the new financial requirement anyway. and we did handed in a cover letter to explain that at the time, they know that already, which is why i dont quite understand. I wish they interviewed us three months ago instead. But anyway, I hope you guys dont need to go through the hassle! and fingers crossed to my own case lol.

Well, at least it means they're looking at your case... There was another case on this thread similar to this if you read back into 2012 (chweetgurl) but this situation appears to be rare indeed.

Are you the sponsor or the applicant? If you're the sponsor, and your wage is enough then whether your husband is self employed should not matter at all. Which means that they must be somehow suspicious about the relationship - but how can they be without any kind of evidence? Was there anything in your application that could have caused their suspicion? Did you hand in enough joint letters etc? But the fact you've been together 7 years seems to make even this unlikely.

Maybe it's just that they pick out every 100 applications or so and say "OK let's make these people's life a misery" without any kind of other reason and you're one of the unlucky ones.

I suppose I don't really have a massive problem with them wanting to interview people. It's the fact that your "Premium" application probably sat in a dusty pile in the depths of the Home Office for 3 months before they bothered to tell you this that's totally unacceptable.

Anyway, so much for the "you have nothing to worry about" assurances you got from your original caseworker....

FireballXL5 wrote:

1unicorn wrote:
Hi FireballXL5 and shineangel, today I had a little update, but not quite a good one. I received a letter from home office when i got home today, they were asking us to attend an interview in Liverpool after a month. I guess they are suspicious about our marriage but i am not sure. I am a bit stressed out as i have to wait for another month, but at least they were looking into my case. Me and my other half are together for 7 years and I am not too worry about the interview. Although I do wonder how the interview is going to be like. Now the only thing i can think is probably my husbands financial situation. He is a contractor and self-employed, and for the last two years (unlucky) he didnt have much luck in job market, although he did have some short term contracts here and there, which means i am the main supporter for the house. I thought with the old 2- year policy, financial situation isnt a issue, plus even with my own income its beyond the new financial requirement anyway. and we did handed in a cover letter to explain that at the time, they know that already, which is why i dont quite understand. I wish they interviewed us three months ago instead. But anyway, I hope you guys dont need to go through the hassle! and fingers crossed to my own case lol.

Well, at least it means they're looking at your case... There was another case on this thread similar to this if you read back into 2012 (chweetgurl) but this situation appears to be rare indeed.

Are you the sponsor or the applicant? If you're the sponsor, and your wage is enough then whether your husband is self employed should not matter at all. Which means that they must be somehow suspicious about the relationship - but how can they be without any kind of evidence? Was there anything in your application that could have caused their suspicion? Did you hand in enough joint letters etc? But the fact you've been together 7 years seems to make even this unlikely.

Maybe it's just that they pick out every 100 applications or so and say "OK let's make these people's life a misery" without any kind of other reason and you're one of the unlucky ones.

I suppose I don't really have a massive problem with them wanting to interview people. It's the fact that your "Premium" application probably sat in a dusty pile in the depths of the Home Office for 3 months before they bothered to tell you this that's totally unacceptable.

Anyway, so much for the "you have nothing to worry about" assurances you got from your original caseworker....

I am the applicant, maybe that's why? We have enough evidence, if not I presume the case worker would have asked in the first place. You are right, I don't mind getting interviewed, it's the fact they took so long to reply me that botheres me, especially the interview is another month away. And what's the point of paying premium service after all. If they are suspicious they should have interviewed us on the same day when I applied. Since then I also joined contracting and self - employed. Which means I don't have holiday pay. I have to take a day off, lose a day pay, and travel to Liverpool from London, need to get a hotel as well, which makes it even more expensive. I wonder if I can claim my expense from them lol

1unicorn wrote:

FireballXL5 wrote:

1unicorn wrote:
Hi FireballXL5 and shineangel, today I had a little update, but not quite a good one. I received a letter from home office when i got home today, they were asking us to attend an interview in Liverpool after a month. I guess they are suspicious about our marriage but i am not sure. I am a bit stressed out as i have to wait for another month, but at least they were looking into my case. Me and my other half are together for 7 years and I am not too worry about the interview. Although I do wonder how the interview is going to be like. Now the only thing i can think is probably my husbands financial situation. He is a contractor and self-employed, and for the last two years (unlucky) he didnt have much luck in job market, although he did have some short term contracts here and there, which means i am the main supporter for the house. I thought with the old 2- year policy, financial situation isnt a issue, plus even with my own income its beyond the new financial requirement anyway. and we did handed in a cover letter to explain that at the time, they know that already, which is why i dont quite understand. I wish they interviewed us three months ago instead. But anyway, I hope you guys dont need to go through the hassle! and fingers crossed to my own case lol.

Well, at least it means they're looking at your case... There was another case on this thread similar to this if you read back into 2012 (chweetgurl) but this situation appears to be rare indeed.

Are you the sponsor or the applicant? If you're the sponsor, and your wage is enough then whether your husband is self employed should not matter at all. Which means that they must be somehow suspicious about the relationship - but how can they be without any kind of evidence? Was there anything in your application that could have caused their suspicion? Did you hand in enough joint letters etc? But the fact you've been together 7 years seems to make even this unlikely.

Maybe it's just that they pick out every 100 applications or so and say "OK let's make these people's life a misery" without any kind of other reason and you're one of the unlucky ones.

I suppose I don't really have a massive problem with them wanting to interview people. It's the fact that your "Premium" application probably sat in a dusty pile in the depths of the Home Office for 3 months before they bothered to tell you this that's totally unacceptable.

Anyway, so much for the "you have nothing to worry about" assurances you got from your original caseworker....

I am the applicant, maybe that's why? We have enough evidence, if not I presume the case worker would have asked in the first place. You are right, I don't mind getting interviewed, it's the fact they took so long to reply me that botheres me, especially the interview is another month away. And what's the point of paying premium service after all. If they are suspicious they should have interviewed us on the same day when I applied. Since then I also joined contracting and self - employed. Which means I don't have holiday pay. I have to take a day off, lose a day pay, and travel to Liverpool from London, need to get a hotel as well, which makes it even more expensive. I wonder if I can claim my expense from them lol

If it is because of the self-employed status, interviewing you would be a very strange way of finding out more. Surely, they would just ask for more financial documentation? But the other option around your relationship, which makes more sense at face value in the sense that an interview would be able to allay (or theoretically confirm!) any suspicions, seems stupid in your case if you've been together for 7 years and have submitted all the normal evidence.

Anyway, I'm glad we submitted additional evidence in the form of family and holiday photos etc...But I must say it does seem incredibly random. Did you submit just the minimum 6/12 joint letters, or did you put in significantly more? Were they properly spread across the 2 years? Were you living apart for any period at all? Sorry to ask but I'm trying to work out how they could possibly have singled you out.

My money is still on random selection of people to torture, as there seems to be no rhyme or reason to this.

i think we submitted more than the minumum requirements. Some are not for the whole 2 years as some might miss one month or two, but we have enough resource to cover that i think. I was going to submit some photos,card, letters etc as well, but given when i applied for spouse visa they didnt bother to even take the photos and etc with them,we didnt bother this time. I will bring some photos from the last 7 years for the interview though. I did some research it looks like they do random checks sometimes. As long as i am not the only one i dont mind. Good luck to your case anyway, i am sure you will be fine, especially you submitted photos and other evidence.

1unicorn wrote:i think we submitted more than the minumum requirements. Some are not for the whole 2 years as some might miss one month or two, but we have enough resource to cover that i think. I was going to submit some photos,card, letters etc as well, but given when i applied for spouse visa they didnt bother to even take the photos and etc with them,we didnt bother this time. I will bring some photos from the last 7 years for the interview though. I did some research it looks like they do random checks sometimes. As long as i am not the only one i dont mind. Good luck to your case anyway, i am sure you will be fine, especially you submitted photos and other evidence.

Good luck and please let us know interview questions just be ready in case we are selected for interview.

1unicorn wrote:i think we submitted more than the minumum requirements. Some are not for the whole 2 years as some might miss one month or two, but we have enough resource to cover that i think. I was going to submit some photos,card, letters etc as well, but given when i applied for spouse visa they didnt bother to even take the photos and etc with them,we didnt bother this time. I will bring some photos from the last 7 years for the interview though. I did some research it looks like they do random checks sometimes. As long as i am not the only one i dont mind. Good luck to your case anyway, i am sure you will be fine, especially you submitted photos and other evidence.

I came across this on another part of the forum. http://www.immigrationboards.com/eea-ro ... 11750.html

Seems to suggest that they do this to random people sometimes, so maybe this is what happened to you. You should definitely try and get a refund from them if this is the case. It also seems to suggest that it'll be about your relationship rather than anything else.

Still no news on my side unfortunately. This horrible wait is starting to seriously affect us. Both of us are having nightmares, panic attacks and starting to get symptoms of stress/anxiety. Every day I get up and pray that this will be the day, but nothing ever happens. I'm beginning to think it'll never end - and I'm only about 6 weeks into the wait. If this ends up being 6 months we'll probably both be in the loony bin.

My hope is that my case will be like zeee123 in this other thread who got his in 7 weeks! http://www.immigrationboards.com/indefi ... 48-20.html

A quick update on my situation:

I received another letter from the Home Office. Unfortunately, no new information in it though.

It was exactly the same standard ‘further enquires’ letter they gave us at the PEO when we applied, but just signed by a different person.

Could it mean that they’ve passed our application on twice now? i.e. From the PEO to team A and now from team A to team B. Or is it just another standard holding response?

I don’t think they would have bothered to send me the exact same letter again if they thought they were about to make a decision, so I reckon it’s more likely to be bad news than good. On the other hand, I suppose it at least means that someone might have looked at it since we applied.

Did anyone else get this second letter? Or am I special?

Hi Fireball,

Have you applied in Croydon? Is your second letter, by any chance, signed by an Amanda W*** or something like that?

Exactly same here. My daughter applied 29th April in Croydon, different category than you, different scenario -- case was held because she had TOEFL and they have put all TOEFL cases on hold. Caseworker said it was going to be with him until we send in results from a different English test. Which we did. Nothing further yet.

However before they received our new test results, they sent us a letter about further enquiries, it's a standard letter as I gather from the Internet. It is not the same letter as our first letter given on the day, because that letter was about TOEFL -- but it is also signed by a different person, not our original caseworker.

I am also a bit confused because it came recorded delivery, while it did not contain any original documents nor requested any information. It was actually quite meaningless as it seems.

We have also been trying to figure out whether this means it was passed on to some other team and whether that team is also in Croydon. our caseworker in fact told us it is going to stay with him and not going to be passed anywhere.

Our case was very straightforward and did not really contain anything one could possibly additionally enquire about. The caseworker said there was no problem of any kind and nothing further was needed, except to resolve the TOEFL issue.

Maybe someone there is just on some weird letter-sending spree ))

BTW has your wife used TOEFL for her English, by any chance?

sagareva wrote:Hi Fireball,

Have you applied in Croydon? Is your second letter, by any chance, signed by an Amanda W*** or something like that?

Exactly same here. My daughter applied 29th April in Croydon, different category than you, different scenario -- case was held because she had TOEFL and they have put all TOEFL cases on hold. Caseworker said it was going to be with him until we send in results from a different English test. Which we did. Nothing further yet.

However before they received our new test results, they sent us a letter about further enquiries, it's a standard letter as I gather from the Internet. It is not the same letter as our first letter given on the day, because that letter was about TOEFL -- but it is also signed by a different person, not our original caseworker.

I am also a bit confused because it came recorded delivery, while it did not contain any original documents nor requested any information. It was actually quite meaningless as it seems.

We have also been trying to figure out whether this means it was passed on to some other team and whether that team is also in Croydon. our caseworker in fact told us it is going to stay with him and not going to be passed anywhere.

Our case was very straightforward and did not really contain anything one could possibly additionally enquire about. The caseworker said there was no problem of any kind and nothing further was needed, except to resolve the TOEFL issue.

Maybe someone there is just on some weird letter-sending spree ))

Yes! Exactly the same letter. And from exactly the same person as you (Amanda). And, yes, we applied at Croydon.

Our situation may be the same, as our certificate was the TOEFL ibt - maybe this is the reason we're being put on hold? However, unlike you, they did not tell me that this was a problem and haven't given me any reason whatsoever for the delay. We applied a little earlier than you, before they actually went public with this TOEFL problem.

If TOEFL IS the problem, why don't they flipping well tell us? If they want us to do another test they could have told us on the day surely?

If this is the case, UKVI appear to be contradicting their own guidelines as they officially say that only tests taken after 17 April 2014 are no longer being accepted. See https://www.gov.uk/government/world-loc ... uage-tests

Unless you did take your test after 17 April 2014?

And none of this explains why have they kept you waiting even though you submitted another certificate.

OK then. I may know more than you do.

My daughter's TOEFL was from 2013.

But that doesn't matter, the thing apparently started in February with a BBC Panorama program. They have been putting people on hold since then, they just haven't told anyone.

I know people who applied with TOEFL before us, and whose applications were on hold and they have managed to submit new English tests and get ILR (too bad I didnt know of any of these people before 29th April). If you search the Internet, people have been put on hold all March. As it now turns out. What you hear about pre-April-17th- TOEFL being accepted for visa applications, relates to TOEFL taken abroad. If it was taken in the UK, it doesn't matter when. They accept it -- they have to, it was on the list -- but they put everyone on hold indefinitely.

However it is true that between the time you applied and the time we applied two weeks later, they may have developed a new procedure to deal with TOEFL.

There is a standard letter they gave us on the day, it's on the Internet, sample can be found here:

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j& ... 5247,d.bGE

I am not sure why you didnt get it. It may be that they only came up with this letter between 15th and 29th of April, or maybe they only give it to some applicants and not other based on some weird criteria. But trust me this is definitely TOEFL.

What is the date on the letter you got from Amanda W? Ours is dated 28th May.
It was roughly 28 days after we applied so I reckoned, the best I could, that by then they decided that new English test results weren't forthcoming and passed the case on to Amanda= somewhere else (although the caseworker assured me it wouldn't happen).

Or maybe there was a moment that they had so many deferred TOEFL applications piled up that they have one day decided to do something about them, eg give them all to one person, send them all to some place to sit there in a box, or whatever? Or maybe even established a process to sort real ones from suspicious one? and that is where all the applications went?

We only submitted another certificate on 2nd June. And some of it may explain it, we sent it to our caseworker but our file may be already somewhere in the box with Amanda W. Who knows where they passed them onto, if anywhere. Who knows if the new test certificate will get there or what will now happen. But anyway it has actually only been a week so fingers crossed.

sagareva wrote:OK then. I may know more than you do.

My daughter's TOEFL was from 2013.

But that doesn't matter, the thing apparently started in February with a BBC Panorama program. They have been putting people on hold since then, they just haven't told anyone.

I know people who applied with TOEFL before us, and whose applications were on hold and they have managed to submit new English tests and get ILR (too bad I didnt know of any of these people before 29th April). If you search the Internet, people have been put on hold all March. As it now turns out. What you hear about pre-April-17th- TOEFL being accepted for visa applications, relates to TOEFL taken abroad. If it was taken in the UK, it doesn't matter when. They accept it -- they have to, it was on the list -- but they put everyone on hold indefinitely.

However it is true that between the time you applied and the time we applied two weeks later, they may have developed a new procedure to deal with TOEFL.

There is a standard letter they gave us on the day, it's on the Internet, sample can be found here:

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j& ... 5247,d.bGE

I am not sure why you didnt get it. It may be that they only came up with this letter between 15th and 29th of April, or maybe they only give it to some applicants and not other based on some weird criteria. But trust me this is definitely TOEFL.

What is the date on the letter you got from Amanda W? Ours is dated 28th May.
It was roughly 28 days after we applied so I reckoned, the best I could, that by then they decided that new English test results weren't forthcoming and passed the case on to Amanda= somewhere else (although the caseworker assured me it wouldn't happen).

Or maybe there was a moment that they had so many deferred TOEFL applications piled up that they have one day decided to do something about them, eg give them all to one person, send them all to some place to sit there in a box, or whatever? Or maybe even established a process to sort real ones from suspicious one? and that is where all the applications went?

We only submitted another certificate on 2nd June. And some of it may explain it, we sent it to our caseworker but our file may be already somewhere in the box with Amanda W. Who knows where they passed them onto, if anywhere. Who knows if the new test certificate will get there or what will now happen. But anyway it has actually only been a week so fingers crossed.

Sagareva, you are a saviour! Finally there's an explanation that (sort of) makes sense.

Our letter is also dated 28th May. They must have sent it everyone. But the question remains, if TOEFL is the problem, why aren't they saying so!? Are they planning to just sit on our application for years? Did our original caseworker just make a mistake by not telling us about this at the outset?

Another problem is that you can't do any of the other tests without a passport (which UKVI have). How did you do another test without your passport?

I'm wondering what I should do next. I suppose there is a chance that this delay is about something else but from what you say it now looks very likely that it's TOEFL. The people on the phoneline aren't any help, all they tell you to do is wait. I've already tried writing to them (I think they put faxes straight into the bin judging by the experiences of people on this forum).

If only they weren't totally uncontactable, it would be so much easier. I could try and guess the email address of the case worker I suppose, but that could also do more harm than good.

lol thanks but i can't even save myself can I.

and "makes sense" is an expression that has to be heavily qualified when dealing with the Home Office. everything is relative ))

but yeah clearly we are in the same pile. and a person named Amanda controls it. one thing we still dont know, is WHERE is it.

why your caseworker didnt tell you it was toefl I dont know, maybe she was new or just came off a holiday. maybe we just got a talkative caseworker, he said it was a first one for him and he had just found out all this stuff himself, so he spilled the beans, even told me to go to youtube and watch BBC panorama program ))

I am a bit ahead of you, I did try to guess the caseworker's email address, e-mail went somewhere but no reply. Hell, I even email the caseworker who approved my daughte'r previous application, asking her to look on the system to see who has our file (she has previously written to me so I knew her email for sure). Not that it did any good, I can't see how this can do much bad though.

But be careful if your caseworeker has a very common name there may be more than one person with it in the HO, I once had a caseworker who had an email with her middle name and number 1 after last name so I surmise there was more than one of that exact first and last name. This is the same reason I did not try to email Amanda W, i figured could be more than one.

I contemplate going back there to be honest. They have some sort of a desk there you can walk up to and ask stuff, not that it does many people a lot of good but anyway.

As for taking the test without a passport, spot on -- as our letter explained "the Home office reached agreement with other english test providers that these applicants will be allowed to take the test using this letter and the certified copy of the passport", and a photocopy of the passport with caseworker's signature scribbled on it. Of course there are like very few known pplaces in the entire country that actually agree to let people in with those letters. They are all IELTS centres and IELTS take a long time. We ended up having to wait two weeks and go to a very ggeographically random place where was the only test centre we were told about on the forums that accepts this.

But none of this did any good, I guess it wasn't soon enough to avoid Amanda.

To be entirely honest I heard that the alternative English test letter is to be given specifically to applicants whose applications are otherwise approvable immediately but for TOEFL. Not sure, yours being SET(M) maybe there is something else.

But I'd be pretty sure you are in the TOEFL pile, based on the Amanda letter, No one else ever got them if you look back at the deferred cases forum.

It also came to us via recorded delivery which made no sense at all. They usually only use recorded delivery when they are returning documents or requesting something.

sagareva wrote:lol thanks but i can't even save myself can I.

and "makes sense" is an expression that has to be heavily qualified when dealing with the Home Office. everything is relative ))

but yeah clearly we are in the same pile. and a person named Amanda controls it. one thing we still dont know, is WHERE is it.

why your caseworker didnt tell you it was toefl I dont know, maybe she was new or just came off a holiday. maybe we just got a talkative caseworker, he said it was a first one for him and he had just found out all this stuff himself, so he spilled the beans, even told me to go to youtube and watch BBC panorama program ))

I am a bit ahead of you, I did try to guess the caseworker's email address, e-mail went somewhere but no reply. Hell, I even email the caseworker who approved my daughte'r previous application, asking her to look on the system to see who has our file (she has previously written to me so I knew her email for sure). Not that it did any good, I can't see how this can do much bad though.

But be careful if your caseworeker has a very common name there may be more than one person with it in the HO, I once had a caseworker who had an email with her middle name and number 1 after last name so I surmise there was more than one of that exact first and last name. This is the same reason I did not try to email Amanda W, i figured could be more than one.

I contemplate going back there to be honest. They have some sort of a desk there you can walk up to and ask stuff, not that it does many people a lot of good but anyway.

As for taking the test without a passport, spot on -- as our letter explained "the Home office reached agreement with other english test providers that these applicants will be allowed to take the test using this letter and the certified copy of the passport", and a photocopy of the passport with caseworker's signature scribbled on it. Of course there are like very few known pplaces in the entire country that actually agree to let people in with those letters. They are all IELTS centres and IELTS take a long time. We ended up having to wait two weeks and go to a very ggeographically random place where was the only test centre we were told about on the forums that accepts this.

But none of this did any good, I guess it wasn't soon enough to avoid Amanda.

To be entirely honest I heard that the alternative English test letter is to be given specifically to applicants whose applications are otherwise approvable immediately but for TOEFL. Not sure, yours being SET(M) maybe there is something else.

But I'd be pretty sure you are in the TOEFL pile, based on the Amanda letter, No one else ever got them if you look back at the deferred cases forum.

It also came to us via recorded delivery which made no sense at all. They usually only use recorded delivery when they are returning documents or requesting something.

Thanks. I suppose it's possible that there's also something else in our case, but I can't think what on earth it could be. We submitted significantly more than the minimum level of documentation.

As for just rocking up to Croydon, the letter does say specifically that they no longer give out information at PEOs. But heck, I'd be up for anything at this point.

Ok Fireball

I have been miraculously able to utilise contacts accumulated through years of my own painfully fought immigration, to establish for certain that our case has been transferred to Sheffield to a special team that has been set up to deal with ETS (the provider of TOEFL) investigation.

28th May was the date, I surmise, that it happened, they must have just packed up all TOEFL cases they had at PEO, sent everyone the same letter and off they went. I was assured that IELTS results we sent we received and linked up.

so I am now 99% sure your case is in Sheffield with the new TOEFL team as well. hope it helps.

Hi Fireball and Sagareva,

I guess you can an add my case to the pile. PEO in Croydon yesterday, got given a letter by the caseworker that specifically mentions TOEFL. Pretty much the same one that sagareva mentionned.. (Passed the TOEFL before April 17th)

My lawyer is still "very confident" that the case will eventually be approved and she already contacted Home Office yesterday to get more information. I really blame her for not mentioning the possibility of TOEFL not being accepted....

To be honest I think I should probably go ahead and pass another test, although the problem is the earliest availability is July 10th! (IELTS) Is there another test that you guys can recommend?

This is extremely frustrating as I need to travel in about two weeks... not looking very good... Will keep you updated the moment I hear more.

P

hi psnlb

well technically i think toefl is still on the list, isnt it. go to gov.uk check appendix o. so yes your lawyer is right.
but it probably isnt happening very soon.

that being said, I have an important question to ask you. that letter you were given at peo, where it says when you obtain the new test certificate you should send it to HO at the following address, and they should have inserted the address. what's the address?
is it the PEO address or an address in sheffield?

as for other tests, i heard PTE is faster if you can find somewhere where you manage to take with with just driving license or convince them to take the HO letter

The address is indeed in Sheffield! your information was spot on sagareva

psnlb

yeah, you see. on ours the address was peo. so this is what changed.

can you please post the sheffield address, or at least PM it to me? much appreciated.

sagareva wrote:psnlb

yeah, you see. on ours the address was peo. so this is what changed.

can you please post the sheffield address, or at least PM it to me? much appreciated.

Looking online the Sheffield PEO address is Vulcan House, Riverside entrance, 6 Millsands, Sheffield S3 8NU. So I would be surprised if it's a different address.

But psnlb, please do confirm if this is the case. And also which team has the applications.