Current Processing Times - Help us to help you

Hi All,

I've just collected my documents from the post office (they'd left a card as I wasn't home when it arrived on 3rd-Sep 08). Got the Tier-1 valid through to 2011. The time lines were as follows:

Posted: 26-Jun-08
Funds taken: 27-Jun-08
Called around 29th Aug and they said status was "under consideration".
Documents Arrived: 03-Sep-08(Delivery at home attempted but it went back to local post office as I wasn't in to collect it. Collected it today).

I had not sent in any UT forms etc nor did I send in any prepaid envelopes - Mistake I guess. The package was heavily damaged while under royal mail's care i.e. envelope in tatters and passport could have fallen off any time. However, Royal Mail had heat-sealed it in a plastic cover with an apology note that said "we apologize for any inconvenience caused as a result of the damage to your package while under our care.If you find that any documents are missing, please contact...".

Fortunately, all my certificates etc were laminated before I sent them...they were all intact. I think It's a good idea to send in a plastic prepaid envelope that doesn't tear up - for them to return your documents. If you had seen a package like mine this morning,trust me..you'd be very upset and worried about what's gone missing - it was in complete tatters - envelope torn on 3 of 4 sides. Thank god..the damage was only external and all the contents were intact.

Now...for those of you who're waiting, as you may have already read, when it comes to the home office, the only certainty is uncertainty. Don't get misled by "under consideration" or "with the CW" replies....they carry no weight. Might as well forget about it until it shows up. If you got the Tier-1, well and good.If you didn't, consider it a blessing in disguise - so you can try again with the right documents or go elsewhere, earn more, have lower deductions in taxes and definitely a higher/better quality of life.There's nothing like having the mindset to deal with "come what may" and succeed

Got my Tier 1 today. Here are the timelines :
Applied 28th June
Ref Later Dated 3rd July
UTR sent and recorded 21st August
Approval Date 21st August
Stamped 2nd September
Dispatched 5th September

Wonder what they were waiting for between 21st August and 2nd September and further why did they wait 3 days for dispatch?
Neways I am glad I got it. Best of luck to all those still waiting!

Congrats to ace & aragorn99,

Guys any ideas why its taking sooo long for the people who applied in the second half of June 08? and people who applied in july are already getting there visa's. BTW Ace, what date is your visa stamped mate?? I applied on 18th june and still waiting............. dnt know why its taking sooo long. no dependents and i think my case is straight forward anyways. any suggestions? everytime i call i always get 'still under consideration'

Regards


Justice

aragorn99 wrote:Got my Tier 1 today. Here are the timelines :
Applied 28th June
Ref Later Dated 3rd July
UTR sent and recorded 21st August
Approval Date 21st August
Stamped 2nd September
Dispatched 5th September

Wonder what they were waiting for between 21st August and 2nd September and further why did they wait 3 days for dispatch?
Neways I am glad I got it. Best of luck to all those still waiting!

Hello forum,


I have been a silent observer for few months now. this forum has helped me a lot to understand and see the current processing times.

i am little bit worried and confused now as seems like i am one of the few people here on the forum who have been waiting for almost 12weeks now. i applied on 14th June from UK and still waiting. I have tried to call HO CC few times and all the time they give the same answer " Still under consideration and no decision has been made yet". is this normal?? did sent an email last week as well and havent heard anything back.

my case is straight forward with UK employer and Degree. wht can be the issue (if there is one, i cant think of any). can it be the case that its just lying around somewhere in HO and nobody is bothered to do anything about it. seems very strange that people who applied around the end of july and begining of Aug are getting visa faster then people who applied in June. whts the logic??

Any comments & suggestions please.

Regards

john

Justice and UKTIER, here is my tip for how to get info from CC. Call in the morning around 9-10 o clock.
Do not be afraid to call more than once. Try two three times until you get some one sympathetic enough to dig up some information. Explain to them that it has been long and that you need your passport for travel.Just do not be rude.
I think your passports are stamped and lying at HO for dispatch.

As per my understanding processing time should be impacted by
1. Complexity of the documents provided and
2. Whether or not CW, his/her supervisor or any other concerned person is on leave.
3. whether or not stamping/dispatch is done in batches

First point above is important as if from the provided documents CW is not fully satisfied he/she may consider validation of the docs that adds up to the processing time of particular application... e.g a person who provides 12 month payslips from single employer and 12 bank statements from a single bank confirming the salary debited to that account should get his/her case completed before the person who has let say shown multiple employer, or more than one bank account, or if his/her income came from more than one country etc...
As it's main applicant whose documents are considered for income proof, funds proof (unless dependant have shown seperate account for the same), there should not be much difference in single applicant and the applicant with dependants as long one submit proper marriage certificate, birth certificate for children....

Mine was case with dependants, I paid by cheque, I submitted 12 UK payslips from single employer, 12 bank statements as second evidence of income, and also requested last 3 months statements to be considered for maitenance proof. And got my docs in 6 weeks.. Looking at the timelines of few applicants I am feeling quite lucky to get my visa so quickly...

hop4best

WP -> TIER1 (With dependants)

Applied : 23rd July
Ref No. Received : 24th July (Date as on Ref letter)
Fee Deducted : 29th July
* Another letter containing same Ref no received early August (dated 31st July)
Approval Date: 19th Aug
Visa Stamped: 29th Aug
Docs Received - 04th Sep.

hello hop4best,

My timelines:
Wp to Tier 1
Applied on 18/08/08
Payment deducted: 19/08/08
Reference Number (dated) 21/08/08.

Can anyone help me with whether is there any format for UTR to be sent to HO and also i wanted to know what did u mention in the UTR for it to be considered..

thanks

hop4best wrote:As per my understanding processing time should be impacted by
1. Complexity of the documents provided and
2. Whether or not CW, his/her supervisor or any other concerned person is on leave.
3. whether or not stamping/dispatch is done in batches

First point above is important as if from the provided documents CW is not fully satisfied he/she may consider validation of the docs that adds up to the processing time of particular application... e.g a person who provides 12 month payslips from single employer and 12 bank statements from a single bank confirming the salary debited to that account should get his/her case completed before the person who has let say shown multiple employer, or more than one bank account, or if his/her income came from more than one country etc...
As it's main applicant whose documents are considered for income proof, funds proof (unless dependant have shown seperate account for the same), there should not be much difference in single applicant and the applicant with dependants as long one submit proper marriage certificate, birth certificate for children....

Mine was case with dependants, I paid by cheque, I submitted 12 UK payslips from single employer, 12 bank statements as second evidence of income, and also requested last 3 months statements to be considered for maitenance proof. And got my docs in 6 weeks.. Looking at the timelines of few applicants I am feeling quite lucky to get my visa so quickly...

hop4best

WP -> TIER1 (With dependants)

Applied : 23rd July
Ref No. Received : 24th July (Date as on Ref letter)
Fee Deducted : 29th July
* Another letter containing same Ref no received early August (dated 31st July)
Approval Date: 19th Aug
Visa Stamped: 29th Aug
Docs Received - 04th Sep.

I didn't send urgent treatment request

hop4best



[quote="riteshinlondon"]hello hop4best,

My timelines:
Wp to Tier 1
Applied on 18/08/08
Payment deducted: 19/08/08
Reference Number (dated) 21/08/08.

Can anyone help me with whether is there any format for UTR to be sent to HO and also i wanted to know what did u mention in the UTR for it to be considered..

thanks

[/quote]

Happy to share with you all that I got HSMP extension for three years till Sep 27th 2011. Thanks for the information and co-operation from the members of this forum.

Applied on 31/07/08
Reference Number (dated) 1/08/08
Stamping on 2/9/08
Documents received on 6/9/08

Justice and UKTIER, completely understand your situation... I am in a similar pickle too

WP -> Tier 1
Applied on 10/07/08
Reference Number date 14/07/08
Status: Still waiting ...

Hi Friends,
Firstly thanks to all the contributors of this forum. I have been observing the posts in this Forum and I must accept that it has played a key role in my appilacition whether it be the idea of having covering letters in my application & their formats or of current processing times.

I have received my Tier 1 Visa last Saturday. Following are the timelines.

Type: WP to Tier 1
Sent application by Royal mail: 20-Jun-08
Application received by HO/ Payment deducted: 24-Jun-08
Reference letter received: 24-Jun-08
Sent a letter clarifying a small typo in earnings calculations: after 1 month
Have been waiting ever since.
Called the CC in August. Response was "We do not provide status updates for such applications"
Called CC on Friday 5th September 08. Response "Still under Consideration"
Received my Visa on the IMMEDIATE NEXT DAY. September 6th.
The stamp on my visa shows a date of September 2

Certain Lessons to Learn:
1. Status "Still Under Consideration" has no meaning whatsoever(Atleast in cases pending for long)
2. Might be better to send a self addressed postage paid envelope along with the application. I hadn't done that and might be one of the reasons for the delay
3. Though I had applied for 85 points, I was granted only 75 (Thanks to the 10 extra points that I had, otherwise I would have been rejected). The issue was a follows.
"I receive my basic salary in India. As I have landed in UK in November, Only the Indian salary received before november can be uplifted. From the day I landed in UK, the salary received in India has to be used as is and should not be uplifted"

I have read all instructions multiple times before submitting my application. I never saw a mention of this. Nevertheless, I am now afraid there might be some of you who would have made this mistake. I hope incase some one's points go below 75 due to this mistake, the HO would consider them as exceptions and approve them.


Thank you,
- Usav

I have a basic query. When we get a work permit, we had got a separate work permit document and then got the Visa stamped. However incase of Tier1 general, we directly got a visa stamping.

Is this stamping of Tier 1 on the passport enough for us to be eligible to work in UK or are there any further formalities. Logically I think that the stamping received is enough. However, I would be convinced if someone confirms.

Sorry for posting this here, but felt that it can be treated as an addition to my previous post.

Thank you,
- Usav

Congrats usav,


whts your approval/visa valid till date mate? just trying to figure out the timelines and did u apply with dependants or without??

Regards

justice

Usav wrote:Hi Friends,
Firstly thanks to all the contributors of this forum. I have been observing the posts in this Forum and I must accept that it has played a key role in my appilacition whether it be the idea of having covering letters in my application & their formats or of current processing times.

I have received my Tier 1 Visa last Saturday. Following are the timelines.

Type: WP to Tier 1
Sent application by Royal mail: 20-Jun-08
Application received by HO/ Payment deducted: 24-Jun-08
Reference letter received: 24-Jun-08
Sent a letter clarifying a small typo in earnings calculations: after 1 month
Have been waiting ever since.
Called the CC in August. Response was "We do not provide status updates for such applications"
Called CC on Friday 5th September 08. Response "Still under Consideration"
Received my Visa on the IMMEDIATE NEXT DAY. September 6th.
The stamp on my visa shows a date of September 2
Thank you,
- Usav

Applied 31-Jul
Ref Letter Dtd 31-jul
Payment Deducted 01-Aug
Current Status - With case-worker awaiting decision

i called up HO today. Initially the CC guy told me that they do not provide status of applications on individual basis and right now, applications submitted before 17-Jul are being processed. However, on last monday i was told that my application was alloted to a case worker. I told him the same and then he agreed on providing the information (you can use the trick, mine was a fact though).

He put me on hold for a minute and told me that even though my application is with case worker, it is not being processed and and hopefully will be worked upon after few weeks. strange, but i am not sure whether he actually checked the system or just pretended to do so.
Anyways, can't do much and the wait goes on....

Thanks justice. Valid till is Aug 11(may be 2011 ). Nopes, mine was a single visa. And no UTR.

justice122 wrote:Congrats usav,


whts your approval/visa valid till date mate? just trying to figure out the timelines and did u apply with dependants or without??

Regards

justice

Usav wrote:Hi Friends,
Firstly thanks to all the contributors of this forum. I have been observing the posts in this Forum and I must accept that it has played a key role in my appilacition whether it be the idea of having covering letters in my application & their formats or of current processing times.

I have received my Tier 1 Visa last Saturday. Following are the timelines.

Type: WP to Tier 1
Sent application by Royal mail: 20-Jun-08
Application received by HO/ Payment deducted: 24-Jun-08
Reference letter received: 24-Jun-08
Sent a letter clarifying a small typo in earnings calculations: after 1 month
Have been waiting ever since.
Called the CC in August. Response was "We do not provide status updates for such applications"
Called CC on Friday 5th September 08. Response "Still under Consideration"
Received my Visa on the IMMEDIATE NEXT DAY. September 6th.
The stamp on my visa shows a date of September 2
Thank you,
- Usav

Congrats brother,

u applied at the same time as me and good to hear that response is coming slow and steady. i am still waiting.......... i have complete faith in god and am sure he will listen to my prayers soon.

So ur case approved on 11/08 and u recieved on 08/09. There is still some delay in approval and stamping/dispatch!!

party time for u

Usav wrote:Thanks justice. Valid till is Aug 11(may be 2011 ). Nopes, mine was a single visa. And no UTR.

justice122 wrote:Congrats usav,


whts your approval/visa valid till date mate? just trying to figure out the timelines and did u apply with dependants or without??

Regards

justice

Usav wrote:Hi Friends,
Firstly thanks to all the contributors of this forum. I have been observing the posts in this Forum and I must accept that it has played a key role in my appilacition whether it be the idea of having covering letters in my application & their formats or of current processing times.

I have received my Tier 1 Visa last Saturday. Following are the timelines.

Type: WP to Tier 1
Sent application by Royal mail: 20-Jun-08
Application received by HO/ Payment deducted: 24-Jun-08
Reference letter received: 24-Jun-08
Sent a letter clarifying a small typo in earnings calculations: after 1 month
Have been waiting ever since.
Called the CC in August. Response was "We do not provide status updates for such applications"
Called CC on Friday 5th September 08. Response "Still under Consideration"
Received my Visa on the IMMEDIATE NEXT DAY. September 6th.
The stamp on my visa shows a date of September 2
Thank you,
- Usav

Dear All,

This seems to be the most active thread on this forum so I apologise to post my voes here. I hope someone may have heard of similar situations and may advise.

I applied for Tier 1 extension on 24 May via an immigration consultant who had helped me get initial clearance in 2004. He payed the wrong fees (350 GBP). My LTR was due to expire on 1 July. The HO initially confirmed that the correct fees has been paid but returned the application to the consultant on 17 July suggesting that he should re-apply with the correct fees. The consultant asked me for the balance of the fees but never told me that the application has been returned. Instead he sent me an e-mail suggesting that the application is at an advanced stages of processing. He resent the same application with the correct fees. This time (on 20 Aug) the Home Office returned the application, now to my home address suggesting that the forms had changed and I should apply with correct forms. This is the first time I realised what had happened.

I contacted the Home Office and they said that I can make another application but I have to stop working. I have left my job and made another application on 22 Aug, HO received 26 Aug, payment taken 26 Aug and confirmation generated 26 Aug. I called the HO today and it has still not been assigned to a case worker. However, the gentleman on the other end was encouraging that the previous failed applications will not jeopadise my chances of an extension as I started the process well before my expiry.

Looking at the timelines posted here, its seems I have a long time to wait before I hear something from them. Are you guys aware of other cases where applications were returned because of wrong forms/ fees after the LTR expired and how the applicants managed the situation.

Many thanks

OB40.

Hello Usav, thanks for your contribution, I just read your response about how they judged your earnings.I have one question. What do you mean by your Indian salary being uplifted? Thanx

Miria

Usav wrote:Hi Friends,
Firstly thanks to all the contributors of this forum. I have been observing the posts in this Forum and I must accept that it has played a key role in my appilacition whether it be the idea of having covering letters in my application & their formats or of current processing times.

I have received my Tier 1 Visa last Saturday. Following are the timelines.

Type: WP to Tier 1
Sent application by Royal mail: 20-Jun-08
Application received by HO/ Payment deducted: 24-Jun-08
Reference letter received: 24-Jun-08
Sent a letter clarifying a small typo in earnings calculations: after 1 month
Have been waiting ever since.
Called the CC in August. Response was "We do not provide status updates for such applications"
Called CC on Friday 5th September 08. Response "Still under Consideration"
Received my Visa on the IMMEDIATE NEXT DAY. September 6th.
The stamp on my visa shows a date of September 2

Certain Lessons to Learn:
1. Status "Still Under Consideration" has no meaning whatsoever(Atleast in cases pending for long)
2. Might be better to send a self addressed postage paid envelope along with the application. I hadn't done that and might be one of the reasons for the delay
3. Though I had applied for 85 points, I was granted only 75 (Thanks to the 10 extra points that I had, otherwise I would have been rejected). The issue was a follows.
"I receive my basic salary in India. As I have landed in UK in November, Only the Indian salary received before november can be uplifted. From the day I landed in UK, the salary received in India has to be used as is and should not be uplifted"

I have read all instructions multiple times before submitting my application. I never saw a mention of this. Nevertheless, I am now afraid there might be some of you who would have made this mistake. I hope incase some one's points go below 75 due to this mistake, the HO would consider them as exceptions and approve them.


Thank you,
- Usav

Miria -

If your earning is not from UK, there is something called uplift conversion multiplier, you have to add up your earnings and multiply that amt with the uplift conversion value.. it varies for each country and depends on which band the country falls to... for eg. india's uplift conversion value is 5.3.. All these details are available in the tier1 applcn guide (or watever they call)...

Can someone point to me the post where Current Tier 1 General Timelines for USA is listed. Pls help, I am searching for this and could not find it s far

itguy_uk wrote:WP to Tier-1 applied from UK without dependents

Applied on 21st Aug'08
Refernce Number Date : 26th Aug'08
Payment Detected : 27th Aug'08
Result : Awaiting


It seems that those who have applied in the month of July are getting their applications processed faster

Hi all,

I have applied on 21st Aug'08 with the old application form version 02/2008.
But after that i came to know that we have to use the latest veriosn 08/08 for applications made on or after 08th Aug'08. Now i am very much worried about my case.

Could anyone has been in the same situation in the past..

Please help.

Senior members, pls advise.

All u need to do is just wait for the papers to come back from HO ( as they will return your docs back to u soon) and then apply on the fresh form version 08/08. thats the only option, u cant do anything else. just wait!!

itguy_uk wrote:

itguy_uk wrote:WP to Tier-1 applied from UK without dependents

Applied on 21st Aug'08
Refernce Number Date : 26th Aug'08
Payment Detected : 27th Aug'08
Result : Awaiting


It seems that those who have applied in the month of July are getting their applications processed faster

Hi all,

I have applied on 21st Aug'08 with the old application form version 02/2008.
But after that i came to know that we have to use the latest veriosn 08/08 for applications made on or after 08th Aug'08. Now i am very much worried about my case.

Could anyone has been in the same situation in the past..

Please help.

What were you doing mate? Hope you weren't sleep-walking when you applied. As it is, it's difficult enough to make sure that all your documents are in order and that they meet requirements. I'd be very surprised if someone didn't bother to have a look at what's changed on the HO website one last time before posting out their documents.

You'll get your documents back after which you'll need to re-apply or if they're kind enough, they may ask you to fax them the right application.

On a more proactive note, Why not call them up, explain your situation and ask if it's ok for you to fill up a new format application with a cover letter explaining the mix-up and post it by next day delivery BEFORE they make a decision?(Anything sent BEFORE a decision made is acceptable so it's better not to wait until it's refused). It could save you......else you'll just lost a bit of both i.e. time and money.

itguy_uk wrote:

itguy_uk wrote:WP to Tier-1 applied from UK without dependents

Applied on 21st Aug'08
Refernce Number Date : 26th Aug'08
Payment Detected : 27th Aug'08
Result : Awaiting


It seems that those who have applied in the month of July are getting their applications processed faster

Hi all,

I have applied on 21st Aug'08 with the old application form version 02/2008.
But after that i came to know that we have to use the latest veriosn 08/08 for applications made on or after 08th Aug'08. Now i am very much worried about my case.

Could anyone has been in the same situation in the past..

Please help.

Please see my post on page 41 (http://www.immigrationboards.com/viewto ... &start=800). Just hope and pray that they return your application before your LTR expires otherwise you will have to stop working while they process your case.

Its pretty distressing with all these confusions about fees and forms. Wish you all the best.

OB40.

itguy_uk wrote:

itguy_uk wrote:WP to Tier-1 applied from UK without dependents

Applied on 21st Aug'08
Refernce Number Date : 26th Aug'08
Payment Detected : 27th Aug'08
Result : Awaiting


It seems that those who have applied in the month of July are getting their applications processed faster

Hi all,

I have applied on 21st Aug'08 with the old application form version 02/2008.
But after that i came to know that we have to use the latest veriosn 08/08 for applications made on or after 08th Aug'08. Now i am very much worried about my case.

Could anyone has been in the same situation in the past..

Please help.