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SET M - Waiting times

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spoiltbratt
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Finally

Post by spoiltbratt » Mon Sep 07, 2009 12:09 pm

Hi Guys,

Finally today i received my Indefinite leave to remain after 10 weeks. Best of luck to all waiting . It is really hard & frustrating to wait wait & wait. And please let me know if i can be of any assistance in anyway.

rosalinda
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Re: Finally

Post by rosalinda » Mon Sep 07, 2009 5:33 pm

Congratulations!!!
That's such good news.

Go out and enjoy youself for all of us!!

Paulhino
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Post by Paulhino » Wed Sep 09, 2009 1:58 pm

Applied set(m) Croydon PEO: 24 June 2009: UKBA ask for further info.

Further info sent to UKBA: 1 July 2009

Received letter from UKBA stating form was incorrectly filled: 30 July 2009

Filled out new form and resent to UKBA: 31 July 2009

The wait is getting is quite frustrating as my job involves tavelling abroad.

Some premium service this is!

ukcanadian
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Post by ukcanadian » Sun Sep 13, 2009 12:08 pm

Hiya Guys, I am not sure if any of you know that you can make an appointment and go to the home office in liverpool yes you pay a little extra but you get a decision right away. I am a Canadian in the uk and I had to do this as my employer was not willing to wait for the home office to reply. For me it yeah instead of 750 i paid 950 but it was a relief to have a decision right away.

shani US citizen
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indefinite leave to remain waiting times

Post by shani US citizen » Mon Sep 21, 2009 9:42 pm

I've been reading all the posts on the topic of indefinite leave to remain. I am a US citizen, married to a brit for the past two years and living in the UK for the past 3. We both work full time, own our own home, have no dependents and are not accepting, nor allowed, any government handouts. I applied for indefinite leave to remain a month before my spousal visa expired on September 8th as required, but have received or heard nothing except for the typical letter saying my application has been passed on to a caseworker. I am due to be a bridesmaid in my cousins wedding in LA on the 18th of October and we have our tickets booked to fly out on the 9th. I'm stressed beyond belief that our passports will not arrive by then and we'll have to cancel our travel plans and my cousin will be left with one less bridesmaid. In hindsight I should have just paid the extra £200 and gone down to Croydon to apply in person but when you're already parting with £820 it just seems like money down the toilet. I called the home office and explained my situation and the only advice they could give was a number I could fax a letter through pleading my case and hope my application could be expedited. I faxed the letter and sent a copy by post but it's only been a couple days so I have not heard anything. I was just wondering if anyone else has been in same situation or knows of any loop holes. I was told that if I travel on an emergency passport that my application would be considered withdrawn but I also read somewhere that other people in my same situation traveled on an emergency passport and everything was fine. Any advice or input would be greatly appreciated as my stomach is in knots over this.

quixote44
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ILR received after 2.5 months

Post by quixote44 » Tue Sep 22, 2009 8:16 am

My wife applied for her ILR (SETM) in early July, the special delivery letter was sent on 7th July. She received her ILR in the post on Saturday 19th September.

We considered cancelling the processing just so we could go on holiday with friends, however if you cancel they still help themselves to the full £850 !! not just a suitable admin cost. Many of the other complaints people have do have at least some reason behind them, but taking the full fee on cancellation is blatant robbery !!!!

Anyway the ILR has been obtained. Citizenship next !! The web site says 95% of cases are processed within 6 months !!!

shani US citizen
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ILR

Post by shani US citizen » Tue Sep 22, 2009 8:29 am

Thanks for the reply, I was afraid of the answer! We still have 2 full weeks left before we're forced to cancel our travel plans or not. The £200 they charge you to apply in person just seems wrong when you're already paying £820, it just doesn't seem fair to keep people waiting for so long without any information whatsoever. I happened to find the link that gives their waiting times AFTER I applied. They should really make it clearer when you're applying how long it could actually take to get a decision.

quixote44
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Post by quixote44 » Tue Sep 22, 2009 9:25 am

We were in a similar situation at the end of August we wanted to go on holiday with friends. I learnt that even if you cancel the application (and lose all the money) they take 10 days to get your passport back to you.

We sent a letter (special delivery) asking them to expedite the processing, and included proof of the ferry booking (to Spain, that we have subsequently rearranged with a loss of only £25 admin fee). We never got any sign that they got that letter.

We sent a fax and they responded, eventually to that saying that the Application was in the queue and that was where it was staying.

We rang them and they can't give any info prior to the 14 weeks. It seems they simply don't have any info to give, they are not being obstructive, it's the system they have.

We rang and asked to speak to a supervisor, got the same reply from him.

So I conclude that it's hopeless !!! Even if you cancel the application entirely and say goodbye to all the money then that cancellation has to be received by them in writing and at least 10 days before you need your passport.

I guess there maybe some small hope that they would expedite it if you sent proof of the wedding etc etc, as that is a better reason than us just suddenly wanting to go on holiday !

I guess the good news is that people with their applications in the queue know that it's not easy to jump the queue and simply suddenly wanting to go on holiday ceratinly doesn't do it.

I could rant for a long time about the legal immigration hoops one has to jump through.

Paulhino
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Post by Paulhino » Tue Sep 22, 2009 11:58 am

After paying £1050 for a premium service, waiting for the UKBA after 13 weeks is ........................!

shani US citizen
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no hope

Post by shani US citizen » Tue Sep 22, 2009 7:38 pm

I guess it's not looking good for me then! I was hoping someone would have some good news but it all seems like a waiting game. I really don't want to have to tell the bride to be that she may be missing a bridesmaid. If it wasn't for me being in the wedding I wouldn't be sweating it so much but I really don't want to disappoint her! I hope you're right and they make an acception for a wedding at least.

vichas
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Processing times for ILR...

Post by vichas » Mon Sep 28, 2009 1:05 pm

Hey,

My 2 year temporary spouse visa ended on 30-07-2009, and I have applied for an indefinite leave to remain (SET M) on 21-07-2009.
I haven't had any news since :-(

I tried to contact the home office and got the usual "we don't know anything until it's been 3 months, but 90% of cases are resolved within 6 months" answer.

** Does anyone know how they count 6 months? from the day of receiving the application or from the day your have e.g. completed the 2 years life in the UK?

** Does anyone know how far behind they are at the moment?
which applications (from which date) are currently being processed?

** Can anyone explain why the huge gap between processing time of postal and appointment-based applications? From what I can tell, the fact that appointment applications get processed quickly means that if your application is straight forward, then CAN process is quickly-
Is it simply that it can take them months before they even have a look at your application?

** I entered the country 41 days after my visa started.
Apparently, entering up to 28 days after your visa started is OK, but more than that is treated differently:

a. I was NOT ALLOWED to make an appointment, and HAD to apply by post
b. My application will be put "on hold" until the FULL 2 year period was completed, and only then will it be looked at.
c. No amount of money, love, or begging will allow me to make an appointment once I've sent if my application by post.

Does anyone know anything about this situation of delayed entry?
I was SOOOO willing to pay the 200 GBP difference and get my case resolved on the spot... now I am sitting at home wondering when will I ever get my passport back...

vichas
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Home office processing time - let's collect data ourselves!

Post by vichas » Mon Sep 28, 2009 1:16 pm

Hi,

I've created an online survey on Google to track visa processing times and other related subjects.

I feel in the dark when I hear "90% within 6 months". I want to know exactly who is waiting how long, what's the average etc.

Please take a moment to fill the survey form here:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform ... ZGxyaUE6MA


And check out what other users answered here:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key= ... utput=html

rosalinda
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Re: Home office processing time - let's collect data ourselv

Post by rosalinda » Mon Sep 28, 2009 5:28 pm

Hi everyone,

I am still waiting, to be honest this is absolutely the worst torture that can be done to anyone without any reason. I have applied for the ILR since 11-07-09 got the confirmation on the 17th and absolutely nothing else. My mother is going to have a very serious surgery and I cannot go and be there for her. I am worried that if I ask for the passport back I'll lose the £820 and probably go through more troubles by paying the fee again and suffer even worse. We are absolutely devestated with this situation we cannot plan absolutely nothing, it's like our life is in standby.

Very, very sad. Than we talking about human rights?!

Please can you keep us updated with your cases, anything will be much appreciated.

Many thanks,

rosalinda

shani US citizen
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expediting

Post by shani US citizen » Mon Sep 28, 2009 7:38 pm

Hey guys,
I've been desperately calling the home office to see what I can do about expediting my case. So far I've been given 2 different fax numbers by two different people at the home office. I've faxed a letter on the 17th of September pleading my case without a response then was told to fax another letter saying I needed at least an answer if they were expediting my application or not. I faxed on the 25th of September but still no news, at this point I'm giving up and will probably have to cancel my flight to America. I will keep you updated, so far I'm on week 7 with no news whatsoever.

Paulhino
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Re: expediting

Post by Paulhino » Tue Sep 29, 2009 3:59 pm

shani US citizen wrote:Hey guys,
I've been desperately calling the home office to see what I can do about expediting my case. So far I've been given 2 different fax numbers by two different people at the home office. I've faxed a letter on the 17th of September pleading my case without a response then was told to fax another letter saying I needed at least an answer if they were expediting my application or not. I faxed on the 25th of September but still no news, at this point I'm giving up and will probably have to cancel my flight to America. I will keep you updated, so far I'm on week 7 with no news whatsoever.
I wouldn't give up. You still have another week before you are due to fly out.

shani US citizen
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expediting ILR

Post by shani US citizen » Tue Sep 29, 2009 7:36 pm

Has anyone else on here sent a fax requesting their application to be expedited? Did you get a response? I feel like they are ignoring all my letters!

rosalinda
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Re: expediting ILR

Post by rosalinda » Wed Sep 30, 2009 10:31 am

Hi guys,

I got the ILR yesterday. What a relief?! It lasted 11 weeks, extremely frustrating. I wish you all the best and if you have any questions that I might help through my experience I am happy to assist you.

May God bless you all and may your cases may be resolved as soon as possible,

rosalinda

shani US citizen
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letter from home office

Post by shani US citizen » Wed Sep 30, 2009 6:59 pm

Hello,
For those of you still waiting for your ILR I just received a response to my letter asking for them to expedite my case. Basically they said they cannot expedite my application based on my circumstances and they are currently dealing with applications received on the 20th of July. Good luck to everyone, looks like I'll be waiting at least another month!

vichas
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Waiting time + delayed entry by 41 days

Post by vichas » Mon Oct 05, 2009 12:47 pm

Does anyone know how the h/o treats applications where the applicant delayed entry by more than 28 days after visa started (in my case - around 40 days)?

I submitted my application on 21/7 (confirmation received).
My visa expired 30/7 but - my 2 year period of life in the UK only completed on 11/9....

Does anyone know if I should expect my application to be processed together with application from 21/7 or with applications from 11/9?

if it the former then it should be processed very soon (according to the previous post, and generally people have been reporting a waiting time of 10-12 weeks).

If it's the latter - and the home office are sitting on it until the 11/9, then I have a very, very long wait still (already been waiting 11 weeks).

help...

hamed
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Re: letter from home office

Post by hamed » Mon Oct 05, 2009 10:38 pm

shani US citizen wrote:Hello,
For those of you still waiting for your ILR I just received a response to my letter asking for them to expedite my case. Basically they said they cannot expedite my application based on my circumstances and they are currently dealing with applications received on the 20th of July. Good luck to everyone, looks like I'll be waiting at least another month!
can you please tell us when the letter was dated ? as you posted on 30th september that home office are dealing with applicaton they recieved on 20 july .
thank you

shani US citizen
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current applications

Post by shani US citizen » Tue Oct 06, 2009 5:03 pm

The letter was dated September 28th.

gurhan
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Post by gurhan » Tue Oct 06, 2009 8:26 pm

batleykhan wrote:I have found the average waiting time to be around 3 months or so, because of the large numbers of application they have recieved lately.

I must remind you that they do make some extensive inquiries on each application. Sometime its not the HO office fault for the delay, its other departments, agencies and local authorities who are sometime slow to respond after an inquiry is made with them.

oluwa112
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Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2009 1:43 am

Re: letter from home office

Post by oluwa112 » Wed Oct 07, 2009 1:51 am

shani US citizen wrote:Hello,
For those of you still waiting for your ILR I just received a response to my letter asking for them to expedite my case. Basically they said they cannot expedite my application based on my circumstances and they are currently dealing with applications received on the 20th of July. Good luck to everyone, looks like I'll be waiting at least another month!
You dont know how grateful I am for this post! At least it gives me a time line to work with......

I am new to this group and i feel everyones pain and agony for the wait.

I applied 10th August PEO - But they decided they needed further investigation so i got downgraded to Postal application even though i paid the Premium Fee.

so with your update, It means that I should expect my application to be reviewed week beginning 19th October and I guess Give or take another 2wk from them to receive the actual passport.

Will keep you updated.

Good Luck, God's Blessings and Favour as we all wait on the outcome of our applications!!!

Paulhino
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Re: letter from home office

Post by Paulhino » Wed Oct 07, 2009 9:48 am

oluwa112 wrote:
shani US citizen wrote:Hello,
For those of you still waiting for your ILR I just received a response to my letter asking for them to expedite my case. Basically they said they cannot expedite my application based on my circumstances and they are currently dealing with applications received on the 20th of July. Good luck to everyone, looks like I'll be waiting at least another month!
You dont know how grateful I am for this post! At least it gives me a time line to work with......

I am new to this group and i feel everyones pain and agony for the wait.

I applied 10th August PEO - But they decided they needed further investigation so i got downgraded to Postal application even though i paid the Premium Fee.

so with your update, It means that I should expect my application to be reviewed week beginning 19th October and I guess Give or take another 2wk from them to receive the actual passport.

Will keep you updated.

Good Luck, God's Blessings and Favour as we all wait on the outcome of our applications!!!
Good luck. I appplied June 24th PEO, was asked for more information as you were. 15weeks later, I'm still waiting. I really need favour.

oluwa112
Member
Posts: 164
Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2009 1:43 am

Re: letter from home office

Post by oluwa112 » Wed Oct 07, 2009 10:58 am

Paulhino wrote:
Good luck. I appplied June 24th PEO, was asked for more information as you were. 15weeks later, I'm still waiting. I really need favour.

That doesnt soud promising!!! U applied since June 24th??

Which PEO did you apply to? I went into Liverpool. After they downgraded you to the postal application did they ever get back in touch with you to send more information and if they did how soon did they get back to you request this more information? Also when more information was requested from you, was the request made from the Same PEO Location you booked your appointment at or was it a different PEO location?

Cos my main problem here now with what you have said is that they haven’t even contacted me at all for more information, so basically I am still at a stand still and in the belief that my application is under some rock not being looked at. At least some sort of correspondence will put my mind at ease. Also since I have not heard from them I have absolutely no clue which location is dealing with my application. Being that I went in Person to Liverpool, but if I had applied by Post I would have had to send my application to Durham. But as I was told that they need to escalate my application for further investigation and with the Croydon office being the head office, its also possible that they might have sent my application there.

So what I am saying is that my application could be in one 1 or those 3 locations. So even if I wanted to send more information to them *as they have not asked me to do so* I feel like I have to send messages to all those three sites and hope that one of those 3 sites are dealing with my application.

So I would Love to know where your PEO appointment was and when they wrote you to send out more information where was the request sent from.

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