OLD FLR(M) waiting times Thread

relievedpartner wrote:Hi All,

Have been silently following this thread for a number of months now, with my wife & I being stuck in the same bureaucratic nightmare as the rest of you. Finally today got home to find our approval letter waiting for us in the mail with all of our documentation, and a card from DX to arrange for the redelivery of our BRP.

I just wanted to express my gratitude to all of those who have contributed to this forum whilst we waited for this to come through. Having others share their experiences, thoughts and suggestions helped pull us through what has been a truly arduous process. The performance of the UKBA is nothing short of shocking and it makes me so angry that they can toy with peoples lives like this and provide absolutely no information or transparency at any point.

To those who are still waiting, please have faith and look after each other. It is very hard to be left waiting with no information, and i know a lot of you have had to stick it out for longer than us and still do not know when you will have an answer. Without all of your words of support on this forum, we would all be totally in the dark. Thanks for helping me through this



FLR(M) posted: 21/06/12
Acknowledgement letter: 26/06/12
Payment: 28/08/12
Biometrics letter: 10/09/12
Biometrics submitted: 12/09/12
Passport/Docs: 08/11/12
Biometric Card: Delivery Arranged for tomrrow!
Visa Type : FLR(M) Spouse

Congratulation relievedpartner,

Same day as you and i have not receive anything yet from them hopefully soon


FLR(M) posted: 21/06/12
Acknowledgement letter: 26/06/12
Biometrics letter: 04/08/2012
Biometrics submitted: 20/08/12
Passport/Docs Request: 21/10/12
Passport received/: 30/10/12
Biometric Card:
Visa Type : FLR(M) Spouse[/quote]

samestory wrote:

findshakil wrote:Hi All, Just bit of update. its 2 nov 2012 and we havnt received bio metric enrollment letter. it is now 2 and half months (over 11 weeks) wait

is anybody in the same boat please share or its just us who applied in august 2012 and not recived anything after aclnowledment letter?

I applied on 23rd of August but haven't received any biomatric letter.

Hello findshakil,

Call the number on your acknowledgement letter, select the option for biometric enquiries. Never choose that you are enquiring about your
FLR(M) application or you want your sponsor passport back as these are dead-end options that refer you back to their website. Wait for options that says' for all other enquiries', wait on the line as long as it takes to speak to the immigration adviser. I think there is a general problem with sending out biometrics letters so it's worth the try to call them directly. Hope this helps.[/quote]

Hi Thanks,
I tried to call today, the lady was very rude, i told her that i have been waiting for biometric letter for more than 10 weeks, I request her if she could help me or send request to their biometric team on my behalf but she refused straight away, she said she can't do anything and advise me to keep waiting. I also sent letter to shefield office twice but haven't heard anything.

Hi Annieak, I emailed UK Border Agency on the following addressL UKBACustomerComplaints@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk

I emailed complaint letter on 8th October. Received acknowledgement on 16th October and received passport on 3rd November. Complaining will work for you too. Good luck.

CDNgirl wrote:So I've just called up to speak with UKBA and ask if they could tell me if my biometrics letter had been sent out or not, and she said it had not yet been generated...I then asked if she could send it out and she said no, that I would just have to wait.

Hi CDN girl,

The first thing you don't do is call someone and ask if something you are expecting has been sent out or not. For instance, if you placed an order with M & S and you have been waiting for 5 days, this is the first thing you say when you call their customer services. They would work out that this is unusual or not. I must admit though that waiting 6 weeks compared to the expected time now for BM letters of about 8 weeks is a bit soon. If you can be patient and make the call again tomorrow, this is what you should say.

When the adviser comes through, exchange pleasantries.
Tell her your name and type of application you have made and when (date). Tell her it's now been six weeks since you applied and have not received your BM letter. Remember to stress how long it's been. If this is unusual, she'll say so. (Don't tell her to check if it has been sent or not). She would want your reference number to confirm your details and make a decision on whether you have waited enough to contact the BM team. Fingers crossed you speak to a different adviser tomorrow. If you are told the same thing tomorrow, I will give it another 2 weeks, making it a wait of 8 weeks for you and then call them again. Hope this helps.


NB:
From my experience, she does not have the power to just click on her computer and send you off a BM letter. But she has the power to contact the BM team and they would advise her to make a formal request to them for a BM letter to be sent to you. But this depends if she feels you have waited long enough. I heard mine over the phone use the words 'ASAP' when she contacted them about my wait. Good luck.

Sorry guys, should have been more clear in my last post. I didn't just call up and ask if my letter had been sent, that was just the base line of the conversation I had with the lady. I spoke to her and told her about what application I had applied for, then we discussed when it was submitted and then see asked for my reference number. Then I asked if she was able to tell me if it had been sent out, which is when she told me if had yet been generated.

I know the waiting times seem to have been pushed back, I'm just frustrated, as we all are. I will give it another week or so than maybe try again. Thanks for your comments everyone, I will provide more detail next time

I just wanted to post my completed processing time (5 months) and give a little tip for you all. We wrote and faxed a letter to my processing unit to inquire about our case and think that just getting the adjudicator to pick up our (my) case was the just impetus we needed to get it processed. It was a very straightforward case, and we think they are just totally backlogged.

I completely understand your stress and frustration - and I send you positive thoughts in the hopes that your case will be finalised soon. Hang in there. I quit my job in the States and moved here and obviously couldn't work. I needed to stay busy and take my mind off of my FLRM, so I took free online classes, volunteered in my local community, networked, did pro bono work, and practiced lots of yoga. :) Don't give up, friends. I understand the immense amount of stress and frustration you are feeling. You might not want to hear it now, but you will get through this! Good luck, and godspeed.

12 May: Submitted FLRM application (registered mail - keep track of everything!)
25 May: Initial notification letter (received 27 May)
12 June: Biometrics enrollment letter - submitted biometrics on 14 June
17 June: Second Biometrics letter (first submission "not successful" - submitted again on 25 June)
27 Sept: Approval letter (received 1 Oct)
17 October: Biometric residence card received (I emailed them 10 working days after 1 October because we did not receive the card. They immediately emailed back, indicating there was a backlog and would send the card 7-10 working days from the date of the email.)

I hope this helps. This forum definitely helped me throughout the process.
Warm regards to you all.

Hi there, thought I should share my timeline! Mine is actually a pretty positive case... was so prepared to spend months and months waiting but this wasn't the case for me. Hopefully this is a sign of better things to come in terms of processing times?

Application sent: 6 July
Acknowledgement letter received: 19 July
Biometrics sent off: [can't remember date, sorry]
Biometrics confirmation letter received: 28 September
BRP received: 1 November
Total: <5 months

I was expecting the entire process to take much, much longer so was waiting patiently. Didn't have to contact UKBA at all during the entire process, except after I get the biometrics confirmation letter.

Had to email them twice to pursue BRP delivery - once to nudge them, then another to remind them that my delivery address had changed. Then finally got it on 1 November! So relieved and so happy, I thought the wait would be so much longer because I applied right before the rules changed. I'm v grateful.

Good luck to everyone else waiting, here's hoping my case isn't just down to luck and they're finally getting their arses into gear at UKBA!

For reference, I'm a Singaporean citizen who was on a Post-Study Work visa previously (expiring mid-2013) and he's a born and bred British citizen.

transatlantica wrote:I just wanted to post my completed processing time (5 months) and give a little tip for you all. We wrote and faxed a letter to my processing unit to inquire about our case and think that just getting the adjudicator to pick up our (my) case was the just impetus we needed to get it processed. It was a very straightforward case, and we think they are just totally backlogged.

I completely understand your stress and frustration - and I send you positive thoughts in the hopes that your case will be finalised soon. Hang in there. I quit my job in the States and moved here and obviously couldn't work. I needed to stay busy and take my mind off of my FLRM, so I took free online classes, volunteered in my local community, networked, did pro bono work, and practiced lots of yoga. Don't give up, friends. I understand the immense amount of stress and frustration you are feeling. You might not want to hear it now, but you will get through this! Good luck, and godspeed.

12 May: Submitted FLRM application (registered mail - keep track of everything!)
25 May: Initial notification letter (received 27 May)
12 June: Biometrics enrollment letter - submitted biometrics on 14 June
17 June: Second Biometrics letter (first submission "not successful" - submitted again on 25 June)
27 Sept: Approval letter (received 1 Oct)
17 October: Biometric residence card received (I emailed them 10 working days after 1 October because we did not receive the card. They immediately emailed back, indicating there was a backlog and would send the card 7-10 working days from the date of the email.)

I hope this helps. This forum definitely helped me throughout the process.
Warm regards to you all.

Hi,

congrats to you, how did you know where your processing unit was and there fax no. i have been waiting since feb. getting desperate now.

NB:
From my experience, she does not have the power to just click on her computer and send you off a BM letter. But she has the power to contact the BM team and they would advise her to make a formal request to them for a BM letter to be sent to you. But this depends if she feels you have waited long enough. I heard mine over the phone use the words 'ASAP' when she contacted them about my wait. Good luck.[/quote]


So the postman just dropped off my BM letter a few minutes ago.

hi all finally received brp today
send documents on 5th march 2012
applied flrm
from student visa tier 4

received documents bk 1st novemer 2012

receivd brp 09/11/12

the visa is for 2 years exactly

naz12345 wrote:hi all finally received brp today
send documents on 5th march 2012
applied flrm
from student visa tier 4

received documents bk 1st novemer 2012

receivd brp 09/11/12

the visa is for 2 years exactly

Congrates naz! good to see some movement ahead of Feb.

Naz if you dont mind can you tell me if UKBA requested any additional documents from you?
thanks

FLR(M) applied in 10/11/2011
Biometrics: 05/12/2011
They asked for some more information about marriage date in 02/02/2012.

Recieved UKBA letter on 07/11/2012 for internview. (upto 3 hours).
Actually i was on PSW when i applied for spouse visa. When i was on PSW, i applied for Tier 1 General in january 2011 as premium service which was refused on silly reason that i didnt send my bank statement which i sent. I didnt go for appeal.

Then in 10/11/2011 I applied for spouse visa. Do you think they are gonna ask any questions about my Tier 1 application. and what questions are they going to ask in interview. I am really concerned now. Thanks

Hi guys,

I want to congratulate everyone who has recvd their visa and i want to wish others good luck and hope that you all receive it soon.
Well ukba's backlog is officialy 320000 cases (all categories). It was a big news yesterday all over the news websites. I hope they sort it out soon as it will be annoying that genuine people have to wait so long as per the news people who should not have any right might get lucky and get to stay in uk.
http://bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20252160
This is the link for bbc website bout the news.


Good luck everyone.
Date Docs sent: 08/02/12
Date Ack. Letter received: 20/02/12
Date biometrics booking letter received: 20/03/12 (dated 16/03/12)
Date biometrics enrolled (at Holborn post office): 22/03/12
Date BRP received: 22/10/12 (by my solicitor)
Date Docs received: 19/10/12 (by my solicitor)
Visa type: FLR(M)
From - Tier 4

Visa type: FLR(M)
From - Tier 4

Congrations to waitwaitwait.

here i would like to share my timeline with everyone :

Date Docs sent: 28/06/12
Date Ack. Letter received: 04/07/12
Date biometrics booking letter received: 12/08/12
Date biometrics enrolled : 14/08/12
Date Docs received: 10/11/12
Date of BRP: in 7 days as state in the letter



Just want to say thank you everyone encourage each other share the information. Hopefully you all got your visa soon.

Congratulation guys,

We just have to be patience because people who are June are starting to receive their application. Hopefully the rest of the people will get theirs soon.

Be patient

Hi everyone

Finally got our docs back, FLRM approved! Not without a lot of stress though. My timeline:

App sent: 10 March 2012
Acknowledgement: 16 March
Biometrics done: 31 March
Withdrawal request sent: 5 November
Documents returned with approval letter: 8 November
BRP: awaiting

We sent in an email on the 5th with the return of documents form saying that we really wanted to travel at the end of the month, so we were prepared to cancel the application if they could not make their decision soon. So they made the decision! Our application was straightforward, which is what has made this process so stressful and frustrating. Good luck to everyone here and I hope you get your visas soon.

Please, can you tell me to which e-mail of UKBA should I send a request about my documents withdrawal?
Thank you

Hi apple2170

I filled in the form at the following link and the email address is on there. I wouldn't advise anyone to do that unless you really are prepared to cancel!

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitec ... return.doc

Thanks a lot for reply.
Yes now I understand that if I request doc-s, then application will be withdrawn, and what to do if visa is already expired...

[quote="atim"]FLR(M) applied in 10/11/2011
Biometrics: 05/12/2011
They asked for some more information about marriage date in 02/02/2012.

Recieved UKBA letter on 07/11/2012 for internview. (upto 3 hours).
Actually i was on PSW when i applied for spouse visa. When i was on PSW, i applied for Tier 1 General in january 2011 as premium service which was refused on silly reason that i didnt send my bank statement which i sent. I didnt go for appeal.

Then in 10/11/2011 I applied for spouse visa. Do you think they are gonna ask any questions about my Tier 1 application. and what questions are they going to ask in interview. I am really concerned now. Thank

The reason for interview is when they believe that your marriage is not geniune.

Some good Monday morning news.... my documents have finally arrived, now just waiting for BRP.

After receiving a letter last Wednesday requesting a copy of our last 3 payslips and last 3 bank statements, we had the relief knowing that someone was now actually looking at the application almost 9 months later

Date applied/docs sent: 20/02/2012
Date application received by UKBA: 21/02/2012
Date received ack. letter: 22/02/2012
Date biometrics booking letter arrived: 21/03/2012
Date biometrics appointment: 30/03/2012
Date passport/docs received from HO: 12/11/2012 (dated 09/11/2012)
Biometrics card received: Waiting

ako wrote:Some good Monday morning news.... my documents have finally arrived, now just waiting for BRP.

After receiving a letter last Wednesday requesting a copy of our last 3 payslips and last 3 bank statements, we had the relief knowing that someone was now actually looking at the application almost 9 months later

Date applied/docs sent: 20/02/2012
Date application received by UKBA: 21/02/2012
Date received ack. letter: 22/02/2012
Date biometrics booking letter arrived: 21/03/2012
Date biometrics appointment: 30/03/2012
Date passport/docs received from HO: 12/11/2012 (dated 09/11/2012)
Biometrics card received: Waiting

Congrates ako - did you actually send them the pay slips and bank statements ?

Congrats!

Thanks!

Still.Waiting - yes we sent the pay slips and bank statements the next day.