Post
by linkers » Fri Nov 08, 2013 12:56 pm
Thanks imran22.
I am not sure why my application took so long as my case was pretty straight forward (no FPNs or criminal convictions, none of the passports ever lost, no debt, always been employed (never worked as a self employed), got Tier-1 extension at same day PEO with no issues, got ILR at same day again with no issues, both children born in UK and got their BCs last year which were approved in only 21 days and lastly I also didn’t breach the 90/450 absences rule’.
I think my application was one of those few random (may be 1% of all applications for BC) unfortunate applications which are sent for some extra checks for no reason (God only knows what these checks are) to an external company. The reason I’m saying this is that when I got my MP involved around mid Oct, the Home Office told the MP that ‘we are waiting for some external checks to come back and as these checks are done by an external company and not by the Home Office, we can’t tell how long they will take to come back’.
The Home Office also told my MP that ‘the application is still under the 6 months of standard processing time and although we can’t tell how long it will take more but we assure you that it won’t be too long’. (don’t remember the exact wording as I don’t have the MP letter with me right now).
Let me know if I have missed anything. Happy to answer any more questions.