Tier 5 youth mobility visa processing times for Canadians?

[Yuliamokh]

Hi there, I’m Canadian living in Vancouver bc. I had applied for my tier 5 youth Mobility Visa June 25th. On July 13th I was told that there was a decision made on my visa (I didn’t get an email, had to call the UK visa centre that’s provided on the application website that costs money). It’s now been a week, and I’ve had no updates... next week will be a month since I’ve applied. They’ve told me that it could take up to 10 days to process the documents; does this mean it’s likely to be approved? Has anyone experienced this before? I was told it would take 3-4 weeks and now I’m worried it may take longer, or that I haven’t been approved. Any responses would be appreciated, thank you

[stef8]

Hi Yuliamokh,
How long did it take for yours to come? I am in a similar situation right now.

[alfreska]

Here is exactly what happened for a recent application from Vancouver BC in 2018.

12. Sept. - Submitted online application and paid both Visa Fee and IHS Surcharge
14. Sept. - Attended Biometrics Appointment at the VFS Office on Hastings
20. Sept. - E-Mail from Sheffield saying the application is being prepared for consideration
5. Oct. - Documents Received via UPS delivered to my home at 12:00PM its been approved

Absolutely no further communications between 20.Sept and 5.October. I only found out I was getting it back that day by entering the UPS tracking number on the UPS Site which said it was out for delivery.

The Visa on the passport says its been issued on 27.Sept. and then it was sent back to the VFS Office in Vancouver who then mailed it out on the evening of the 4th of October for next day delivery service.

You get all your original documents back including your original application, document checklist, bank statement, passport with the vignette/visa inside, and a letter saying that your application has been successful and to bring the letter with you to the UK when you go with an address of when and where to pickup your BRP within 10 days of arrival/before expiry of your vignette.

I know a mate that works at a company that deals with many working holiday applications to the UK and they say generally 15 business days after the biometrics appointment which was exactly what happened in my case. I was actually panicking when I found out they were sending back the documents and did not receive any emails regarding a decision thinking it was rejected, but it was not!

Hope this helps.

[stef8]

Hi alfreska,
Thanks for posting your timeline. I'm still waiting for mine since my biometrics appointment on Sept 7 2018. Now 13 days after my intended travel date. Can I ask what your dates are on the vignette on your passport? I'm worried I will get it back when it is already expired since they are taking to long to send it back to me after making the decision on Sept 19th.

[alfreska]

Here is what is on the visa:
Place of Issue: UKVI D1
Type: D- TIER 5 (YOUTH MOB) MIGRANT
Valid From: 25/02/19
Valid Until: 27/03/19
VAF No, Passport No, Sex, DOB, Nationality, Serial Number, Your Photo
Observ.: T5 Youth Mobility, No Public Funds

So basically 30 calendar days beginning from the date you expect to arrive in the UK which you provided in on your application.

Did they give you a UPS tracking number when you did your biometrics? If so you should track it and see if there was any activity. Maybe they tried delivering it and no one is home, or you can try calling up VFS it might even be sitting in their office somewhere. I noticed that they are not very consistent with sending emails, some people get several while some like me gets 1 or none. It doesn't sound right since you applied before and got the decision earlier than I did, so you should have received it by now.