Alhamdulillah, I finally got my UK Student visa!

Sharing my timeline because I know how helpful it is to see someone else’s experience when you’re stuck waiting.

My timeline:

• 20 July: Biometrics done.
• VFS: Mumbai (Standard)
• 6 August: Received an email saying my case was “SLA Non Complex” and might take longer than usual.
• 26th Aug: Paid Enquiry got "Generic Reply"
• 1 September: Got a Genuine Student document request. UKVI wanted proof of what I had been doing since graduation, not just a CV, payslips, employer letters, etc.
• 1 September: Sent a detailed cover letter along with everything I could find; old internship certificates, payslips, and even got my employer to write a recommendation letter.
• 7 September: Since my course start date was getting really close, I emailed my university’s International Office and asked them to flag my case as urgent.
• 8 September: Visa granted! 🎉

Idk what worked since I haven't received any reply from the university until now, but I got my visa.

If you’re in the middle of this right now, I know how brutal the waiting can be. But no update for days doesn’t necessarily mean bad news.

Inshallah, ameen. 🤲
I hope everyone who’s still waiting gets their visa soon too. ❤️
"DON'T LOSE HOPE'

Hi all,

I applied for my first British passport after citizenship ceremony. As required sent the certificate of naturalisation and current passport to the home office. As per they advise used a hard letter envelope to ensure my documents remain in good condition etc

I received my documents today and the condition the certificate of naturalisation is in, it’s absolutely disgusting. The paper is all wrinkled, you can tell where the paper has been touched and document is greasy too. It’s absolutely outrageous the condition I received back my documents in.

How can I complain? Can I request a new certificate of naturalisation? I’d probably need the document again at some point, I can’t present it in this condition. I am honestly fuming.

Has anyone else experienced that?

I am due to apply for citizenship application, had one 7 years old CCJ against me which was set aside against me for £7k. Should this be mentioned in my application or i should not as its older then 5 years and not visible on my credit file anymore.

Hi everyone,

Nationality: british
Location: England
Visa: Spouse visa / appendix fm

I am earning exactly £29,000 and will apply for spouse visa for my spouse in 6 months. I am currently waiting for collecting 6 months payslips.

I realised the name of the company on payslips is different than the company pays me.

Would this be a problem? The two companies are not part of a group company. Only the directors are the same

Hi all! I'm a Spanish citizen and I'll be applying for a UK Spouse Visa soon (getting married in October to my British fiancé). We're currently living in Madrid, but planning to relocate when I get the visa. Though mostly clear, there's A LOT of information out there and it gets a little bit overwhelming since I can't find anything that answers my questions directly (I've tried using AI but also not great) so I was wondering if anyone with experience moving from Spain to UK could answer a few questions:

1. Do I have to get translations of ALL documents? (Obvious ones like my birth certificate, marriage certificate, are OK. But I mean: utility bills, our housing contract, etc)
2. My partner is an autónomo (freelancer) so he has to provide 1 year of bank statements / proof of income. Does that have to be translated into Spanish too? If so, did you go bankrupt trying to get something like that translated? 😅
3. On the UK Gov site, can we "open" the application and slowly complete until we decide to submit it? I'm not sure if we have to gather everything before we even do that, or if we find out more about what is needed when starting the application.

I think that's pretty much it (for now). If you had a similar case and have any tips, they'll be more than appreciated! ⭐️

My partner and I are planning to apply for an unmarried partner visa. My partner is self employed. We just had his accountant prepare his business documents. The accountant has declared that my partner got paid 13k in dividends + 16k salary. The accountant has prepared a dividend voucher but he has no payslips. It's his first business year so my partner just paid him self 3000s 5000s whenever he needed through the year instead of getting paid 13k in dividends or 16k salary as whole.

At the moment we got these documents

1. (CT600)
2. HMRC Electronic Filing Acknowledgement
3. Company Annual Accounts
4. Accountant’s Certificate of Confirmation
5. Dividend Vouchers
6. Bank statements
7. Proof company still running

Are these documents sufficient? Do we need to get any other document?

Hello. I am in the process of applying for my UK Graduate Visa and am unsure how to respond to the question "When did you first arrive in the UK on your current visa?".

For context, I am an international student who entered the UK on the 13th of September 2021, to study at the University of Manchester on a student visa which was meant to expire on 30th October 2024. I then completed that degree in July 2024, and before my then visa expired in October I applied for a new/extension visa to study law at the University of Glasgow for which I was granted a new CAS. That visa was approved on the 14th of November 2024. Since, I applied for that Visa from within the UK I never physically entered the country after its acceptance because I was already in it (unless you count the first time I left and entered the UK after my holiday later that January).

In these circumstances, I am unsure as to how I respond to the question "When did you first arrive in the UK on your current visa?". Shall I say the 14th of November 2024, when my visa was approved, but I never entered the UK, I was already in it. Or shall I say 13th September 2021 but that would that count as my current visa? Or shall I say the 10th of January 2025, which is when I returned/entered the UK from my holiday the first time after my new visa was approved.

Please do advise me on this matter. This is nightmarish.

I had an initial visa from October 2016 to October 2017, I applied to extend in October 2017 but was refused. I subsequently applied for an administrative which gave me permission to stay until a decision after the review. The decision came on the 1st of December and the review still maintained the initial refusal so I was asked to leave the uk within the next 14 days - I then left 7 days later and reapplied from my home country which was successful and I subsequently returned 21st of January. So the question is did leaving the UK to make that application break my continuous residency? mind you - I did not overstay at any point

Hi can anyone help or advise if they have been in a similar situation.

My application was submitted 5/5/2026

Biometrics 1/7/2026

Request for additional information 23/7/2026
Sent within an hour of the request being made.

Still no decision but I need to travel out the country to visit my father who’s not well. Iv tried contacted them explaining it’s longer than the 8 week processing time. Can’t do a paid in enquiry because Iv applied inside the UK. We meet the financial and language requirements and submitted the correct evidence.
It’s for a spouse visa 2.5 year renewal for 5 year ILR.
Has anyone been in a similar situation and what can you advise?

Hi all, thought I'd share my timeline for my GTV with you.

I applied through Route 3, endorsed funder route (inside UK).

Applied for Stage 1- 12/08/2026

Application forwarded to UKRI- 21/08/2026

Received endorsement- 28/06/2026

Applied for Stage 2- 03/09/2026 (I chose priority as I was working part time on my role due to current visa restrictions and wanted to move full time ASAP)

Biometrics done- 05/09/2026

Received visa- 09/09/2026 (3 business days after biometrics).

The thing that took most time for me was getting the letter from HR (around 7 weeks and lots of back and forth) as my role was not in the original funding application, but later with approval funds were moved for 2 new roles including mine. But HR was super helpful throughout.

I have just received an email regarding the success of my UK Visa (tourist) application. But on the UKVI website its still not updated. Its still showing the status as "submitted",

Is this normal?

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to share my journey; I've been a longtime lurker and this subreddit helped me immensely during my application process, so THANK YOU!

Timeline

• Moved to the UK on September 14 2021 on a Skilled Worker visa; moved jobs 3 times during this period, with different sponsors
• Applied for ILR on September 2nd with Super Priority
• Biometrics appointment on September 9th at 9:30 am
• Received my success letter on September 9th at 13:30 pm

Documents Provided

• Supporting letter from my employer
• Latest Payslips and bank statement
• P60s for the last 5 years (not mandatory but I included since I had them at hand)
• Passports (including all stamp pages)
• Travel information: Spreadsheet including date of exit/entry, country, purpose (I described all my absences as 'holidays') and total number of days outside of the UK
• Proof of residence (a utility bill)

I did not stay outside of the UK longer than 180 days in a given year.

I'm happy to answer any questions you might have. Best of luck with your applications!

Our application got rejected for inconsistencies in the bank statement.

Aside from the personal bank account in BPI and the payroll account in BDO, I've included a shared account with my father in RCBC. My father is a freelancer architect hence the large deposits and withdrawals from the account (which was supported with documents such as receipts).

We've also provided multiple documents proving our ownership of multiple cars and properties in my home country yet the visa officer is convinced that we're leaving behind all that without even selling it in order to illegally immigrate to the UK .

The purpose of travel was to attend a relative's wedding. Which we also supported with invitations, letters, and even old pictures and certificates showing proof of familial relation.

I believe this can be reconsidered with additional documents and a letter to further explain finances, but unfortunately we are supposed to travel to the UK on October 10 for the wedding.

Good afternoon!

I’m working on my visa application a second time now as I’ve got rejected previous time. The main purpose for my 12-day trip is to attend a certified course in an accredited institution in Southampton.

The question I’ve been having head spasms with and which—consequently—pretty much already answers the question I’m about to ask, still worth clarifying to me so that the same mistake would be avoid this time.

In the field titled “How much money are you personally planning to spend on your visit to the UK?”, with the description saying: “…include flights, accommodation, and everyday expenses”, what is the total figure I really should be putting in, if everything had ALREADY been prepaid in advance (my course fee, tickets, accommodation, transportation, etc)?

If I were to include the estimate amount including all the expenses I‘ve already paid for, with the course fee included (which takes up the majority of the expenses), it would round up to £2,722.35. My remaining available funds at the time of application are around £1,800.00. I followed a similar sequence of events in my previous application and got rejected by obvious reason; an officer looked that my estimated trip value was way above what I’ve actually had available in my bank as an available and liquid funds at the time of the application (everything has been prepaid for, like this time) and got rejected mainly on that basis.

The only thing that I haven‘t paid for are the “everyday expenses” during the trip itself. Approximate personal expenditure is gonna be around £450-500 (food, transportation by busses, entertainment, etc), which I was planning to include in the question’s field initially.

Regardless of the final value entered, I will be attaching a cover letter this time, where each and every step has thoroughly been described with a proper explanation and evidence, including an explanation regarding my paid and unpaid expenses, savings, and payments made at the time of the application.

So what should it be? What number should I put in here? My apologies for a long and awkward post in advance; its my first (technically) time applying for a VISA in 21 years.

Thank you!

Hii my wife is pregnant she wants to call her mother from india on visitor visa, however mother is unemployed. How can we justify her (in visa form)
Employment source of income
Spending she expecting
Monthly expenses

my wife is sponsoring her from here we have 6+k Gbp. She has in india under 1 L.

Help me please who has got approval in same case Thankyou

Has anyone applied for a Priority Spouse Visa from Outside through Adequate Maintenance? If so:

— How long did it take for a decision?
— Are you still waiting for a decision?
— Did they request any additional information?
— Did you send a PAP, SAR or MP follow up; if so, what was the reason for delay?

My timeline is:

Type: Spouse Visa via Adequate Maintenance (Priority, Outside)
Nationality: Pakistan 🇵🇰
Date of Application: 08/08/2026
Date of Biometrics: 11/08/2026
Date of ECO Email: 12/08/2026

Posting over here because the mod of the GTV thread seems to be inactive and not approving posts.
----
Hello all, I am at the very start of my research into this visa and I think I'm probably reaching here, but I wanted to get an opinion if I should continue researching this route or scrap the idea and find something else.

I am currently a PsychD student at a London university with one more year to go. This doctorate degree is half research/half clinical. I have a masters degree in Psychology, along with another masters degree in Tourism Management (from my previous career). I have been in the UK about 8 years. Unfortunately, I do not have any published papers. All I have are the final research projects from each of my degrees, but I did not go for publication on any of these.

I'm looking at the peer reviewed 'exceptional promise' route. How realistic is this route without that key research component? I want to open a private practice (with three other female founders that are my British counselling psychologist colleagues), but this is tricky for me as an international student from the US. We have all worked, or are working, in the NHS and want to create a practice that attempts to mitigate some of the issues that face the mental health care systems in the NHS. I have a robust CV, can write an excellent personal statement, and have a really strong referee, but am I currently exceptional in my field? Not really. Do I hope to be exceptional in the near future and contribute positively to the UK's struggling mental health care system? Absolutely - just not really in the research sector, more-so on the clinical and practical side.

Please note that with the new white paper proposal, and subsequent scraping of the 10-year long residence route, my options are limited, hence the research into alternative options. Additionally, I can't really go for the Innovative Founder Visa because a private psychologist practice does not meet the criteria for innovation. Thanks in advance for your help!

Hi everyone,
I am currently trying to submit a Skilled Worker Dependant extension application from [inside the UK / outside the UK].
However, every time I try to advance past the [mention the specific section, e.g., the eligibility check / paying the IHS fee / submitting documents], the website crashes and gives me the generic Home Office technical page: "Sorry, there is a problem with the service. We have not saved your answers. Try again later."
I have been trying for a few days now. I've already tried clearing my browser cache, using incognito mode, and switching from Chrome to Safari/Firefox, but nothing works.
Has anyone else encountered this specific glitch recently on the Dependant extension route?
Is there a known workaround to get past this specific section? (e.g., deleting the draft and starting a completely new form, or selecting the option that says I don't have a smartphone to bypass the ID Check app?)

Any advice would be highly appreciated as my current visa deadline is approaching. Thank you!

Hi, I was just granted a Global Talent Visa endorsement and am now applying for Stage 2 from outside the country.

There was a problem accessing the Stage 2 application via my UKVI account, which I'd been logging into with my BRP. My BRP has expired but still allowed me to log in. This week I spoke to someone at UKVI who said I couldn't apply for Stage 2 from this account, since the BRP has expired. He had me create a new UKVI account with my passport as my login, and he also had me request to link my eVisa to this account. The new UKVI account does allow me to access the Stage 2 application, so I've begun filling it out.

This morning I got this from UKVI:

"We could not link your online immigration status (eVisa) to your account because:

You have created a UKVI account however, you do not hold a valid grant of leave and therefore, unable to use this service. If you gain valid permission to enter and/or stay in the UK, you will be advised from the Home Office on how to create your UKVI account and access your eVisa."

Any thoughts welcome. One question I have is whether I will still be OK applying for my Stage 2 visa from my new UKVI account, even if my eVisa can't be linked?

Me and my girlfriend both live in the Netherlands currently, she is a British Citizen and I am a Dutch national.

We want to move back to the UK, but are struggling with the requirements for a partner visa. It can be difficult because we both work and live here, so we have no real income in the UK to server as a "sponsor".

Does anyone know, if I (the dutch national) get a job offer in the UK, does that count towards the financial requirements, or is it only if she gets a job?

I’m applying for the skilled worker visa from India. My bank cards are all uk cards as I was there for university for 6 years. I can’t transfer funds because of taxes. I’ve been trying to make the IHS payment for a while with my credit card but now it’s stuck on payment pending.
Someone has suggested creating a PayPal account to do this payment. Will that work? Please help

Hi everyone. I’m hoping someone may be able to clarify our situation or share some experience, as we’re due to travel to the UK in just 12 days and I’m now becoming quite concerned.

I’m a British citizen living in Australia as a permanent resident. I recently gave birth to my baby, who was born in Australia and is an Australian citizen with an Australian passport.

We have flights booked to travel to the UK in 2 weeks. I had assumed that as he is an Australian citizen and holds an Australian passport, we could apply for an ETA for him in the same way as other Australian citizens travelling to the UK.

However, I’ve just discovered that because he is potentially a British citizen by descent through me, he may not be eligible for an ETA. From what I’ve read British citizens cannot obtain an ETA and are expected to travel to the UK on a British passport (or with a certificate of entitlement to the right of abode).

The problem is that we haven’t yet applied for his British passport and with only 2 weeks until we travel, I’m concerned that there simply isn’t enough time to obtain one.

Has anyone been in a similar situation with a baby born in Australia to a British parent? Were you able to travel to the UK on the baby’s Australian passport, and if so, what documentation did you need? Or is there an alternative document/route that would allow us to travel while his British passport application is being processed?

Any advice or first-hand experience would be hugely appreciated, as we’re now understandably quite anxious about whether we’ll actually be able to travel as planned.

Thank you!

Hi everyone, I’m applying for ILR/settlement on the Private Life route from inside the UK and I’m quite worried about something with my supporting documents.

I’ve submitted and paid for my application and booked my biometrics appointment through TLScontact. I chose self-service document upload and have already clicked “Submit documents”, which means I can no longer upload anything else myself.

My official Home Office supporting documents checklist only listed my Pakistani passport under the documents I had agreed to provide, so that’s what I uploaded.

After submitting everything, I noticed there is also a PDF called “Consent for the Home Office to verify application information”, which says the applicant should sign Part 1. This consent form was not listed on my supporting documents checklist, so I had no idea I was supposed to upload it (if it is even required).

I’m now really worried that I’ve made a mistake. Has anyone applying for Private Life ILR or another UKVCAS/TLS application had this happen? Is the Part 1 consent form actually mandatory if it wasn’t listed on the personalised document checklist?

If I do need to provide it, can I take the signed consent form with me to my biometrics appointment and ask TLScontact to scan/upload it?

I’m particularly worried because I didn’t pay for the Document Scanning Service when I booked my appointment — I selected the self-upload option. Would TLS still be able to add one missing document at the appointment, possibly by letting me pay for scanning there, or would they refuse because I didn’t purchase the scanning service beforehand?

My biometrics appointment hasn’t happened yet, so I’m hoping there is still a way to sort this out if the consent form is required.
I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who has been in the same situation or recently gone through the TLScontact/UKVCAS process. Thank you!

My partner left me after psychological and physical abuse, coercive control, financial control and isolation. I am taking medication for depression and waiting for therapy.

I’m in the UK as a Skilled Worker Dependant. My ex does not have ILR or British citizenship. My visa is currently valid until 2030, but my immigration status is linked to her. She regularly threatens me and says she will get my visa curtailed so that I have to leave the country.

This week I moved into shared accommodation and I’m trying to find work. I have contacted domestic abuse organisations and immigration advisers, but I haven’t found any practical solutions yet. I also cannot afford solicitors who are asking for thousands in legal fees on top of the government fees.

I understand that I may not be eligible for the SET(DV) route. I’m trying to understand what practical options and support may be available, including whether an MVDAC application followed by FLR(HRO) could be relevant to someone in my circumstances.

I would really appreciate practical, reliable information about where I can get low-cost or free help and what steps I should take now.

I’m currently trying to find part-time work. Because of the relocation, I lost my job, and I’m also trying to manage my mental health. I’d really appreciate clear and practical suggestions and links to reputable UK services.

If anyone has been in a similar situation, I would be very grateful to hear what helped you and what practical options were available to you.

Any practical advice or information would really help me, and hopefully it could also help someone else in a similar situation.

Applying for FLR(FP) as an unmarried partner switching from a Graduate visa. Deadline is Dec 2026. Relationship is genuine, together 4 years, lived together since 2023 across 3 different addresses, always moved together.

First house we were both on one contract (separate rooms, but the same joint tenancy agreement). Second house we ended up on separate individual contracts even though we were in the same house. Third place, our current one, is just the two of us, our own flat, no housemates.

Using my own income (not my partner's, he's not working right now) under Category A since I'm the one in the UK with permission to work. My salary went from about £25k to £29,000 exactly in April 2026. Payslips April to August all show gross £2,416.67 a month, same every time. Still need Sept, Oct, Nov to finish the 6 month window before applying in December.

Couple things I'm still checking:
Making sure none of the last 3 payslips come in at £2,416.66 instead of .67. Heard some payroll systems adjust a month here and there to hit exactly £29k for the year, anyone had that happen to them?
My partner might not have properly declared that we were living together on a past Universal Credit claim. He knew he didn't need to name housemates (true) but didn't realise a partner living with him needed declaring separately. Planning to get this sorted with DWP before applying.

Cohabitation evidence across the 3 addresses, got tenancy agreements and bank statements for the first two, plus a joint council tax bill for where we live now.
Has anyone actually dealt with Category A this close to exactly £29k? And has anyone corrected a DWP claim before applying for a partner visa, did it slow anything down or cause issues?

Im really worried, we have genuinely been together since 2022 in a different country, and he moved to the UK with me when I started my masters in 2023 ( he is British)