Visa might be late - What do I do?
I applied for a UK Visa on the 4th of May (because someone I know and trust very much insisted that I take the help of a travel agent), and was told that it would be within 15 working days (which is 15 days excluding the weekends) that I would recieve my passport with the Visa stamped. Coincidentally enough, the date of my departure is the 24th of May (7:00 a.m. IST), which is exactly 15 working days after the date of application. My worry is, if I were to get my Visa on the 24th, would I still be able to board my plane?
Best Answer
My worry is, if I were to get my Visa on the 24th, would I still be able to board my plane?
Yes theoretically, as long as you have your passport with a valid visa at the time of check-in it does not matter when you received that visa. All that matters is that your visa should be valid on the date you fly in and on the date you fly out of the UK.
the date of my departure is the 24th of May (7:00 a.m. IST)
No in this specific case. For a 7 AM departure, you will have to reach there at least by 6 AM, and by 6 AM you won't be able to receive your passport either via mail or via the visa centre. You can only wait until the end of working hours on 23rd, don't count 24th.
Visa might be late
Visa might also be refused, have you planned for that?
You will probably receive a decision in less than 15 days, it can also be a refusal unfortunately. Whether you are willing to take such a risk is highly subjective. Some people will, some won't.
There are 3 possible outcomes of this siatuation
- You will get your visa in time. Enjoy your trip.
- You will get a refusal in time. Plan for this.
- You will not get any decision in time. Next time, plan ahead.
UKVI strongly advises against buying a ticket before you get your visa.
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What happens if your visa is late?
In the event of an undue processing delay, and as a last resort, one can request an Order of Mandamus from Federal Court to compel the IRCC to decide the case. Before doing so though, the applicant must exhaust all other options of following up with IRCC after the expected processing time has passed.Why my visa is getting late?
Delays are usually caused by additional security and background clearances due to your citizenship, ties to specific countries, or field of study. These additional clearance checks may take several weeks to several months to process. There is no way to circumvent or expedite this process.Why my UK visa is getting late?
Administrative Workload. The UK visa processing delay due to seasonal factors such as a more than estimated visa applications. For instance, from March 2022, applicants are experiencing delays in UK visa processing due to Ukraine Scheme.Can I stay in UK while waiting for my visa?
The waiting time ends for all applications when you get a letter or an email with a decision. You can stay in the UK until you've been given a decision, as long as you applied before your last visa expired.What To Do If Your UK Visa Application Processing Is Delayed
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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