Delayed visa application decisions are quite common. A lot of people who apply for UK visas and British citizenship encounter delays in hearing back from the Home Office. These delays can happen for a number of reasons, and the uncertainty of whether the application will be accepted is likely to lead to anxiety and stress. Additionally, it might break off plans for both personal and business plans, causing families to be separated longer than expected.

The Home Office's severe workload at the time and staff shortages could be the cause of the delayed decisions, or they could be the result of outside events like the war in Ukraine. However, shortcomings in the applications that were submitted are frequently the cause of the delays. Incomplete applications are a frequent reason for the Home Office's longer processing time and refusal of applications. For example, when applicants fail to include specific information or documents in their application for a visa, or when they fail to fail to disclose their past immigration or criminal history in their visa application.

What are the UK visa processing times?

Home office visa processing times vary depending on factors such as the type of application and whether it is submitted from inside or outside the UK (i.e. leave to remain versus entry clearance).

In general, when applying for a visa from within the UK, the standard processing time for most visa categories is up to 8 weeks, counting from the time you register your biometric information. Some applications, such as British National Overseas (BNO), take 12 weeks to process.

Overseas applications are slightly different. The standard processing time for most overseas entry clearance applications is approximately 3 weeks. Some visa categories that are more complex in nature, such as spouse and family visas, have longer processing times of up to 12 weeks. For example, some visa categories, such as the Innovator visa, have a standard processing time of three weeks as set by the Home Office. However, in reality, some Innovator visas tend to take much longer to process, even months.

Both in-country and out-of-country applications have expedited processing options offered by the Home Office for extra fees. There are 5 working days (for an extra £500 fee) or 1 working day (for an extra £1000 fee: inside the UK only) processing option.

However, even if you pay for expedited processing, it does not guarantee that the visa application processing time is not guaranteed within the announced period, and it may take more time.

Why are UK Visa applications delayed?

Delays in processing your visa application can sometimes be the fault of the Home Office. However, in most cases, the problem is related to the applicant and the information and documents submitted in connection with the application. In general, there are many cases where information is entered incorrectly in the application form or crucial evidence is lacking.

Here's a summary of the reasons why your UK visa application may be delayed:

• The Home Office is processing a higher quantity of applications than usual
• The Home Office may wish to conduct an interview
• The wrong form or application submitted
• The Home Office needs further information
• The Home Office needs to conduct checks with other government departments regarding your application
• Applicant omitted information in the application
• Lack of evidence or required documents
• The applicant has not responded to Home Office communication
• The applicant has changed contact details without informing the Home Office

Sometimes it may be the fault of the Home Office. However, in most cases, the problem is related to the applicant and the quality of their application. Usually, there was a mistake made in the application or crucial evidence was lacking.

The Home Office may contact applicants if the application was not completed properly or if the applicant intentionally or accidentally omitted important information on the application. In this case, HO usually sends a letter or email with the standard phrase “your application has not been straightforward” in the message. It is a standard message indicating that there is a problem with the application. Reasons for problems may vary but it usually means that the application will be delayed.

There are many situations where the Home Office requests additional evidence after an applicant has submitted their application. These requests will result in delays in visa processing times. Additionally, applicants often do not monitor their emails and do not respond to requests or communications from the Home Office. Sometimes requested documents are sent to the wrong email address rather than the one requested by the Home Office. All that can result in a visa application being refused or the least delayed.

What to do when the visa application is delayed

Irrespective of the reason for the delayed decision, waiting beyond the standard visa processing time can be stressful. There are steps you can take when the decision on your visa application or British citizenship application is delayed.

• First, you should be checking for the communication from the Home Office. It never hurts to sift through all the emails from the Home Office and make sure nothing has been overlooked.
• Next, you should check the Home Office processing time guidance to see if your application is exceeding it.
• Contact the Home Office for clarifications or updates on the application. When contacting the Home Office you should have your case reference number at hand. Contact details for the Home Office are available here. You can either email or call them or both. You may need to pay a small fee.
• Contact local Member of Parliament (MP), so they can escalate the delay to the Home Office.
• Finally, if the above has not worked and the decision is still not made by the Home Office, you may decide to raise a formal complaint about the UK Visas and Immigration.
• Complain to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. The PHSO deals with complaints from members of the public who claim they have suffered injustice due to maladministration by a government department or agency.
• The absolute last resort is the Judicial Review, which is a court procedure to make the Home Office act and issue a decision. This is a costly process and you need to consider it carefully and seek legal advice before you decide to take it. Before starting the Judicial Review process a Letter before a Claim must be first sent.

The Home Office's guidance clearly states that delays in review are generally not classed as administrative errors if they can arise administratively. “In cases where there is a delay in screening, i.e. a backlog in administrative processing, caused by the operational constraints and limited resources of the Immigration Service or the Border Guard, the Immigration Service or the Home Office does not classify it as maladministration.”

Complaints seeking financial compensation can be made to the Council and the Health Services Consumer Protection Organization (PHSO). The Home Office provides for compensation payments where “the customer has suffered actual financial loss or non-financial loss sufficiently compelling to warrant financial compensation”. In other words, the UK Immigration Office pays compensation to applicants when it is “compensation for poor administration.”

Will the Home Office Compensate Me for the Delay in Deciding My Application?

The Home Office's guidance clearly states that delays are generally not classed as maladministration. “Delays that have occurred due to operational constraints and limited resources, i.e. where a backlog of cases have occurred, are not classed as maladministration by Immigration Enforcement, Border Force or UK Visas & Immigration directorates.”

Complaints seeking financial compensation can be made to the Council and the Health Services Consumer Protection Organization (PHSO). The Home Office sometimes makes ex-gratia payments where “the customer has suffered actual financial loss or non-financial loss that is sufficiently compelling to warrant financial redress.” UKVI only makes ex-gratia payments to customers “as a redress for maladministration.”

Maladministration is “lack of care, judgement or honesty in the management of something”.  For example, if the UK Home Office takes the wrong action, such as losing, damaging, or invalidating a submitted document.

Home Office guidance also states that financial compensation is only available in “exceptional circumstances” where people have been financially affected by delays. For example, if an applicant makes repeated requests to return a passport and the UK Home Office fails to take action, leading to financial loss, or a decision being made on an application and failing to serve that decision which then leads to financial losses, such as loss of access to benefits or being unable to take up a proven offer of employment or employment being terminated. Whether a delay should be considered “reasonable” will be dependent on the circumstances and decision-makers will take a case-by-case approach.

If you ask the court for judicial review, the court may award damages if the Home Office was negligent in exercising its duty of care and caused the appellant's loss. For example, there may be a delay of several years in receiving the BRP, or there may be cases where the visa application was rejected due to failure to properly notify the applicant of biometric information registration and the applicant had to reapply again. Any financial remedy, though, will only be compensatory in nature, and there's no assurance that the expense of legal representation will be covered.

For expert advice and assistance in relation to a UK visa application or immigration appeal, contact our immigration team on 0203 865 6219 or leave a message.