Are you thinking of applying for a visa to the UK? Are you procrastinating? Are you worried it may be refused? If you are considering family or work-related immigration–do not delay the application beyond this year. Immigration fees will increase in January 2024 and now is a good time to apply and make your dream come true.
Here are some tips from Immigration solicitors to ensure your application is successful.
Kadmos Immigration Consultants always warned applicants against applying for a visa without checking the underlying requirements. It is certainly rash to pay thousands of pounds before getting a reliable assurance that your visa application will not flop.
There are three reasons an immigration application can be refused:
The first is if you made the application but did not meet the requirements for the visa. Common examples may be not meeting a financial requirement, or not taking the prescribed English language test. Sometimes, such shortfalls may be fixed in a short span of time, sometimes not–but find out what exactly is required before you pay the application fee.’
The second common reason for getting an immigration refusal is failure to provide the required evidence. Imagine meeting the English language requirement but not providing the right form of transcript of your degree taught in English or a confirmation from Ecctis that the degree is recognized in the UK! It is perhaps even more infuriating and frustrating to get a refusal when you meet the requirements but simply made an error in submitting your documents. Unfortunately, the money you paid for the visa are not refundable even if it was a simple error of not sending the right papers.
Yet, the third, unfortunately not so uncommon, reason for refusal, is certainly the most annoying of all. This is where a mistake is made by the immigration authorities through no obvious fault of your own. Imagine you meet the requirements and have submitted all the right documents, but the Home Office has read them upside down! You may be furious over a decision letter which clearly mixes up the facts, but the bottom line remains the same–it is always the applicant who bears the brunt of the refusal because it is your life that is put on hold while the visa application is being processed.
So here are the steps that will guard you against these misfortunes:
First, get a consultation to check what type of visa suits your circumstances and what the requirements are. Once you know where you stand, it will be much easier to get prepared. Second, find out what documents are required to support the application as applies in your circumstances.
This may depend on the employment status of your sponsor if you are applying for a family visa, or on the specific job description if you are applying for a work visa. It is certainly a good investment to check if your certificate of sponsorship is valid and no surprises await you when you arrive in the UK. This may take a second consultation with your solicitor but it will be money well spent.
You might think the least of the third reason for refusal–is it at all possible to prevent an immigration authority from making a mistake? This is, of course, true to some extent, but not as much as you might think.
First, ensure that when you upload the documents on the government portal, you don’t upload them upside down–there is a better chance they will be read correctly if they are uploaded in a presentable format.
Second, try to explain how the documents should be read. Write a cover letter explaining what documents have been submitted, what they show, and how they support your application. It is also recommended that you take screenshots of the documents uploaded on the government portal so that if there is a dispute as to whether the documents were ever submitted or received, you can prove your case.
If you can afford to have legal representation, all these steps will be taken for you, and you will not need to worry about the outcome of your application.
If you are preparing the application yourself, make sure that you invested in legal advice–it will protect you against disappointment and financial loss–UK visa applications are seriously expensive.
But by following legal guidance you will maximise your chances of success. And how sweet it is when sweet dreams come true!
