Are you facing a delay in your visa for the UK? Here’s the reason.

Were you planning to go on a long vacation or to start your studies abroad, but now you are stuck waiting for your visa to arrive? If yes, then let me tell you that you are not alone. The delay in visas has halted the plans of thousands of people from all over the world who are waiting for their visas to arrive with bated breath. Indians are experiencing a huge backlog in visas for the UK, US, and European countries.

Responding to this backlog in visas for Indians, the British High Commissioner in India said, “ We are working urgently to reduce the current processing time as quickly as possible.” He further added, “Indian students make up one of the UK’s largest groups of international students and Indian professionals are the top nationality in the skilled work category.  This is why the UK has its largest network of visa application centers globally right here in India and why we are continuing to offer the Priority and Super Priority visit visa service here – despite it being paused elsewhere”.

Reasons for Delay in Visa.

According to many reports, this delay in visas is caused by many factors, including a shortage of work staff due to the pandemic, a huge demand for tourist visas, and strict procedures for issuing visas.

What can Indians do in this situation?

It is advised to all the Indians who are planning to go abroad to start applying for the visas as early as possible. The visa application process is currently taking around 5 weeks. 

According to the UK Visa and Immigration official website, travellers can also apply for priority and super-priority services. For priority services, travellers can choose “priority services” during the application process while verifying their identity. The decision on the visa will be made in 5 working days. 

For super-priority services, the decision on a visa is made within a day after identity verification. However, this quick service is only available for the Standard Visitor visa, which only allows holders to enter the UK for up to six months for travel, business, or academic purposes.