Check the status of your application online - New service

[RobinCzWa]

I'm suspending this research as JUSTMEHERE was the only person who asked me to continue and his/her status have just changed to decided.

swintooh, sorry to hear about suspending your research, I'm sure that I'm not only 1 person who read your statistics as some very helpfully in our situation.
Anyway, thanks for your good job made for us.

[swintooh]

I'm suspending this research as JUSTMEHERE was the only person who asked me to continue and his/her status have just changed to decided.

swintooh, sorry to hear about suspending your research, I'm sure that I'm not only 1 person who read your statistics as some very helpfully in our situation.
Anyway, thanks for your good job made for us.

Robin, not to worry, I can continue to track that 22331500 to 22331999 batch daily as long as a forum member's case is in that somewhere as "awaiting decision". Otherwise I can occassionally track progress by weekly posts. I got a job that I'm starting soon so amount of free time I have on my hands will be greatly reduced.

However for everyone that is finding the wait unbearable, I strongly recommend doing that tracking themselves around their reference numbers (I recommend tracking 200 cases - 100 up and 100 down at minimum, 500 being the optimum). At least it should put your mind at ease when you find how many others are also still awaiting and whether Home Office are progressing cases that have been registered at about the same time as yours.

[swintooh]

I applied 19/10 and my Case ID is not recognised, but on acknowledge letter in top right corner (below HO adress) I get "Our Ref" number - it looks like Z112xxxx. If I take off first letter and put only these 7 numbers left then system recognise me and show that my status is Awaiting a decision.
I'm not 100% sure is it correct way, but it works (hope so that in this situation it shows my status, not some other person)

That's not the right reference. It's probably just the letter reference, unless the reference system changed from what it was in June 2017.

When you get your biometric request letter the body of the letter states:

Case Reference Number: 012345678
Regarding Applicant: Full name Country of Birth Date of Birth

Ignore the other "Our Ref" number...

That 012345678 is the number you enter in the online checker. Try full number or one without the leading zero - 12345678.

[aimu123]

Yesterday i received reply from home office saying

"Your application is currently awaiting allocation to a caseworker for consideration"

It's means still on process or they going take decision, can anyone help me thanks.

[Raff113]

My wife (non EU-Japanese Citizen) applied along with our 3 children in mid June, biometrics submitted in the first week of July. There was an issue with one on my girl's date of birth on biometrics letter and it took us over a month to get it sorted. Yesterday around lunch time her online status changed to decided. The whole process took just over 5 months.
Still quite long though, when I applied last year the whole thing took only 5 weeks from submitting biometrics to the ceremony. But again, perhaps the delay with the biometrics is to blame.

[mrgs1]

Yesterday i received reply from home office saying

"Your application is currently awaiting allocation to a caseworker for consideration"

It's means still on process or they going take decision, can anyone help me thanks.

It means what it says, your application will be handed to a caseworker when they become available, and they will make a decision with all the facts/ checks presented to them.

[haris_zam]

Range 22331500 to 22331999 - applications made around 9-Jun-2017, acknowledged around 19-Jun-2017.

1 application status have changed from "awaiting decision" to "decided" over 1 working day.

211/281 are decided (75.1%)
69/281 are awaiting decision (24.5%)
1/281 is open (0.4%)

4 application status have changed from "awaiting decision" to "decided" over 1 working day.

215/281 are decided (76.5%)
65/281 are awaiting decision (23.1%)
1/281 is open (0.4%)

1 application status have changed from "awaiting decision" to "decided" over 1 working day.

216/281 are decided (76.9%)
64/281 are awaiting decision (22.7%)
1/281 is open (0.4%)

I'm suspending this research as JUSTMEHERE was the only person who asked me to continue and his/her status have just changed to decided.

Hi mate i am silently following all the updates and I can appretiate the time and effort you put in to keep us informed.
since your search range is starting 223.. for which you mentioned that this was between June application. I applied on 19th July and my case number starts 225. so roughly 200k applications within a month or so but that includes applications from all categories and not just citizenship I suppose.

Moreover, I have emailed ukvi and they have replied to me as such
' your application is in the queue and is awating to be allocated to a case worker, you will hear from us soon '
Been four months and they haven't even allocated my application to someone yet!!! that is strange considering people have got decisions and applied way later than me . I know july application has been delayed massively and even some june are still awaiting and a fraction from May .

[RobinCzWa]

That's not the right reference. It's probably just the letter reference, unless the reference system changed from what it was in June 2017.

When you get your biometric request letter the body of the letter states:

Case Reference Number: 012345678
Regarding Applicant: Full name Country of Birth Date of Birth

Ignore the other "Our Ref" number...

That 012345678 is the number you enter in the online checker. Try full number or one without the leading zero - 12345678.

I know what is official version, and my Case number what I get by email and biometric letter doesn't work (is not recognised). It's 229069xx
I checked 200 numbers between 22906800 - 22907001:
181/200 - 90,5 % is not recognised (included my one)
19/200 - 9,5% is Decided
0/200 - 0% is Awaiting a Decision
0/200 - 0% is Open
In my opinion looks a bit strange - 100% recognised is Decided, and any other status, that's why I'm trying to use different number.

I checked 500 numbers from "Our ref" between 1120800-1121300:

477/500 - 95,4% is not recognised
5/500 - 1% is Decided
18/500 - 3,6% is Awaiting a Decision (included my one)
0/500 - 0% is Open

[HarryC]

Hi guys

My British citizenship application is now decided. I cant tell when the status changed because the date is no longer showing on the status site.
It went off long ago.
However its now decided. I didnt know when the application status changed to decided. So i called homeoffice and asked them about a date as i need to understand when my 10 days be over for approval letter. They told me it was decided on 7th November but i am yet to receive the letter. Has anyone else been in the same situation. My 10 working days will end on 21st November but its getting a bit frustrating.
Thanks

[Ciaocico]

Hi any on help I can’t see onlain I tray many taime ID cas with out 0 is not Iaplay 6/11/2017 biometric 17/11/2017 thanks

[swintooh]

Hi guys

My British citizenship application is now decided. I cant tell when the status changed because the date is no longer showing on the status site.
It went off long ago.
However its now decided. I didnt know when the application status changed to decided. So i called homeoffice and asked them about a date as i need to understand when my 10 days be over for approval letter. They told me it was decided on 7th November but i am yet to receive the letter. Has anyone else been in the same situation. My 10 working days will end on 21st November but its getting a bit frustrating.
Thanks

Yes, you are not the only one waiting for the letter (after status change to decided).

[aimu123]

Yesterday i received reply from home office saying

"Your application is currently awaiting allocation to a caseworker for consideration"

It's means still on process or they going take decision, can anyone help me thanks.

It means what it says, your application will be handed to a caseworker when they become available, and they will make a decision with all the facts/ checks presented to them.

Thanks for your kind response

[HarryC]

Hi guys

My British citizenship application is now decided. I cant tell when the status changed because the date is no longer showing on the status site.
It went off long ago.
However its now decided. I didnt know when the application status changed to decided. So i called homeoffice and asked them about a date as i need to understand when my 10 days be over for approval letter. They told me it was decided on 7th November but i am yet to receive the letter. Has anyone else been in the same situation. My 10 working days will end on 21st November but its getting a bit frustrating.
Thanks

Yes, you are not the only one waiting for the letter (after status change to decided).

Thanks for the response. Its a shame that they ask us to pay such high fees and yet they can’t send it via first class postage.

[mrgs1]

Hi guys

My British citizenship application is now decided. I cant tell when the status changed because the date is no longer showing on the status site.
It went off long ago.
However its now decided. I didnt know when the application status changed to decided. So i called homeoffice and asked them about a date as i need to understand when my 10 days be over for approval letter. They told me it was decided on 7th November but i am yet to receive the letter. Has anyone else been in the same situation. My 10 working days will end on 21st November but its getting a bit frustrating.
Thanks

Yes, you are not the only one waiting for the letter (after status change to decided).

How they deal with each applications conclusion seems to be different. Some caseworkers must upload the status updates quicker than others and request the printed letter quicker, perhaps there's a backlog in the issue of decision letters, some people get letter before status is updated and some get status updated before letter and a delay, this is a human process so it won't be perfect.

[swintooh]

How they deal with each applications conclusion seems to be different. Some caseworkers must upload the status updates quicker than others and request the printed letter quicker, perhaps there's a backlog in the issue of decision letters, some people get letter before status is updated and some get status updated before letter and a delay, this is a human process so it won't be perfect.

And here lies the problem. It can be made very good if not perfect - it is just a process meaning a set of defined tasks with known outcomes done in certain order.

What current mess is showing us is that Home Office cannot even plan and put a fairly simple process in place and than manage it appropriately. Crappy online checker, lack of consistency, processing applications not in date order, shockingly poor responses to enquiries and complete lack of transparency are there just to hide the incompetence of that institution.

By the way, I don't blame the poor and likely overworked case workers, but the Prime Minister Theresa May, Home Office Secretary Amber Rudd (plus their predecessors) and whoever they decided to put in charge of the caseworker team.

If anyone from Home Office would like to challenge my viewpoint, prove me wrong by getting industry standards about quality management and ISO9000 and ISO20000 certification where the nationality team and what they do is in scope.

[MAS99]

I just checked all the applications from 224xxxxx to 224xxxxx ( 60 Applications) ..

22 are decided, 27 Not recognised and 18 are Awaiting decision.This also included my application which was on 1st July.

I also checked some application from 224xxxxx-400 randomly. Most are not recognised but there are some awaiting decision..

Not sure what to learn from all this but seems that most case are decided and we few are left for some reason..

[MAS99]

I also notice from Timeline topic that most cases that people re reporting are from May and June 17 . But on the same time, Aug and Sep-17 cases are also reported as decided .

SO I am not sure why July cases are taking that much time..This frustration will literally eat me. I mean if they can give us some real update, I am happy with that. They can take as much time as they want but just let us know that they are doing xxxxx now and it will take some more time

Fact that we don't know what is happening with our applications and you can't ask questions before 6 months, is just complete torture..

[mrgs1]

How they deal with each applications conclusion seems to be different. Some caseworkers must upload the status updates quicker than others and request the printed letter quicker, perhaps there's a backlog in the issue of decision letters, some people get letter before status is updated and some get status updated before letter and a delay, this is a human process so it won't be perfect.

The online checker is Beta, it may be improved or even withdrawn its an experiment, we are all in this trial. Perhaps they should return to just receiving a letter when it's decided?

And here lies the problem. It can be made very good if not perfect - it is just a process meaning a set of defined tasks with known outcomes done in certain order.

What current mess is showing us is that Home Office cannot even plan and put a fairly simple process in place and than manage it appropriately. Crappy online checker, lack of consistency, processing applications not in date order, shockingly poor responses to enquiries and complete lack of transparency are there just to hide the incompetence of that institution.

By the way, I don't blame the poor and likely overworked case workers, but the Prime Minister Theresa May, Home Office Secretary Amber Rudd (plus their predecessors) and whoever they decided to put in charge of the caseworker team.

If anyone from Home Office would like to challenge my viewpoint, prove me wrong by getting industry standards about quality management and ISO9000 and ISO20000 certification where the nationality team and what they do is in scope.

[secret.simon]

lack of consistency

Something that is bound to occur when the input (the applications and documentation) itself is inconsistent. One application may be that of a non-EEA applicant who has been salaried and goes through smoothly, another may be that of a non-EEA citizen married to a British citizen, but who has had issues in the past with working when he did not have the right to do so, yet another is that of the dependent adult child of an EEA citizen who has only acquired PR. If the cases are varied, one can hardly require consistency in their time-scales.

If anyone from Home Office would like to challenge my viewpoint, prove me wrong by getting industry standards about quality management and ISO9000 and ISO20000 certification where the nationality team and what they do is in scope.

I would be very cautious about asking for this. I have worked in a few organisations which are ISO certified for processes (don't ask me which ISO certification) and the one thing that it did do was make the processes in the organisation tickbox exercises. If the user met all specific requirements, pass, else fail.

That approach is fine in the EEA Route, indeed that is how it works in the main. But the citizenship process (and non-EEA immigration) has many aspects where appropriate discretion can and ought to be exercised by the caseworkers. Getting them ISO certified may speed up the process, but it will almost certainly lead to a tick-box approach which will cause more applications to fail.

I would rather a slower approach that analyses individual cases in detail, than a quicker system that is more error-prone and/or more demanding and exacting.

They can take as much time as they want but just let us know that they are doing xxxxx now and it will take some more time

That of course may just slow the system down further if they have to keep updating the public facing system as well.

Besides, assume that they have requested for data from the HMRC and ACPO and they are waiting for that. Would it improve your mood any knowing that your case is stuck waiting for other government departments to respond? What if it kicks off a chain (HMRC data shows inconsistencies that requires contacting DWP and Companies House)?

There are so many variables and imponderables in the naturalisation process that expecting consistency is, in my option, foolish.

For the record, I do not work for the Home Office.

As an aside, MAS99, delighted to see that you have decided to continue to help out on these forums.

[mrgs1]

I also notice from Timeline topic that most cases that people re reporting are from May and June 17 . But on the same time, Aug and Sep-17 cases are also reported as decided .

SO I am not sure why July cases are taking that much time..This frustration will literally eat me. I mean if they can give us some real update, I am happy with that. They can take as much time as they want but just let us know that they are doing xxxxx now and it will take some more time

Fact that we don't know what is happening with our applications and you can't ask questions before 6 months, is just complete torture..

Quite a few probably the majority of July cases who posted have been decided online or have received letters. It's only been four months for some.

[bruteforce]

I have today received a registration certificate of my daughter (MN1), however, there is by mistake, a first page of notification of approval for case ref 226xxxxx (I am not revealing any personal details). Just in case, if the person with case id 226xxxxx (for naturalization) is on the forum then I would suggest him to contact HO. I will send the letter back to HO on Monday.

[swintooh]

lack of consistency

Something that is bound to occur when the input (the applications and documentation) itself is inconsistent. One application may be that of a non-EEA applicant who has been salaried and goes through smoothly, another may be that of a non-EEA citizen married to a British citizen, but who has had issues in the past with working when he did not have the right to do so, yet another is that of the dependent adult child of an EEA citizen who has only acquired PR. If the cases are varied, one can hardly require consistency in their time-scales.

If anyone from Home Office would like to challenge my viewpoint, prove me wrong by getting industry standards about quality management and ISO9000 and ISO20000 certification where the nationality team and what they do is in scope.

I would be very cautious about asking for this. I have worked in a few organisations which are ISO certified for processes (don't ask me which ISO certification) and the one thing that it did do was make the processes in the organisation tickbox exercises. If the user met all specific requirements, pass, else fail.

That approach is fine in the EEA Route, indeed that is how it works in the main. But the citizenship process (and non-EEA immigration) has many aspects where appropriate discretion can and ought to be exercised by the caseworkers. Getting them ISO certified may speed up the process, but it will almost certainly lead to a tick-box approach which will cause more applications to fail.

I would rather a slower approach that analyses individual cases in detail, than a quicker system that is more error-prone and/or more demanding and exacting.

They can take as much time as they want but just let us know that they are doing xxxxx now and it will take some more time

That of course may just slow the system down further if they have to keep updating the public facing system as well.

Besides, assume that they have requested for data from the HMRC and ACPO and they are waiting for that. Would it improve your mood any knowing that your case is stuck waiting for other government departments to respond? What if it kicks off a chain (HMRC data shows inconsistencies that requires contacting DWP and Companies House)?

There are so many variables and imponderables in the naturalisation process that expecting consistency is, in my option, foolish.

For the record, I do not work for the Home Office.

As an aside, MAS99, delighted to see that you have decided to continue to help out on these forums.

Sorry Simon, I don't agree with your explanation as it sounds like nothing more than excuses for HO incompetence. The naturalisation process and associated checks is relatively simple. I do process design and optimisation for living, believe you me what is being done here is simple.
This process is repeated tens of thousands times per month!
And a couple of additional points: the input is fairly consistent, there is probably about 30-50 main variations of applicants, out of which 80% of cases fall into main 10 variations. And the output is really just 2 variations.
When you describe the process as tickbox excercises you clearly don't understand what process design, optimisation or management is.
What you partially described is automatic decision making - this can, but does not have to be part of the process. I.e. if the particular application is a straight case, where all checks "check out" with positive outcome - the "approved" decision could be made by the computer in a split second without any human interaction. Loads of checks can be done in an automatic way - like checking the residency (council tax, border agency), work history and tax contributions (HMRC), CCJ/criminal history, etc.
I'm just gobsmacked something more complex like government security clearance (SC level) can take about 2-4 weeks, while less complex checks (naturalisation/registration) take about 5 months...

[SAM143]

Hi!
i just applied for my naturalization beginning of this month and have done my biomatric 1st week of this moth but case ID still not traceable on GOV web page.
please could someone let me know why this is not recognized or face same situation.
thanks in advance

[RobinCzWa]

Hi!
i just applied for my naturalization beginning of this month and have done my biomatric 1st week of this moth but case ID still not traceable on GOV web page.
please could someone let me know why this is not recognized or face same situation.
thanks in advance

I apllied at 19 October and my Case Id still is not recognised. I checked 600 Id arround my number - 100 over and 500 below - results are really strange for me.
100% recognised numbers are Decided, any Awaiting a Decision or Open.

[Ciaocico]

I am the saim !!!