**** COVID19 Biometrics appointments and UKVCAS ***** (Discuss here ONLY)

[mma_jd]

Hi, I have filled out my form and submitted everything, made the payment etc, but I am now quite frustrated to see that all the centres that are somewhat near me have absolutely zero biometric appointments for the next month. There is one place in Birmingham that has a lot of appointments though, even some for next week. Is this always the case or is it just that all these centres are closing due to COVID-19? And also, if I book for this appointment in Birmingham next week, is there a chance they might just cancel it anyway?

[CR001]

The centres are closing and many have received emails cancelling their appointments.

A member posted about an hour ago that their Birmingham appointment for Monday has been cancelled.

[mma_jd]

The centres are closing and many have received emails cancelling their appointments.

A member posted about an hour ago that their Birmingham appointment for Monday has been cancelled.

So what should I do in my case? I just submitted my online application and I would like to sort everything related to this application out as soon as possible so I can stop stressing about it. Is the only option now to wait until the government gives us applicants some specific guidance?

[CR001]

You can book an appointment, but the liklihood of it being cancelled is quite real. You will then need to either rebook or cancel and wait till later.

[mma_jd]

You can book an appointment, but the liklihood of it being cancelled is quite real. You will then need to either rebook or cancel and wait till later.

Ok, thanks. I do want to book it and at least have a possibility of doing it as soon as possible. However, with the quarantine restrictions in place right now and people only being able to leave their house for very specific reasons, I do feel like going to this appointment might be against the official quarantine rules the government has set out?

[Rbgotpwr]

[quote=CR001 post_id=<a href="tel:1890860">1890860</a> time=<a href="tel:1585240216">1585240216</a> user_id=70994]
You can book an appointment, but the liklihood of it being cancelled is quite real. You will then need to either rebook or cancel and wait till later.

Ok, thanks. I do want to book it and at least have a possibility of doing it as soon as possible. However, with the quarantine restrictions in place right now and people only being able to leave their house for very specific reasons, I do feel like going to this appointment might be against the official quarantine rules the government has set out?
[/quote]

Your appointment will be cancelled. No appointments are running now until further notice. Maybe in a couple of weeks depending on how the situation progresses with covid-19 and/or precautions they decide to put in place in order to reopen appointments safely.

[underfire222]

If this is the case , then why did UKVCAS advice me to cancel my appointment on 26/3 and rebook and pay for another appointment.

I asked them over the phone on 25/3 and they said they have not received any specific instructions from the home office to close all centers and advise me to rebook.

I book another appointment on 8/4 but I think will be canceled again! It’s just really frustrating that UKVCAS seem to give you confusing and contradictory information.

[Hwima]

Your appointment will be cancelled. No appointments are running now until further notice. Maybe in a couple of weeks depending on how the situation progresses with covid-19 and/or precautions they decide to put in place in order to reopen appointments safely.

I have an appointment scheduled for Monday the 30th and am keen to get the submissions out of the way. However, I have seen an update on the UKVI website advising all appointments at UKVCAS are suspended. I have not been formally notified by Sopra Steria themselves and do fear I will not be reimbursed or allowed to reschedule if I miss the Monday morning should they be open. Anyone else in this position?

[mma_jd]

So I'm wondering, given the circumstances and that we can't even finish our applications now since the application hasn't been completed until you've scanned your documents and done your biometrics, will it be possible to get a refund for the citizenship fee? I'm very annoyed that I just payed £1,300 just to be told the service I must use to complete the application is suspended indefinitely.

[sharry_cherry]

if it is a free appointment it is most likely to cancel an appointment. on 26th March, I uploaded documents and paid £135 for next day biometric and it's done. I guess they have few dates in the first week of April in Mark lane London, but they are charging from £185 - £200 only for a time. No document scanning or other facility are included.

[zimba]

All appointments are now cancelled and will have to be rescheduled

[DianaK91]

The centres are closing and many have received emails cancelling their appointments.

A member posted about an hour ago that their Birmingham appointment for Monday has been cancelled.

Dear Sir

I need your advise, my husband and I applied for Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK in accordance with the Home Office guidance and requirments (28 days before the 5 year term living in UK). It was yesterday, 1April 2020.We saw a message on gov.uk website that appointment locations are temporarily closed, but we still should complete our application and further actions as usual and that application will not be affected by centres closing.

After we completed application online and paid the amount outlined for standard service £4816.40 for both of us, further mandatory action was to book an appointment to collect biometrics and scan documents in support of the application. However, due to the COVID 19 all centres are closed and we cannot book an appointment for biometrics.

This is a mandatory action and it is said that we must do this by 3 June 2020, I really worry that with the coronavirus we might not be able to meet the deadline.

I understand that we need to monitor the website, but I know that if you do not complete mandatory action it can affect application-it may not be successful.

Please explain if our application fee and application itself will be affected, if we paid but at this stage are not able to book an appointment for biometrics by 3 June?

We are very stressed and confused, as the website COVID-19 message was saying that you can proceed to further actions and you application will not be affected. It is a lot of money and moreover, the ILR status.

[zimba]

Create your UKVCAS account for now. You can schedule appointment later.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE read official announcements made by UKVI and UKVCAS

Don’t worry if you can’t book an appointment or your appointment has had to be rescheduled. UKVCAS are making the Home Office (UKVI) aware of all affected customers for records to be updated.

https://www.ukvcas.co.uk/flash-message- ... sageId=950

[DianaK91]

Create your UKVCAS account for now. You can schedule appointment later.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE read official announcements made by UKVI and UKVCAS

Don’t worry if you can’t book an appointment or your appointment has had to be rescheduled. UKVCAS are making the Home Office (UKVI) aware of all affected customers for records to be updated.

https://www.ukvcas.co.uk/flash-message- ... sageId=950

thank you for this, highly appreciated.
the only thing which was confusing is that there was still a deadline date for the biometrics submission, I believe this is the reason why lots of people are getting confused or scared...

[otuel]

Hi,
Does anyone can log in to ukvcas website? "Log in" button seems to be disabled (the same with "Set up account" button).

Thanks.

[xkcdcode]

I tried it just now and WAS able to login just fine. No appointments available though.

[otuel]

I have tried 4 different Internet browsers, two computers and there is no action when I click on the button.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

[otuel]

Problem solved! Issue was related to the browser cookies.

Thanks.

[fbaig76]

Hi, i have applied for citizenship online and paid fees but can't get biometric appointments as all centres are now closed. I can't even upload documents.

Looks like centres may not open in coming weeks.

I did my biometrics last year at the time of ILR application, as well as all original documents were sent.

can't HO pull my biometric from previous records?

can't HO verify my documents as they have already seen last year?

Any idea what can we expect in coming days?

Thanks

[CR001]

Hi, i have applied for citizenship online and paid fees but can't get biometric appointments as all centres are now closed. I can't even upload documents.

Looks like centres may not open in coming weeks.

I did my biometrics last year at the time of ILR application, as well as all original documents were sent.

can't HO pull my biometric from previous records?

can't HO verify my documents as they have already seen last year?

Any idea what can we expect in coming days?

Thanks

No they can't. Each application you make require biomterics, regardless of how recent you enrolled biometrics for another application.

The whole purpose of the ukcvas appointment is to verify your identity, enroll your biometrics and for ukcvas staff to send your file to HO electronically.

Nothing you can do until the ukcvas centres reopen.

[fbaig76]

In this case there is no point of submitting online applications? if the procedure is not completed then application may not move forward as well?

Center may not open for another 1-2 months, and application may just be in pending status?

[zimba]

In this case there is no point of submitting online applications? if the procedure is not completed then application may not move forward as well?

Center may not open for another 1-2 months, and application may just be in pending status?

You MUST submit your application as NORMAL online. It will only be processed however after you enrol your Biometrics when it is sent to UKVI digitally for processing. You will NOT get any response UNLESS your application is sent to UKVI. For now, everyone must apply online and wait until the UKVCAS centers are open

[obormot]

I do not see much of possible benefits if you apply now.
The day of application is the day you submit online and pay, so
1) If you plan to travel after, those days will not be counted among 450/90 absences days (this might be not so important, given that very few people will be going abroad for now)
2) HO seems to indicate they will process applications in the order received (more or less..), so that way you are ahead in the queue once biometrics centres re-open
(however, they cannot look at the applications before they get biometrics and uploaded documents, so it seems that to get ahead in the queue it will be more important to get an early appointment once biometric centres reopen)
3) If you had some travel 5 years ago in April-May-June, it can help you with being in UK the day 5 years before application day rule
Anything else?

[alishinto]

Apologies in advance if this is a stupid question, but when you apply and send your documents (passport, birth certificate etc) to UK, how can you also bring your passport with you when you go for biometrics?

[zimba]

Apologies in advance if this is a stupid question, but when you apply and send your documents (passport, birth certificate etc) to UK, how can you also bring your passport with you when you go for biometrics?

This is a post for people who apply within the UK given that their application will be handled by UKVCAS. No document is sent anywhere (everything is scanned) Everyone must attend an appointment for biometrics and their documents will be scanned if necessary.