NEW: Apply for a visa from outside the UK..

[Terpe]

https://assets.digital.cabinet-office.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/image_data/file/22703/s300_UK_visa.jpg

Changes to how you apply for a visa from outside the UK: 24 February to 2 March 2014

The commercial partner (the company you deal with when applying for a UK visa) may be changing.

Other details, like the address of the visa application centre or its opening hours, may also change. We’ll update this page regularly as changes come in.

Ukraine

From 26 February 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over the running of the visa application centre in Kyiv. Full details, including the address, are published on the Ukraine country site of GOV.UK.


Colombia

From 27 February 2014, VFS Global will manage the biometric collection service at the visa application centre in Bogota, located at:

Carrera 14 no 85-68 Office 407
Bogota
Colombia

Worldbridge will continue to handle general visa application queries until 31 March 2014.

Australia

During March 2014, VFS Global will take over the operation of the visa application service in Australia.

New UK visa application centres will open in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Canberra. The British High Commission or British Consulates will no longer provide a visa biometric enrolment service.

Further information regarding these services can be found on the GOV.UK Australia website.


Coming soon: changes to how you apply for a UK visa in Canada, Libya and Germany.

Source:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/changes-to-how-you-apply-for-a-visa-from-outside-the-uk-24-february-to-2-march-2014

[Terpe]

Australia

During March 2014, VFS Global will take over the operation of the visa application service in Australia.

New UK visa application centres will open in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Canberra. The British High Commission or British Consulates will no longer provide a visa biometric enrolment service.

Further information regarding these services can be found on the GOV.UK Australia website.

Canada

From 6 March, VFS Global will take over the operation of the biometric collection service at visa application centres in Canada.

Toronto
601, 208 Bloor Street West
Toronto ON M5S 3B4
Canada

Edmonton
Manulife Place, 10180-101 St, Suite 3400
Edmonton AB T5J 3S4
Canada

Ottawa
343 Preston Street, 11th Floor
Ottawa ON K1S 1N4
Canada

Vancouver
Vancouver Oceanic Plaza, 1066 West Hastings Street, Suite 2000
Vancouver BC V6E 3X2
Canada

Halifax
Purdy's Wharf - Tower One, 1959 Upper Water Street, 18th Floor
Halifax NS B3J 3N2
Canada

St Johns
Sheraton Hotel, Newfoundland, 115 Cavendish Square
St. John's NL A1C 3K2
Canada

Until 31 March 2014, for general queries related to visa applications, please continue to contact Worldbridge by telephone or email.

Libya
From 12 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over the running of the visa application centre in Tripoli.

Germany
From 13 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running the visa application centres in Dusseldorf, Berlin and Munich.

Coming soon: changes to how you apply for a visa in Italy, Ireland, Finland and Mongolia.

Source:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/changes-to-how-you-apply-for-a-visa-from-outside-the-uk-3-march-to-16-march-2014

[Terpe]

Australia

During March 2014, Visa Facilitation Services Global (VFS Global) will take over running visa application centres in Australia.

New UK visa application centres will open in:
•Sydney
•Melbourne
•Brisbane
•Perth
•Canberra

The British High Commission or British consulates will no longer provide a visa biometric enrolment service. Read full details about applying for a UK visa in Australia.

Biometric appointments in Melbourne

The Melbourne appointment site is down. If you want to attend a biometric apointment in Melbourne, you will need to book an appointment in Sydney. Do not attend that appointment. You can attend VFS Global’s Melbourne office (address below) at the arranged time, and you will be seen by a staff member. UKVI apologises for the inconvenience. We are making every effort to fix this problem and we will update the website as soon as we have news.

Suite 3
Level 13
55 Swanston Street
Melbourne 3000

The Melbourne office opens on 21 March, and will operate Monday to Friday, from 8.30am to 3pm.

South Africa

During March, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running visa application centres in South Africa. The centres are moving premises. Read ‘Changes to UK visa application centres in South Africa’ for more information.

India

The UK has opened two new visa application centres in Mumbai. Visa application centres in India will be moving to new locations throughout March 2014. Read ‘Changes to UK visa application centres in India in March’ for more information about these changes.

Bangladesh

Visa application centres in Bangladesh will also be moving to new locations throughout March 2014. Read ‘UK visa application centres relocating in Bangladesh’ for more information about these changes.

Fiji

From 24 March 2014, the UK visa application centre in Fiji will move to new premises and customers will be have to pay an extra fee to use the visa application service.

Read ‘Changes to UK Visa Application Centre in Fiji’ for more information.

Cambodia

From 24 March 2014, VFS Global will take over running the visa application centre in Phnom Penh. The centre will move to new premises and customers will be charged an extra application fee. Read ‘New UK Visa Application Centre and services in Cambodia’ for more information.

Papua New Guinea

From 24 March 2014, customers in Papua New Guinea will be have to pay a fee to use the visa application service from 24 March 2014.

Read ‘Changes to the UK visa application service in Papua New Guinea’ for more information.

Egypt

From 24 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running visa application centres in Egypt. On 25 March 2014, the centre in Cairo will move to:

Infinity Tower
11B El Hegaz Square
Mohandeseen

The cost of making an application in this location will not change.

On 24 March 2014 the centre in Alexandria will move to:

2 Lumumba Street
Bab Sharky

This centre will only open on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. There will also be a charge, likely to be £59, to use the visa application centre in Alexandria, on top of the visa fee. This will be charged at the point of booking the appointment.

Denmark

From 24 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running the visa application centre in Copenhagen.

Read ‘Change of visa application centre in Copenhagen’ for more information.

Netherlands

From 25 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running the visa application centre in Amsterdam. The centre will move to:

Regus Amsterdam Sloterdijk Teleport Towers
Kingsfordweg 151
1043GR Amsterdam

Read ‘Important changes to UK visa application process in the Netherlands’ for more information.

Turkey

From 24 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running the visa application centres in Turkey. The visa application centres in Turkey will move premises.

Read ‘Important information for UK visa applicants’

Lebanon (Beirut)

From 26 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running the visa application centre in Beirut. From this date the centre will move to the following address:

Building 201 - 2nd Floor
Al Maarad Street
Downtown
Beirut
Lebanon

Read ‘Changes to the UK visa application process in Lebanon’ for more information.

Sweden

From 26 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running the visa application centre in Sweden.

The centre will move to:

Regus Stockholm Solna Business Park
Svetsarvägen 15 2tr
SE - 171 41 Solna

Read ‘Visa Application Centre Moving to Solna’

Estonia

From 28 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running our visa application centre in Tallinn.

Read ‘Changes to UK Visa Application process in Estonia’ for more information.

Mongolia

On 31 March 2014, VCS Global will take over running the visa application centre in Ulaanbaatar. The centre will move to new premises and customers will be charged an extra application fee. Read ‘Changes to the UK visa service in Mongolia’ for more information.

Jordan (Amman)

From 31 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running the visa application centre in Amman and the centre will move to:

Al-Husseini Group Commercial Building (8th floor)
Zahran Street (between 7th/8th Street)
Amman
11821 Jordan

Read ‘Changes to the UK visa application process in Jordan’ for more information.

Iceland

From 31 March 2014, Teleperformance Ltd will take over running the visa application centre in Reykjavík. The centre will move from the British Embassy in Reykjavík to:

Radisson Blu Saga Hotel
Hagatorg
107 Reykjavík

The final day for appointments at the Embassy will be 24 March 2014.

Read ‘UK Visa Applications in Iceland’ for more information.

Botswana

From 31 March 2014, FedEx will take over running the visa application centre in Gaberone. The centre will move and there will be an extra application fee.

Read ‘Changes to UK Visa application process in Botswana’ for more information.

Namibia

From 27 March 2014, Teleperformance will take over running the visa application centre in Windhoek. The centre will move and there will be a charge to use it.

Read ‘Windhoek visa application centre is moving offices’ for more information.

Thailand

From 31 March 2014, the UK visa application centre in Bangkok will relocate to new premises at:

Trendy Office Building
28th Floor
Sukhumvit Road Soi 13
Klongtoey Nua
Wattana,
Bangkok
Thailand 10110

The current visa application centre will close Thursday 27 March. Customers will not have access to the visa application centre on Friday 28 March or Saturday 29 March. Read ‘UK Visa Application Centre is moving to new location’ for more information

Source:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/applying-for-a-visa-from-outside-the-uk-changes-to-visa-centres--2

[Terpe]

Visa Application Centres in South Africa.

During March, our new commercial partner for UK visa services, Teleperformance Ltd, will take over the running of our Visa Application Centres in South Africa. The Visa Application Centres will be moving to different premises as follows:

Cape Town
17 March 2014

Media Quarter Building, Corner of Somerset Road and de Smidt Street, De Waterkant, Cape Town

Durban
17 March 2014

3rd Floor, Office Tower, The Atrium Overport City, 430 Peter Mokaba Road, Durban

Port Elizabeth
17 March 2014

Ground Floor, Building 66, Fairview Office Park, Greenacres, Port Elizabeth 6045

Johannesburg
24 March 2014

3rd Floor, 24 Central, 6 Gwen Lane, Corner of Gwen and Fredman Drive, Sandton, Johannesburg

Pretoria
31 March 2014

1st Floor, Menlyn Corner, Frikkie de Beer Street, Corner of Lois Avenue and Atterbury Road, Menlyn, Pretoria

UK visa customers will continue to complete their applications and pay their visa fee online at Visa4UK before selecting an appointment at their nearest application centre. Hours of operation at the centres will be 0830-1600hrs. We are making no changes to our customer service standards as a result of this process. We will work closely with our commercial partner to ensure continuity of service during the transition period.

All UK visa applications will continue to be decided by UK Visas & Immigration staff.

The UK remains open for business and these new arrangements will allow us to maintain a world class, competitive visa system to support Britain in the global race. We are listening to the needs of our customers and these changes will improve our service by increasing the number of visa application centres globally and expanding the number of locations and countries where premium services are available.

[Terpe]

India

During March 2014, new commercial partner contracts will come into effect. Our commercial partners run more than 300 visa application centres on UKVI’s behalf globally.

In India, we are working closely with our commercial partner VFS Global to ensure a smooth transition for our customers.

More information about which locations will be affected is as below.

UKVI visa application centres relocating in Kolkata, South Mumbai, North Mumbai, Chennai and Cochin.

These visa application centres will continue to be run by VFS Global.

Kolkata
3 March 2014

1842,Rene Towers, Rajdanga Main Road, Sector A, East Kolkata Township, Kolkata – 700107

South Mumbai
3 March 2014

Express Tower, 4th floor, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400021

North Mumbai
10 March 2014

Trade Centre, Ground Floor, BKC , Bandra East, 400051

Chennai
17 March 2014

Fagun Towers Commander In Chief Road (Ethiraj Salai), Egmore, Chennai- 600008

Cochin
17 March 2014

S&T Arcade, Kurisupally Road, Ravipuram, M G Road, Cochin -15


UKVI visa application centres in New Delhi, Jalandhar, Chandigarh, Pune, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Hyderabad

These will continue to be run by VFS Global and will be refurbished as part of the new contract.

New Delhi
3 March 2014

Upper Ground, Floor, S-2 Level, International Trade Tower, opposite Satyam Cinemas, Nehru Place, New Delhi -110019

Jalandhar
3 March 2014

Jalandhar Lower Ground Floor, MIDAS Corporate Park, Plot No. 37, G.T. Road, opposite Jalandhar Bus Stand, Jalandhar – 144001

Chandigarh
3 March 2014

SCO 62 63, Sector 8 C, near Hotel Icon and Times of India office, Madhya Marg, Chandigarh 160018

Bangalore
17 March 2014

Unit No. 302 & 303, Second Floor, Level 3, Prestige Atrium No 1, behind Palmgroove Military Canteen and opposite to Empire Hotel Central Street, Shivaji Nagar, Bangalore – 560001

Hyderabad
17 March 2014

Sunil Chambers, 8-2-542/A Road No. 7, near Meridian School ,Above Ratnadeep Supermarket, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad 500 034

Pune
18 March 2014

Office No. 305, Gera 77, next to Bishops Co-Ed School, Kalyani Nagar, Pune 411014

Ahmedabad
18 March 2014

Unit No. ( 1 & 2 ), First floor Bhikhubhai Chambers, opp. Bharat Petroleum, near Kochrab Ashram Ashram Road, Paldi, Ahmedabad 380009

[Terpe]

Bangladesh

During March 2014, new commercial partner contracts will come into effect. Our commercial partners run more than 300 visa application centres globally on our behalf.

In Bangladesh we are working closely with our commercial partner VFS Global to ensure a smooth transition for our customers.

Details of the changes in Dhaka and Sylhet are below. These centres will continue to be run by VFS Global. There will be a new appointment booking system via visa4uk.


Dhaka
23 March 2014

Delta Life Tower, Plot 37, Road 45, Gulshan North, Dhaka 1212

Sylhet
23 March 2014

Nirvana Inn, Mirza Jungle Road, Sylhet

Source:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/world-location-news/uk-visa-application-centres-relocating-in-bangladesh

[Terpe]

Hong Kong

From 21 March, the UK Visa Application Centre will be located at the Leighton Centre in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.

The move follows the outsourcing of the UK visa service in Hong Kong to VFS Global. VFS Global already successfully delivers UK visa services across Asia Pacific, including in mainland China.

The new Visa Application Centre in Hong Kong will provide greater convenience and choice to customers.

British Consul General to Hong Kong, Caroline Wilson, said:-

“The move to a commercial partner for visa applications will provide greater convenience and choice to our customers through extended opening hours and a range of premium services such as the new Passport Passback service which will be launched here in Hong Kong in April.”


The Passport Passback service will enable customers to keep their passport whilst a decision is being made on their application, allowing them to travel during this period.

An SMS application tracking service will also be available to customers.

There will be no change to the actual application process for customers and visa applications will continue to be sent to our visa decision making hub in Manila and assessed by UKVI staff.

There will be no change to processing times. We will continue to operate our successful 3-5 day priority visa service for non-settlement applicants and 10 day priority service for settlement applicants.

Customers should visit the VFS Global in Hong Kong website for information on how to apply for a UK visa in Hong Kong.

Further information:-

1. The new Visa Application Centre will be located at 15th Floor, Leighton Centre, 77 Leighton Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. Opening Hours: Monday to Friday 08.00 to 15.00 (08.00 to 18.00 during the summer peak season).

2. A new UK visa enquiry service will also be available from 1 April. It will be available to customers in Hong Kong during local working hours and offer a range of enquiry options including a free recorded service, a premium call service for those who wish to speak with a customer service officer, a web-chat service and a free email enquiry service.

Source:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/world-location-news/relocation-of-the-uk-visa-application-centre-in-hong-kong

[Terpe]

UK Visa Application process in Italy

A number of applicants applying for a UK visa from Italy have not been able to make an appointment having completed their application. UK Visas & Immigration apologises for the inconvenience and concern that this has caused.

The Visa Application Centre at Via Antonio Pacinotti closed on Wednesday 12 March. The new centre under the management of a new commercial partner, Teleperformance Ltd, has now opened at Via Flaminia 135, 00196 Rome, Italy. New applicants can now book an appointment online at UK Visas & Immigration.

Please note that you will not be allowed to attend the visa application centre without a prior online appointment.

The issue with the appointment booking system has now been resolved, but if you have been unable to book an appointment, it will be necessary to make a new application. You can request a refund on your current application and make a fresh application at UK Visas & Immigration.

Please note that once you have booked your online appointment, you must also register on the Teleperformance website . Here you can also pay for additional services such as Premium Lounge, Priority Visa Service and Courier return of your documents. Please note that it is not possible to pay for these services at the visa application centre. They must be paid online before attending your appointment.

More details on the changes to the process below:

On 30 September 2013, UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), part of the Home Office, announced that the global contracts for UKVI’s Visa Application Centres overseas had been awarded to Teleperformance Ltd and VFS Global.

In Italy, Teleperformance Ltd has assumed responsibility for receiving UK visa applications.

The Teleperformance clinic will be located at:

Via Flaminia 135
00196 Rome

Appointments will be available at the Visa Application Centre Monday to Friday from 08.30am to 12.30pm and 1.30pm to 3.30pm.

Applications will only be accepted where a prior appointment has been made online.

Once the UK visa application is submitted in Italy the completed applications, which will include all supporting documentation and the customer’s passport, will be forwarded to the decision making centre in the UK where they will be considered by Entry Clearance staff. Processing target times will remain unchanged and British Embassy and Teleperformance Ltd staff play no part in the decision making process.

The procurement of new contracts enables us to increase the number of application points globally and offer improved customer services. These contracts will offer the necessary flexibility to support current and future services and provide a world class customer experience, including through increasing our priority and premium services offerings and moving a number of our Visa Application Centres to more accessible locations.

Worldbridge will continue to manage the user pay phone and email enquiry service until 31 March 2014.

We will be providing our customers with further information on the changes to our visa operations and visa enquiry services through updates on the UKVI website over the coming weeks.

Source:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/world-location-news/changes-to-uk-visa-application-process-in-italy

[Terpe]

UK Visa Application Process in Finland

From 20 March 2014 UK Visas and Immigration’s new commercial partner Teleperformance Ltd will take over the running of UK’s Visa Application Centre in Helsinki.

The Visa Application Centre is located at:

Regus Helsinki Bulevardi 7 00120 Helsinki

In addition, UK Visas and Immigration is making the following changes to the visa service offered:-

Public opening hours are between 09:00-13:00 every Thursday in March, May, August and October, and fortnightly at other times.

A user pay fee has been set at £59. This will be in addition to the visa fee and will be charged in Euros using the consular rate of exchange at the point of booking the appointment. It covers the cost of providing the application submission facilities.

The option of applying at the Visa Application Centre in Dusseldorf, open Monday to Friday, and where no User Pay fee is charged, remains.

A Priority Visa Service will also be available at a charge of £100. This will also be paid in Euros online after booking your appointment. The service allows you to have your visa application placed at the front of the queue by UK Visas & Immigration normally enabling a decision within 3-5 working days.


Further details on all of the services, including eligibility criteria, will be available on the website when you book your appointment.

UK Visas and Immigration will work closely with its Commercial Partners to ensure continuity of service during the transition period. If you need to make an urgent application and there are no appointments available, please contact one of the following numbers or use the link below to email your enquiry. These services are available in English only:

Tel. +358 9 425 98 646. You will be charged the equivalent of US$3 per minute in your local currency to make this call. Call charges on this number are billed to your credit card; charges are assessed in increments of 6 seconds, only when you are connected to an agent. You can only pay for the service (using a secure, automated system) with a credit or debit card with the Visa or MasterCard logo;

Tel. 0600 19051. There is a fee of €2,13 per minute to make this call which will be charged by your telephone service provider on your monthly bill; charges are assessed in increments of whole minutes from the moment you start the call to the end of the call; or

Source:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/world-location-news/changes-to-the-uk-visa-application-process-in-finland

[Terpe]

UK visa application process from Ireland

The Visa Application Centre in Dublin is now run by Teleperformance Ltd.

They are a commercial company that works with UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) to provide services to people applying for visas for the United Kingdom.

The Visa Application Centre is located at



Teleperformance Ltd
Unit 22 (beside Diabetes Ireland)
Northwood House
Northwood Business Campus
Santry
Dublin 9