Main Office
7th Floor
Lunar House
40 Wellesley Road
Croydon CR9 2BY
Customer Service
Phone: 0300 123 2241 (within UK)
Phone: 00 44 203 481 1736 (outside UK)
Phone: 0300 123 7000 (report immigration crime)
Email: foirequests@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk (Freedom of Information requests)
Email: complaints@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk (complaints)
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About UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI)
UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) is the chief enforcement agency responsible for policies on immigration, passports and visas in the United Kingdom. Formerly operating as UK Border Agency, the UKBA was formed in 2013 and currently employs close to 8,000 across the country and around the world. Headquartered at London, the law enforcement agency comes under the department of Home Office. The UKVI has offices in Belfast, Cardiff, Croydon, Glasgow, Liverpool, London, Sheffield and Solihull.
The UK Visas and Immigration is the sole agency that today manages applications for people who want to visit, work, study or settle in the UK. It manages around 3 million applications a year from foreign nationals coming to study or work. It also considers applications for British citizenship.
If you are planning on a trip to the UK, you can visit the website to check if you need a UK visa. UK grants visa-free entry to all Schengen Annex II nationalities (few countries exempted). Nationals of countries such as Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan and the US can also travel without a visa. Citizens of Kuwait, Qatar and UAE can obtain an electronic visa waiver (EVW) online. Additionally, UK offers airside transit and landside transit visas. The airside transit visa is available at London Heathrow Airport, Gatwick Airport and Manchester Airport.
When applying a UK visa, you will need to contact the local British Embassy, fill in the application form, pay the fee and attend interview at a visa application centre. Fee varies according to single stay or multiple stay visa. The online tool here will give you an estimate on the cost of your UK visa application.
Applications for a tourist visa or short stay visa can be done online. The various visa types include visitor visas, family visas, student visas, tourist and short stay visas (standard, short-term, engagement visa, marriage visitor visa etc), transit visas and work visas (general, entrepreneur, investor, sportsperson, charity worker, religious worker etc).
Create an account on Visa4UK if applying for study and work visas. Note that you will get a biometric residence permit (BRP) if you apply to come to the UK for more than 6 months or want to extend your visa. The BRP will include your name, date and place of birth, besides your fingerprints and photo of your face. If you are located in the UK, note that there are 14 reporting centres, in addition to the ones found in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. You can only get your fee refunded if your application hasn’t been processed yet. However, this is not applicable if you cancel an application made in the UK.
Planning to settle in the UK? There are various ways to become a British citizen, the most common being ‘naturalisation’. You can apply for British citizenship by naturalisation if you are over 18 years age, have met the residency requirement, have no serious offences against you and have lived in the UK for at least 5 years. There are different requirements if your spouse or civil partner is a British citizen. Access the guidance notes and requirements booklet for more information.
