Incorrect dates on visitor visa

I'm planning to be in the UK from December 15-June 14 as a visitor. I received my visa in the mail, but it has the wrong dates on it: December 17-June 17. After two weeks of querying the immigration office about what I should do, they finally got back to me and gave a fairly noncommittal answer, saying that I could get the dates changed, but that it would take up to 20 working days from the time that they escalate the issue, and referring me to the gov.uk information stating that U.S. visitors don't need a visa, then stating that the onus is on me to make a decision.

I'm wondering if anyone here has experienced a similar situation, or has any insight as to whether I'll have trouble passing through customs with my current visa. I can't get the dates changed on the visa at this point because they may not return my passport in time for my trip. I could change my flight to arrive on December 17, but this will cost me $700 and upset a lot of plans that I currently have. Or, since I'm allowed to enter the country without a visa as a U.S. citizen, I could go for my currently scheduled flight on the 15th with printouts of my itinerary, showing that I plan to leave within the 6-month timeframe on June 14, and of my email correspondence with the immigration office regarding the issue, and hope that these will allow me to pass through customs. Any advice would be tremendously appreciated!

I’m afraid your only feasible option here is likely to be to change your flight to December 17th.

UKVI offers no guarantee that your visa will start on the exact date you requested, which is why you are not supposed to book any flights until after you have received your visa - just in case the visa is delayed, refused or starts on a different date and you cannot travel on the date you wanted.

Though I suppose you could try emailing the New York office immediately (not the helpline with gives you the brush off with an ‘escalation’ email - which does nothing anyway)... but email the address you got the visa decision email from and see if there’s anything they can do. I believe some people have been able to get incorrect dates adjusted within 1-2 weeks.

I’m not sure if they will help though, since they may well say it’s your mistake for booking your flights before the visa was issued (which they advise you not to do).

Since you have a visitor visa starting on the 17th, you should not attempt to travel before this date as you may not be allowed to enter the UK.


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Thank you for the response, ksand24. I've emailed both the helpline and the address I got the visa decision email from (which says it's an unmonitored account, but maybe someone will see it), so hopefully someone will get back to me. I know that they offer a priority service for visa applications, and I offered to pay for something similar in this case if it would help get it turned around in time.

I wish I had known beforehand that you're not supposed to book travel until after you get your visa - I don't remember seeing that in any of the guidance I read, and the document checklist that UKVI provides to go with your application even specifies including flight plans and travel details, so I followed those instructions. I do hope I can avoid rebooking everything!

Which email address was it that says it’s unmonitored?  There may be more than one you can try.

The helpline is useless and is notorious for giving incorrect information - so I would stop wasting your money on it... they are a call centre nowhere near the visa decision centre and have no access to anything other than a computer screen, so they can’t help you.

If it’s urgent and you can get hold of someone actually in New York, you may be able to get something sorted - but because it’s not their fault you booked your flights beforehand, they may not change the dates.

When it says flight plans/travel details, it just means you can send an example itinerary of a flight you plan to book once you have your visa.

Though actually, looking at the Supporting Documents guidance for visitors, there is no mention of needing to include travel plans and it says that you should NOT send any flight bookings or hotel bookings (section 4 at the bottom):
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/549692/Visitor_Supporting_Documents_Guide_-_English_version.pdf


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I'm posting an update here in case it's helpful to anyone else.  I went through a visa expeditor and they determined that it would be possible to change the dates on the visa by doing a vignette transfer, which would involve basically reapplying and getting my biometrics redone.  However, it would have cost $750-$800, so I'm changing all of my travel plans instead.

I'm posting an update here in case it's helpful to anyone else.  I went through a visa expeditor and they determined that it would be possible to change the dates on the visa by doing a vignette transfer, which would involve basically reapplying and getting my biometrics redone.  However, it would have cost $750-$800, so I'm changing all of my travel plans instead.

That's probably the best thing to do - it's much quicker and easier to change your flight than it is to change your visa validity.

Also, a couple of things concern me about your reply regarding the visa expeditor:

1) There's no such thing as a visa expeditor... and any company claiming they are is not being truthful. Those companies often don't know what they are doing and basically just try to charge you for something you don't even need to pay for. The only way to expedite a visa is for you to pay for 'priority processing' through the VFS Global website.

2) I don't know where they got $750-800 from... a vignette transfer only costs £169 ($231). You can pay an extra $258 for priority processing if you wish, but that's only a total of $489.

3) As far as I know, a vignette transfer can only be done if:
a) your passport has expired but your visa hasn't and you want to get the visa transferred to your new passport
or
b) your passport has been lost or stolen and and you need to transfer your visa to your new passport
or
c) your visa is valid for MORE than 6 months has been issued as a 30-day vignette (plus a BRP card to be picked up in the UK), and the 30-days have expired before you have been able to travel, so you need a new vignette.

I'm planning to be in the UK from December 15-June 14 as a visitor. I received my visa in the mail, but it has the wrong dates on it: December 17-June 17. After two weeks of querying the immigration office about what I should do, they finally got back to me and gave a fairly noncommittal answer, saying that I could get the dates changed, but that it would take up to 20 working days from the time that they escalate the issue, and referring me to the gov.uk information stating that U.S. visitors don't need a visa, then stating that the onus is on me to make a decision.

I'm wondering if anyone here has experienced a similar situation, or has any insight as to whether I'll have trouble passing through customs with my current visa. I can't get the dates changed on the visa at this point because they may not return my passport in time for my trip. I could change my flight to arrive on December 17, but this will cost me $700 and upset a lot of plans that I currently have. Or, since I'm allowed to enter the country without a visa as a U.S. citizen, I could go for my currently scheduled flight on the 15th with printouts of my itinerary, showing that I plan to leave within the 6-month timeframe on June 14, and of my email correspondence with the immigration office regarding the issue, and hope that these will allow me to pass through customs. Any advice would be tremendously appreciated!

Sorry to hear about your issue, I recently applied for a visit visa and they received my application last Monday, I paid for priority and was just wondering how long it took you to get yours back

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Sorry to hear about your issue, I recently applied for a visit visa and they received my application last Monday, I paid for priority and was just wondering how long it took you to get yours back

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Mine didn't take too long.  I did the regular turnaround time, not priority, and received it back in under two weeks.  So hopefully yours won't take long!

Mine didn't take too long.  I did the regular turnaround time, not priority, and received it back in under two weeks.  So hopefully yours won't take long!

Only email I've gotten so far is one saying it was received, I've seen some people got one when it was started to be assessed as well. What all did u get?

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Only email I've gotten so far is one saying it was received, I've seen some people got one when it was started to be assessed as well. What all did u get?

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I got one saying that it had been received, and then another saying that it had been approved and was being printed.

I got one saying that it had been received, and then another saying that it had been approved and was being printed.

Hey last question did you have any refusals on the past? I'm thinking that could be why mine is taking so long.

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Hey last question did you have any refusals on the past? I'm thinking that could be why mine is taking so long.

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No, this was my first time applying, and I didn't have any issues getting the initial visa, just issues with the dates on it.  I'm not sure if their turnaround time is longer at different times of year, maybe as they get closer to the holidays it's a busy season?  Hope yours comes through!