Hello All! I have finally reached the 5 year mark and wanted to share my experience of what it was like paying for Super Priority and attending an appointment for anyone who may be thinking about doing either or both of these options. I opted to pay for the premium versions of these due to needing my ILR before applying for a mortgage as we are in the process of selling our current home + buying a new one. We weighed our options and the risk of not being able to buy and losing the money we already invested in the process was much more than the cost of these premium options.
LITUK Test:I decided to study for this test by purchasing the e-Studying subscription from
https://www.officiallifeintheuk.co.uk/. I had the free app downloaded on my phone but preferred to be able to study the materials as I retain information better this way. I think there are about 400-600 questions to study but only 24 of them are on the actual test. I was able to study for my LITUK test in about 3 days but only thanks to my ADHD and hyperfocusing lol. From what I know about others, it usually can take about 2 weeks to study it.
I took my test in Luton as there were no other destinations that were closer to me. The test centre is very small and security was similar to going through the airport!! They checked my ankles for any devices as well as my ears for any listening devices, etc. The questions I got were ones I had studied so I was glad there were no surprises. I was verbally made aware of my results after I exited the testing room and then received my URN via e-mail shortly after. Having this number then allowed me to go to the next step of paying for my visa.
Super Priority:I knew that I'd have to possibly check multiple times a day for the release of Super Priority Processing as there were a limited amount of these available it seems, and I was able to find one at about midnight on the 1st day of my 28 days before.
Biometrics:Thanks to this wonderful forum I was already made aware of the issues with Sopra Steria's Biometric appointment shortage so I was already prepared to have to pay more for a sooner appointment. I submitted payment on the 10th of November and the soonest date I found for an appointment was the 16th of November. Unfortunately this was at the Premium Lounge in London an hour away from me so I incurred another £199 in costs just to book this appointment.
Now... what can I say about this "premium lounge" lol....
They advised me via e-mail the day before that it was really important I didn't arrive early as due to COVID restrictions you cannot wait inside whatsoever. I arrived 2-3 minutes early and I was let in okay. They double checked my verification at the check-in and I was immediately led to a little cubicle.
Few minutes later a lady came out and the process began. She wasn't friendly at all, I might even go as far to say she was pretty miserable but working for Sopra I can understand that lol. You can hear everything that happens throughout the whole area of 5-8 cubicles and boy was there some drama that I was listening to... A colleague getting reprimanded by her superior and she was not happy about it at all. It was pretty awkward.
The lady doing my biometrics got all huffy with me because I had some dust on my fingers which required us to do the whole process over again (pictures, fingerprints, signature) but it turned out it was just scratches on my fingers because we have a 12 week old kitten so she had to make a note and send it off with my application.
All in all I can't see why they call this a premium service. It was identical to the free appointment I had at a library closer to me 2.5 years ago and the lady doing it was in a much better mood then. If you don't HAVE to pay for this service then seriously don't.
Results Timeline:I got my application approved approx. 2.5 hours after the lady at the biometrics place submitted them. I was quite shocked as I thought I would hear back the next day.
BRP:I am still awaiting my BRP unfortunately. I was sent an e-mail with the code that will be on it for if I need it urgently but it seems the TNT courier is experiencing delays in shipping. I was informed it arrived at the delivery centre on the 18th and would be delivered on the 20th but here we are on the 23rd and I've heard nothing. Bit frustrating because I'm having to stay home every day until it arrives as they apparently won't leave it without photographic identification + a signature but anyway...
My final thoughts on it all are don't spend this money unless you absolutely have to or you don't mind the cost. I wasn't keen to stomach the £800 for the super priority but the relief I felt when I got the e-mail advising it was approved was well worth it because it meant all of the other things I needed to do for our mortgage fell into line.
If I didn't cover anything you might have a question about then please feel free to reply and I'll do my best to answer
