Emergency Student Visa Situation

Here's my situation. I'm a US Citizen and had a student visa for the 2007-2008 school year in the UK. My passport was stolen in Austria, and I now have an emergency passport that does not have the Visa. I have a police report confirming the passport was stolen, a copy of the student visa, a letter confirming I'm a registered student in a UK university, and copy of the old passport. Three days ago, I was let through customs and VIPP was written in my Emergency passport, but I was told to get my student visa restamped by the Home Office ASAP.


I have tickets to go back to the US in mid-January and come back to the UK four days later. The Home Office said the only feasible option would be to go in person and get it restamped for 500 pounds! That's about FIVE times the cost of the original visa. What should I do? Do you guys have any suggestions?

Eep- that's about my worst nightmare.  Sorry you're going through this!  I have to say, I think the home office is right- you need to get this sorted ASAP, and I wouldn't personally chance leaving the UK without a new visa.  The trouble is that even if you did want to pay the £500 for the TOC stamp in person, you may not get an appointment by mid-January- I made an appointment for my IGS visa a couple of weeks ago, and the Liverpool office was booked up 4 weeks in advance. 

I'm not sure if there's a way to sort this out in the UK without canceling your trip...you'd probably want any new visa to be in a regular, non-emergency passport anyway.  If I was in your situation I'd cancel/reschedule the trip if at all possible, get the passport replaced and then post off the NTLTOC form (which is only £160 by post, much kinder) and hopefully have the new visa within the next month or two. Straightforward, done and dusted.  But if you're really looking to go on your mid-Jan trip as scheduled, I think it'll become a lot more complicated.  4 days isn't really enough time to get a new visa in the US, unfortunately...

I am so sorry, this really stinks I agree with the pp about the appt time, both times (in the past 2 months) that I have made appts with the Home Office the earliest has been about 3-4 weeks out, so nothing right away. I believe, although I could be wrong, that the Croydon office doesn't allow walk ins anymore either?

Do you have travel insurance for your trip?  If you had to cancel, I'm sure this situation would be covered - and, if you had insurance for the Austria trip, the cost of replacing your visa may be covered too.

Do you have travel insurance for your trip?  If you had to cancel, I'm sure this situation would be covered - and, if you had insurance for the Austria trip, the cost of replacing your visa may be covered too.

travel insurance is only available for permanent residents of the UK. Unfortunately someone here on a student visa isn't considered such

Thanks for the advice so far. I do not have travel insurance.

One more strategy I'm trying is contacing the British Consulate in New York (where my visa was issued) and seeing if when I'm in New York, they could stamp it back in since they issued the visa. The problem is it's impossible to reach them directly so I've had to go through WorldBridge and email them, so who knows what will happen. I'm waiting to hear back from them, but I'm not too hopeful about that. Any other suggestions?

travel insurance is only available for permanent residents of the UK. Unfortunately someone here on a student visa isn't considered such

I don't know...STA travel UK was happy to cover me for a trip to France while I was in the UK on a student visa.  But that's neither here nor there as far is the OP is concerned- sorry for the hijack!

Must be a very limited few then because I work in travel insurance and all of the products say no to anyone who isnt a pernament resident

Must be a very limited few then because I work in travel insurance and all of the products say no to anyone who isnt a pernament resident

Actually, this is a hijack,  but what constitutes a 'permanent resident'?  Olive and I had this discussion a couple years ago now but I am curious how it is defined.  I am in the UK on a work permit (5 year) - am I a permanent resident?

jmp, when are you going to be replacing your passport for a permanent? Maybe if you enter with a permanent passport they'll let you go through if you explain that you couldn't get it stamped while you had an emergency one?

I'm sorry, this is an awful situation to be in.

(geeta, no you're not a permanent resident, as I understand it. I imagine "permanence" starts with an indefinite permission to stay, whatever form it might take. Maybe we should start a different thread though to follow this particular discussion further since this sitation seems rather urgent.)

Actually, this is a hijack,  but what constitutes a 'permanent resident'?  Olive and I had this discussion a couple years ago now but I am curious how it is defined.  I am in the UK on a work permit (5 year) - am I a permanent resident?

What it means is if you are on a visa and when it expires,you have to return to your home country then you are not considered a "permanent resident". However, if you are going to get an ILR or such, after your current visa expires then you are considered a "permanent resident"

Cool, so then it sounds like I am considered a permanent resident.  Anyway I have travel insurance through my company so I'm not bothered but I was curious.  I think it was probably assumed that I am a permanent resident when I got the policy, and I wasn't going to tell them any differently.

No.  This is wrong.

A permanent resident is one who has no time limit on their visa.

If your visa has an expiration date, then you are not a permanent resident.

What happens then, if folk on work permits need to travel? How are we to get insurance?

Oh well!  I have travel insurance from the UK and will continue to renew it despite not being a permanent resident.