Oh what's this BRP thing?
I'm guessing you have 30 days from issue to fly into country? And then get your official paper? Need to go look all this up so I don't do it wrong. We will see what they send me in the mail.
For a few years now, all visa applications made inside the UK have had the visa issued as a BRP - Biometrics Residence Permit (ID card) - instead of a visa sticker in the passport.
However, visa applications made outside the UK have always been isued as stickers in the passport and there haven't been any BRPs issued until the next visa, applied for in the UK (at the end of the spousal visa).
In the last few weeks, UKVI have been rolling out a scheme where they will issue BRPs for visas applied for overseas as well. They way they have planned to do this is to issue the initial entry clearance as a vignette (sticker) in the passport, valid for only 30 days - the idea is that you have to enter within these 30-days or you will have to apply for another vignette. Then once you are in the UK, you would have 10 days to pick up the visa BRP from a UK post office.
This is what it would look like:
A new 30-day vignette 'visa' issued in India -
here and one issued in China -
hereSee:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/440255/Final_-_v.9_overseas_BRP_leaflet.pdfand
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/418544/BRP_International_Rollout_Schedule_v2.pdfFrom the first document:
How do I travel to the UK without my biometric residence permit?
Successful applicants will be issued with a vignette in their passport which is valid for 30 days from the date you indicated as your intended travel date in your visa application. The vignette is proof only of your permission to enter the UK and will allow you to travel to the UK. If you do not travel to the UK within this 30 day period, your visa will expire and you will need to apply for another 30 day visa. You will have to pay a fee for this.
Your full leave conditions are contained on your biometric residence permit which you must collect on arrival in the UK.
How do I obtain my biometric residence permit upon arrival in the UK?
You must collect your biometric residence permit within 10 days of arrival in the UK from the Post Office branch detailed in your decision letter. If you do not collect your BRP within 10 days of arrival in the UK you may be subject to a financial penalty or cancellation of your leave. The Post Office branch you have been allocated is linked to the postcode you submitted in your visa application.
We advise you not to book any non-urgent travel before you have collected your permit.
This was supposed to be rolled out to US applicants from May 31st, but as we haven't seen any actual visas issued since that date - until today - we haven't been sure how it will actually work.
It doesn't look like AM Angler's visa has been issued in this new way though and there hasn't been a decision letter, so we're not really sure what's happening with the new roll-out at the moment.
It sounds like, since the visa has been issued for 33 months and there was no decision letter stating how to get the BRP, that it's just a normal spousal visa, and AM Angler won't need a BRP until the next visa in 2.5 years.
