Non-priority Spousal Visa Timeline

Mine says it was decided on the 5th of July according to the tracker. But still no activity from UPS.

From what the forum elders have seen, it appears like a lot of the visas ship out on weekdays around 5 PM Brit Time.

So maybe you'll get an update tomorrow mid-day US time (?). I'm hoping you get an update at least.

Though I keep hoping that they might send off a batch in the morning... but if fishes were wishes...

Non-Priority May - FLR(M) (applying from within the UK)

Application sent: 20th May
Signed for: 22nd May
Payment taken: 23rd May
Returned Sponsor's visa in mail: 26th May
Biometrics Letter came: 8th June
Biometrics completed: 11th June

If the Biometric Letter is accurate (8 week time frame) should have a decision by 18thish of July. My application is pretty straightforward and I have no children on my application so I'm feeling confident.

I'm not sure I understand why some peoples timelines are so long? Is it because they are applying for the Spousal Visa for the first time and those go to Sheffield? My FLR(M) app went to Durham.

Good luck to everyone!

Partner checked the tracker this morning and I also got a decision made on July 5th too! I've not got an email though so that seems odd? Do they send emails for FLR(M)?

Partner checked the tracker this morning and I also got a decision made on July 5th too! I've not got an email though so that seems odd? Do they send emails for FLR(M)?

Not for FLR(M).  This thread is for out of the country applications.  You'll get your BRP via Dx and the rest of your documents via Royal Mail.   

Partner checked the tracker this morning and I also got a decision made on July 5th too! I've not got an email though so that seems odd? Do they send emails for FLR(M)?

No, FLR(M) correspondence is by post only. The BRP will be sent separately to the documents/passport.

Not for FLR(M).  This thread is for out of the country applications.  You'll get your BRP via Dx and the rest of your documents via Royal Mail.   

That makes more sense. Is there another thread for FLR(M)?

That makes more sense. Is there another thread for FLR(M)?

There should be!    Would you like to start one and we can move the others over?   

That makes more sense. Is there another thread for FLR(M)?

There used to be one.

Up until this year, we'd always had one thread for settlement visas applied for in the US (priority and non-priority together), and one thread for FLR(M) applications made inside the UK... since they are completely different applications with different processing times.

However, this year people started making threads for each month, and then all the spousal visas and FLR(M) applications got lumped together, even though they are completely unrelated to each other.

I did make a suggestion a few weeks ago that maybe we should combine everything and make just 3 threads:
- one for ALL priority for all months
- one for ALL non-priority for all months
- one for FLR(M) for all months

But I guess it got lost amongst all the other posts.

So the email we received on Friday was definitely wrong for me I'm thinking. My husband has woken up to an email saying
'Further to our recent e-mail confirming the receipt of the application, we have been unable to locate an international courier account number with the documents submitted. Unfortunately, we are unable to dispatch your documents unless an international courier customer account number is supplied. Unfortunately we cannot accept F-DEX way bills.'

Luckily my husband has the details of our return postage and has replied to the email with these. I was under the impression that if we hadnt paid return postage they would still return the passport?

But I guess it got lost amongst all the other posts.

I saw it and have been thinking the same thing!
I've just started a new thread for 2017 FLR applications. Hopefully the FLR folk will jump over from the other timelines. 

So the email we received on Friday was definitely wrong for me I'm thinking. My husband has woken up to an email saying
'Further to our recent e-mail confirming the receipt of the application, we have been unable to locate an international courier account number with the documents submitted. Unfortunately, we are unable to dispatch your documents unless an international courier customer account number is supplied. Unfortunately we cannot accept F-DEX way bills.'

Luckily my husband has the details of our return postage and has replied to the email with these. I was under the impression that if we hadnt paid return postage they would still return the passport?

No, you have to provide return shipping details, or they cannot dispatch the passport and documents. If they don't see these details/a shipping label supplied with the documents, they will send you that email asking for them.

Your return shipping options are:

- purchase the pre-paid VFS Global return shipping label ($141 for the return only or $227 for round trip)

- open an online account with DHL or UPS and provide them with your online account number... they will then charge your account for the return shipping when they have processed the application.

No, you have to provide return shipping details, or they cannot dispatch the passport and documents. If they don't see these details/a shipping label supplied with the documents, they will send you that email asking for them.

Your return shipping options are:

- purchase the pre-paid VFS Global return shipping label ($141 for the return only or $227 for round trip)

- open an online account with DHL or UPS and provide them with your online account number... they will then charge your account for the return shipping when they have processed the application.

First time round we used FEDEX as when we tried to use UPS they wouldnt let us do it. A couple of days after they received our docs we got an email from them saying they didnt use FEDEX so my husband bought the VFS Global Return and emailed it back to them. Im guessing that email got lost or didnt get linked to our docs?

First time round we used FEDEX as when we tried to use UPS they wouldnt let us do it. A couple of days after they received our docs we got an email from them saying they didnt use FEDEX so my husband bought the VFS Global Return and emailed it back to them. Im guessing that email got lost or didnt get linked to our docs?

Yeah, that could be the case - although several people have received the same email, when they did send the VFS shipping label in the first place, so who knows what they're doing there .

They stopped accepting FedEx return labels a few years ago though - due to having problems with UK FedEx accepting the packages.

You can't actually pre-pay for international return shipping unless you use VFS Global labels though... because the package originates in the UK, it's not possible to pre-pay the postage through UPS or DHL... which is why you have to provide your account details for future billing (or the VFS labels).

Yeah, that could be the case - although several people have received the same email, when they did send the VFS shipping label in the first place, so who knows what they're doing there .

They stopped accepting FedEx return labels a few years ago though - due to having problems with UK FedEx accepting the packages.

You can't actually pre-pay for international return shipping unless you use VFS Global labels though... because the package originates in the UK, it's not possible to pre-pay the postage through UPS or DHL... which is why you have to provide your account details for future billing (or the VFS labels).

Its so crazy complicated! We found everything so unclear. I wish i had found this forum before we applied!

Its so crazy complicated! We found everything so unclear. I wish i had found this forum before we applied!

So the plot thickens. Have they decided your application and the Friday email was based off a problem with the shipping label? Why wouldn't they just have sent the email you got today? There really is no rhyme nor reason to it all is there? :-/

So the plot thickens. Have they decided your application and the Friday email was based off a problem with the shipping label? Why wouldn't they just have sent the email you got today? There really is no rhyme nor reason to it all is there? :-/

Its completely mental! Maybe this week will bring something, but I really dont like to get my hopes up...