Immigration Corner | How to apply for a British residence permit

17 Dec 2024, 05:08 · The Gleaner

Dear Mr Bassie,

I am told that I will need to apply for a biometric residence permit before entering the United Kingdom. I am hoping you can advise me about the process on obtaining it.

Dear LE,

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Persons who have applied for their immigration status, for example, a visa, from outside the United Kingdom (UK) will need to collect their biometric residence permit (BRP) once they are in the UK. The BRP must usually be collected before the vignette sticker in the travel document expires or within 10 days of arriving in the UK, whichever is later.

Persons should check the decision letter. It will advise where to collect the BRP from – either the named post office branch or their sponsor, if this option was chosen when applying. Please note that persons must be over 18 years old to collect a BRP.

When collecting the BRP, persons should take their passport or travel document with the vignette sticker in it. Persons will get a vignette sticker when their visa application is approved.

HOW TO COLLECT A CHILD’S BRP

Persons must be nominated to collect a child’s BRP, even if they are the child’s parent. The Home Office will advise within five working days if they are approved to collect the child’s BRP. Please be aware that a person does not need to be nominated if he/she is also collecting their own BRP and is named on their child’s vignette sticker.

COLLECTING THE BRP FROM A DIFFERENT POST OFFICE BRANCH

Persons can choose to collect their BRP from a different post office branch. They will need to arrange this at the post office branch they want to use and pay a fee. The Home Office cannot change the post office branch for the applicant. Also, they should check that the post office branch they want to use offers a BRP collection service.

NOMINATE SOMEONE ELSE TO COLLECT THE BRP

Someone else can be nominated to collect the BRP if the applicant has a serious illness or disability that prevents him/her from collecting it. Applicants cannot nominate someone else to collect their BRP for any other reason.

The Home Office may email and ask for proof that the BRP cannot be collected in person. For example, a letter from a doctor. Please note, a nominated person will not be allowed to collect their BRP if he/she cannot show any proof when asked.

The person nominated to collect the BRP must provide their passport as evidence that they have entered the UK.

The person nominate must have one of the following:

• A passport

• An EU national identity card

• A BRP

Persons can get someone to make the nomination for them, for example, a legal representative, charity, employer, college or university. They will be told within five working days if the person nominated is approved to collect their BRP. There are other ways to prove immigration status before collecting it.

If the person changes their mind, they can still collect the BRP themself or they can nominate a different person. They do not need to cancel the original nomination.

REPORT A PROBLEM WITH COLLECTING YOUR BRP

Persons are advised to tell the Home Office if they cannot collect their BRP for any reason, for example:

• They went to collect it from the post office and it was not there;

• They have lost their passport or travel document, or cannot prove their identity;

• They do not know which post office to go to because they have lost their decision letter.

The Home Office will email the successful applicant to advise on what to do next. It is anticipated that those persons will usually get a response within five working days. It will take longer if persons do not give an email address.

Please be aware, there are other ways to prove the immigration status before collecting it, for example, if persons need to leave and re-enter the UK.

It should be noted that BRPs are being replaced by eVisas. An eVisa is an online record of a person’s immigration status. Most BRPs will expire on December 31, 2024. If persons have permission to stay in the UK after the BRP expires, they will need to set up access to the eVisa before their BRP expires.

All the best.

John S. Bassie is a barrister/attorney-at-law who practises law in Jamaica. He is a justice of the peace, a Supreme Court-appointed mediator, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, a chartered arbitrator, the past global president of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, and a member of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association (UK). Email: lawbassie@yahoo.com