The UK Embassy in Nigeria on Tuesday announced a temporary suspension of priority visas for students, work and family applications.
The suspension is as a result of priority being placed now on applications made under the Ukraine family Scheme, which was launched in response to the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine resulting from Russia invasion.
This was disclosed in a statement titled ‘Temporary Suspension of Priority Visas for Student, Work and Family Applications’, issued on Tuesday by the UK High Commission in Nigeria and posted on its website.
It reads “UK Visas and Immigration is currently prioritising applications made under the Ukraine Family Scheme, following its launch and in response to the humanitarian crisis arising from the invasion of Ukraine.
“As a result, UKVI has temporarily suspended priority and super-priority services for new study, work, and family applications. Customers with standard applications in study, work, and family routes may experience some delays in the processing of their application.
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“We are still currently unable to offer PV for visitor applications in Nigeria. Standard visitor visa applications are currently taking an average of six weeks to process
“Applicants will be contacted by the Visa Application Centre (VAC) when their passport is ready for collection. They should not attend the VAC until they have been invited to do so.
“Where there are extremely compassionate or compelling circumstances (for example, a medical emergency), UKVI may consider expediting specific cases. However, the bar for this is high and will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. If a request is exceptionally urgent, applicants can contact UK Visas and Immigration for help. Please note that this is a chargeable service for overseas customers.
“We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause,”
Ifunanya Ikueze is an Engineer, Safety Professional, Writer, Investor, Entrepreneur and Educator.
