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Say that I applied the 6th December 2018, will I be able to post date my Visa validity date to be around 5th March? Because I wish to visit the UK in March and July (the Visa will still be available)

All of this because I have a lot of translated documents that will die by 2019 so I really wish I can submit and get the Visa now for the 5th March then count 6 months so it'll end around the 6th August.

EDIT: I'm using an invitation from an extended family member, some of my documents ( that have been translated are most likely going to lose their validity IN MY COUNTRY by 2019, I'm a student, I have an exam the 19th December, then itll be the end-of-year holidays, but my uncle that's in te UK told me he'll welcome me only in mid semester vacation (from 14th march to 1st april), I need time to prepare for my exams, 6th is the best I can do for application, It'll add 14 days to 3 months. And I want to travel by 15th March (1 day after mid term vacation start) is this tolerable by the consulate or not?

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  • So if I want to go to the UK the 15th March to 1st april, I'll be obliged to apply on the gov.uk the 16th of December [and no earlier, if I do: I get an automatic refusal(?)] So that the validity of the Visa starts EXACTLY the 15th March and stays up to 14th of August?
    – james smith
    Commented Dec 2, 2018 at 2:43
  • Sorry, I expanded my comment into an answer, below. No: apply no earlier than 15 December if you're planning to travel on 15 March to 1 April, two weeks. You can apply later, of course. Use the UK visa processing times tool to see how long most visas take for applicants in your country. Again, if you say it's a two-week trip, and stay 6 months, that's a problem. (And yes, if you apply more than 3 months in advance, you're told to wait but not refused).
    – Giorgio
    Commented Dec 2, 2018 at 2:57
  • I'm using an invitation from an family member, some of my documents ( that have been translated are most likely going to lose their validity IN MY COUNTRY by 2019, I'm a student, I have an exam the 19th December, then itll be the end-of-year holidays, but my uncle that's in te UK told me he'll welcome me only in mid semester vacation (from 14th march to 1st april), I need time to prepare for my exams, 6th is the best I can do for application, It'll add 14 days to 3 months. And I want to travel by 15th March (1 day after mid term vacation start) is this tolerable by the consulate or not?
    – james smith
    Commented Dec 2, 2018 at 3:14

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A UK standard visitor visa, for which you apply no earlier than 3 months before a planned departure, has a validity period stated on it: it may be 6 months, it could be a number of years, it could be less. A visa validity period and how long you can remain in the UK are not necessarily concurrent.

Applying on December 6 would be 3 months from when you want to enter. If you ask for and are given 6 months, that's how long you can be there, entering on or after the beginning of the visa validity. You would have to exit on or before six months. March 5 to August 5, not 6; it's not counted in days but day of the month from entry. Even after a visa is issued, on arrival at UK immigration control, the leave-to-enter period (how long you can be in the country) may be specified by a border official.

A word of advice: if you ask for a shorter trip in your visa application, enter the UK as planned and then stay for 6 months, you may jeopardise future UK visa applications. UKVI doesn't look kindly when you say one thing and then do another.

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  • @james smith Your visa validity start date may not be the planned date of travel entered in your application. The last time my partner visited, he applied exactly 3 months in advance, and his visa was dated 9 days earlier than his travel date. The previous visit. he also applied exactly 3 months before and the visa start date was the planned travel date. I mention this because your question states you plan to make a return trip, expecting your visa to end around 6 Aug. The UK visit visa validity is usually 6 months; that doesn’t always mean you can re-enter on a different premise for your trip
    – Traveller
    Commented Dec 2, 2018 at 8:06
  • See travel.stackexchange.com/questions/51233/…
    – Traveller
    Commented Dec 2, 2018 at 8:14

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