I have applied for UK visa and I got a mail yesterday that my application will reach the entry clearance officer shortly. Is the ECO in Britain or in the UK consulate in India? I have my flight on Aug 20th which is 9 days from now. Will I get my visa issued before that?
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5You should not book a flight before having your visa.– BakuriuCommented Aug 11, 2016 at 12:07
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7@Bakuriu obviously it can differ by country. For example, here in Russia, EU consulates specifically require tourists to book a flight and a hotel before applying for a EU visa.– Spc_555Commented Aug 11, 2016 at 13:10
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1@Bakuriu it depends on many things. There is not a universal rule for this. Indeed, many countries require that your trip is fully planned before you can have a visa. Often you are required to show that you have a flight the leave the country, and an address to reach you during your stay.– njzk2Commented Aug 11, 2016 at 13:41
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@VasilyAlexeev Sure it depends on the countries (and the kind of visa). However I'm pretty sure they also provide information regarding how much time it will be needed before you obtain your visa and I'm pretty sure this time is significantly more than 9 days...– BakuriuCommented Aug 11, 2016 at 13:50
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1@Bakuriu in fact here getting a EU visa can take as little as 3-4 business days– Spc_555Commented Aug 11, 2016 at 16:10
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1 Answer
The entry clearance officers are in the British embassy and consulates (known as high commission and deputy high commission in India). Your passport and supporting documents will be sent to the high commission or deputy high commission serving as a decision making hub for the area in which you live (see the map below), and an entry clearance officer there will process your visa application.
The amount of time it takes to process your visa can vary. It depends on a wide variety of factors. For example, the ECO or an assistant will verify your documents, and this can go quickly or slowly. You can look up processing times on the gov.uk web site to get an idea of how long it is likely to take.
The speed with which your documents are returned to you (or when you can collect your documents from VFS) depends to an extent on the service level you selected from VFS. Note that your documents may arrive separately from the letter giving the decision about your visa.
Overall, I would say that you have very little time. It can take 10-15 working days (and sometimes longer) for a visa application. If your case is very straightforward and all your documents are easily verifiable, it could go quickly. But, because you have already submitted the application, there is really nothing to do but wait.
In future, you should apply for visas as early as possible. You can apply for a UK visa as early as three months before your planned visit.
For reference purposes, the decision-making hubs and their relationships to the various application centres are shown in UKVI's graphic below...
answered Aug 11, 2016 at 4:17
