Can I use UKVI priority services for work visa applications for the main applicant and their dependents?
The answer depends on a number of factors, including whether the applicants are applying from inside or outside the UK.
Inside the UK:
- Main applicant – priority services are available. Both priority (5-working days) and super priority (1-working day) services should be available; however, availability changes frequently, and often only one service is available.
- Dependants – availability depends on how the application is submitted:
- Via a UKVI account – priority services are not available. However, if the main applicant also submitted using their UKVI account, they can generate a ‘Family Linking Code’ to connect the applications. In principle, all applications will be considered and decided at the same time. Unfortunately, this is not always the case, and the dependants’ application is subject to the standard 8-week timeframe.
- Attending a biometrics appointment – priority services are available and, again, the service is subject to availability at the point of submission.
Outside the UK:
- Main applicant – priority services are available in a similar way to availability in the UK.
Dependants – typically, priority services are not available. Some appointment centres may offer them, but it varies. Again, the applications can be linked, with the intention that they are considered at the same time.
An AI chatbot told me that I can now apply for ILR after 3 years in the UK as I am a high earner – is that correct?
The short answer is ‘No’!
We have heard from several people that various AI chatbots report that the government’s ‘Earned Settlement’ changes came into effect in April 2026. This is simply not true.
One of the proposed ‘Earned Settlement’ changes is that people who earn at least £125,140pa in taxable income and have earned that for the last 3 years, will get a 7-year discount on the proposed 10-year baseline for ILR.
We must stress that these potential changes are still only proposals. They have no legal effect, and as highlighted at the start of this newsletter, the possibility of them coming into effect is increasingly uncertain.
Our reflection: Please do not believe everything the AI chatbot tells you!