Independent report

An inspection of visit visa operations (December 2022 – January 2023)

This inspection sought to examine the efficiency, effectiveness and consistency of UK Visas and Immigration’s interim workflow routing solution in visit visa operations.

• From: Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration
• Published: 20 April 2023

Documents

An inspection of visit visa operations (December 2022 – January 2023)

Ref: ISBN 978-1-5286-3925-5

Unnumbered act paper

PDF, 1.38 MB, 54 pages

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An inspection of visit visa operations (December 2022 – January 2023) [Large print]

Ref: ISBN 978-1-5286-3925-5

Unnumbered act paper

PDF, 1.82 MB, 118 pages

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Details

Inspectors:

• reviewed open-source material, including published Home Office guidance and transparency data
• reviewed internal Home Office guidance and policy documents
• reviewed the ‘ICIBI report on entry clearance processing operations in Croydon and Istanbul, July 2017’
• on 12 December 2022, participated in a familiarisation session with Visas, Status and Information (VSI) Services staff
• on 15 December 2022, formally notified the Home Office of the scope of the inspection and requested readily available documentary evidence
• reviewed and analysed evidence provided by the Home Office, including a position statement providing a clear and concise summary of the status of the area being inspected
• undertook random case sampling of 100 electronic visit visa records received worldwide by the Home Office on 1 November 2022
• on 10 and 11 January 2023, observed operational immigration activity at visit visa decision-making centres in Croydon and Liverpool
• spoke with VSI staff from grades Administrative Officer to Grade 7 during the onsite visits, including in focus groups
• interviewed staff and managers from VSI Cross-Cutting Services who were involved in the design and ongoing review of the interim workflow routing solution
• on 17 January 2023, provided a debrief to senior VSI managers on observations from the onsite phase of the inspection

Published 20 April 2023