This blog post was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

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Leigh Turner

Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna

Part of UK in Turkey

18th April 2013

How to get a British Visa

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Summer is coming. The number of people wanting to travel is rising. That’s great, particularly for those of you travelling to the United Kingdom – we’re looking forward to seeing you.

The fact that there are lots of people travelling means that here in Istanbul we are processing more visas. To help ensure we provide the best possible service, the Home Office has a set of customer service standards, the most important of which is to complete 90% of routine visa applications in not more than three weeks.

The Home Office even goes one step further, and publishes information on how well each of its teams world-wide is doing in meeting those standards. You can find full data for Istanbul here (go to ‘guide to processing times’ and insert ‘Turkey, Istanbul’). This shows that for March 2013 for routine visas between 99% and 100% of all visas were issued within 15 days; over 96% within ten days; and 32% issued within five days.

Our team makes a big effort to process all visa applications – more than 100,000 a year in Istanbul, of which over 90% are successful – as quickly as possible; and during less busy times of the year we are able to process most visas well within the targets. But as the number of travellers rises in summer our resources are stretched.

What this means for you, if you need a visa to travel to the UK for a visit, is that at all times of year, but especially in the busy summer months, you should if possible start the visa application process at least three weeks before you are due to travel.

But you also need to factor in allowing time to make an appointment at one of our visa application centres – appointments are open up to four weeks in advance and you should not have to wait more than 5 working days for an appointment. I know that sounds a long way ahead, but it’s the best way to minimise the risk of disappointment.

You may if you wish apply up to three months ahead of your intended travel date and also may want to think about applying for a visa that lasts for a longer period (you can apply for 1, 2, 5 and 10 year visas).

Of course not everyone can apply three weeks in advance.  If you’re in a hurry and are travelling for business, there is a priority service available. For TL200, this allows you to have your visa application placed at the front of the queue.

Issuing visas is difficult stuff.  No-one likes applying for visas – I don’t myself – and delays or refusals can understandably leave would-be travellers feeling rejected and upset.

Our hard-working visa staff in Istanbul are constantly striving to provide the best possible service and I am proud of the work they do. Do help us – and help yourself – by making sure you apply in good time and, if you are in a hurry, use the priority service.

19 comments on “How to get a British Visa”

  1. Hi im Rosemary , im married to a british man , I applied for the visitor visa to go visit my husband and was denied because I didnt submit some of his travelling document like ticket which shows he came to kenya ,after that I applied again with both his documents plus all my documents from my work place like a letter from my employer showing the days off I was given plus the date of resuming work , my payslips , my bank statements , photos I took with my husband , conversation printed , marriage certificate , title deed etc and I was denied visa again . So im asking what documents does the UK embassy want????? I paid priority visa two times and its alot of money my husband and I have spent at the embassy . Im 49 years old and my husband is 73 years old . I want to go see or visit my husband in the UK . Can Mr . Leigh Turner
    help me or give me advice what I can do . ! Im sick of this .
    I will appreciate Sir .

  3. Hello Leigh
    Thank you so much for this information.
    İ visit UK frequently
    İ âm a choreographer from İstanbul who creates really cutting Edge work
    Tate Modern presented my work in 2014
    İ have more projects coming up in England
    Hope you can see my work one day.
    Best wishes
    Mehmet xx

  4. Hello, Sir.
    I am Shatila, I am an Indonesian who studying in Istanbul. I want to apply UK visa (Transit) for priority service. ( I have a Turkish Resident Permit ). My ticket to London will be Jan 27,2016. But, I’ll leave Istanbul in Jan 18,2016 for my euro trip. I already check the processing time for it (5 working days). But my condition is I am waiting for my schengen visa, so I will be able to apply uk visa after I accept my passport back which is I don’t know when. Do you think, if I apply UK visa in Jan 7, is it possible to get the visa before Jan 17? Do you have any suggestion for me?

    Thank you so much, Sir.
    And happy New Year 🙂

  6. Hi there i was just wondering how long does it take for the embassy to make a disitoin on his visa to the UK. He will apply for the spouse visa but has been told he will have to wait 2 months for a reply!. Could you please give me some information about this please. Thank you very much. R.guklu

  7. Hi,
    I applying for spouse visa for my wife this month. She is Iranian , we have to apply in Istanbul (Turkey). My question is, can we use the Settlement Priority Visa Service ? Thanks

  8. Thank you Mr Turner, this info was very helpful and reassuring. I would like to know if the visa processing service applies only to certain nationals of particular countries or to nationals from everywhere in the world?

    Thank you and keep up the good job.

  9. Dear Dr Naureen,
    I will be applying for spouse visa for my wife next month. She is Iranian so we have to apply in Turkey. My question is can we use the Bursa teleperforance centre? We have been to Istanbul 4 times and want to see somewhere new. Is there any particular advantage to using the Istanbul centre or are all applications processed the same?
    Regards

    2. Hi,

      Our visa team suggests that you are free to submit your application from Bursa VAC. There would not be any difference.

  10. Good day Mr.Leigh
    I’m really impressed by your professional approach and commitment towards your professional responsibilities.Despite the busy schedule you are still maintaining blogs.
    We are coming to Turkey for vacations in coming week .I just want to know that can we apply for Short Visit Visa for Tourism purpose to United Kingdom ,from Turkey (because of time shortage and lengthy process that will end our vacations),could not apply from Pakistan.I will be looking forward for your reply
    Best Regards

    1. Dear Dr Naureen

      I can’t comment on individual visa cases on this blog. In principle, a visitor to Turkey can apply here for a British visa. But there are two important factors to take into account:

      – a visitor may not have adequate access to produce supporting documents for applications (such as bank account details);
      – a visitor may not have sufficient time in-country for the application to be processed. For example, at present a visa takes approximately 8-9 working days to process, ie just under two weeks.

      I would therefore advise you to think carefully before assuming you will be able to apply successfully for a tourist visa to the UK while you are on holiday in Turkey.

      LT

  11. Hello Leigh
    I liked the blog you posted, me and my husband are about to apply for a settlement visa, i am British, my husband Turkish, we have done everything you have asked for in trying to make this application sucsessful, and you can imagine the stress it has caused me, UNIMAGINABLE, we pray hope that it will be sucsessful, if you happen to see our names then which should be with you May 1st,, please let it be good news, every channel we have followed to the letter, so please could you make it happen, being without my husband is not a life i chose but circumstances dictated my return to my mother country.

    If you do read this then i thank you for taking the time.

    Hazel Sakik.

    1. Hazel

      Thanks for this and glad you liked the blog. Unfortunately I am not involved in individual visa decisions and cannot comment on them.

      With best wishes,

      Leigh

Comments are closed.

About Leigh Turner

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of…

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of the UN and other organisations; stories here will reflect that.

About me: I arrived in Vienna in August 2016 for my second posting in this wonderful city, having first served here in the mid-1980s. My previous job was as HM Consul-General and Director-General for Trade and Investment for Turkey, Central Asia and South Caucasus based in Istanbul.

Further back: I grew up in Nigeria, Exeter, Lesotho, Swaziland and Manchester before attending Cambridge University 1976-79. I worked in several government departments before joining the Foreign Office in 1983.

Keen to go to Africa and South America, I’ve had postings in Vienna (twice), Moscow, Bonn, Berlin, Kyiv and Istanbul, plus jobs in London ranging from the EU Budget to the British Overseas Territories.

2002-6 I was lucky enough to spend four years in Berlin running the house, looking after the children (born 1992 and 1994) and doing some writing and journalism.

To return to Vienna as ambassador is a privilege and a pleasure. I hope this blog reflects that.

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