tracicita

Hello! I am American and previously had Leave to Remain in the UK. I came back to the USA for four years to care for my elderly parents. Now that they have passed, my British husband and I are ready to return to the UK. I re-applied for my Leave to Remain and my visa was granted with the valid from and to dates as April 24th, 2020 to October 24th, 2020. I have two questions: 1. When I applied online, it stated that you have to pick a date to fly and if it is approved, you have to fly to the UK within one month of that date. I picked May 1st and assumed I would have to fly by June 1st. However, the visa they put in my passport has that 6 month window, so am I safe to assume that I can fly any time between those dates? And 2. I had to pick a post office in the UK for my Biometric Residence Permit to be sent to. Does anyone know when it is going to be sent there? Is it as soon as I was approved and it will just sit there waiting for me? Is it April 24th and it will just sit there waiting for me? Is it when the UK registers me entering at the airport? It says I have ten days from arrival in the UK to pick up the BRP so I'm just confused about when it will be sent. Thank you for any advice!!!

BritInParis

Could you clarify, did you hold Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK and you have now been granted a Returning Resident visa?

tracicita

Yes, exactly that. I had ILR previously, was out of the country more than two years, and I was recently granted the Returning Resident Visa.

BritInParis

There’s no automatic BRP for Returning Resident visa holders. You can travel to the UK at any time during that six month period but you should aim to arrive as soon as possible and to lodge an application for a No Time Limit BRP as standard processing times can be up to six months.

https://www.gov.uk/biometric-residen...place-visa-brp

tracicita

My application says "Your BRP collection location: Post Office - Bangor - 264 High Street, Bangor, LL57 1PB." So for this type of application, Returning Resident, they do send your BRP to your nearest Post Office.

tracicita

If you applied from outside the UK

Collect your BRP once you’re in the UK.

You must do this before the vignette sticker in your travel document expires or within 10 days of arriving in the UK, whichever is later.

Check your decision letter. It will tell you to collect your BRP from either:

• a named Post Office branch
• your sponsor, if you chose this option when you applied

You must be over 18 to collect a BRP.

SanDiegogirl

As you picked 1 May to fly and you have 10 days in which to pick up your BRP I would think it would be available from 1st May at the Post Office of your choice wouldn't you?

My application says "Your BRP collection location: Post Office - Bangor - 264 High Street, Bangor, LL57 1PB."

BritInParis

If there was a BRP waiting for you then you’d be given a 30 day entry vignette, not six months, and you’d be told in your grant letter the date your BRP would be available from.

tracicita

Thanks for the info - any idea what it means in my application where it says for me to choose which Post Office to send the BRP to and that I have to pick it up within 10 days of arrival in the UK? I have a photo of the page but it won't let me post it here because I don't have five posts yet. And then also what this quote from uk dot gov means:

If you applied from outside the UK

Collect your BRP once you’re in the UK.

You must do this before the vignette sticker in your travel document expires or within 10 days of arriving in the UK, whichever is later.

Check your decision letter. It will tell you to collect your BRP from either:

• a named Post Office branch
• your sponsor, if you chose this option when you applied

Thank you again!

tracicita

Oh and also I went to USCIS and gave my photo and fingerprints for a BRP.

BritInParis

That’s just generic information. It applies to a lot of visa applications but not yours. Giving your biometric information doesn’t mean you’ll be given a BRP.

tracicita

Thanks, what's your opinion on what it means in my application where it says for me to choose which Post Office to send the BRP to and that I have to pick it up within 10 days of arrival in the UK? (I chose Bangor)

BritInParis

Again, it’s a generic application form question. It doesn’t apply to your visa type. Your grant letter should specify where and when you should pick up your BRP. That you’re asking these questions on this thread means you haven’t been told because there is no BRP to collect.

tracicita

"Collect your BRP once you’re in the UK. You must do this before the vignette sticker in your travel document expires or within 10 days of arriving in the UK, whichever is later." I'll let you know when I pick it up - post a pic in the post office

Thanks again!

BritInParis

You won’t because it’s not going to be there. If you want a BRP then you’ll need to submit a separate application after you arrive and it’ll be posted to your home address.