BritishGuy36

So in other words the subject access certificate which I have paid for and have not yet recieved is already useless! :curse:

Thanks for posting that Matt, at least we all know now what the score is for immigrant visa applicants.

I'll post about this over on VJ too.

Marg1

Since I just spent £1.20/min calling the London Embassy's visa info line, I thought I would share with you all. The old police certificates ("subject access") will be accepted through 14 April 2008. If your interview is after this date, and even if you already have the old police certificate, you need to reapply for a new police certificate at www.acpo.police.uk/certificates.asp.

BritishGuy36

Thanks for the confirmation Marj.

Although last time I rang the dis-information line what they told me was 100% wrong. This time, I am inclined to believe what they said, though.

matt72

this is why i posted this after my visa interview last friday (hoping to save people keep checking etc.)..

honestly, the guy i spoke to was the guy who deals with the actual paperwork so i knew the date WOULD be reliable.

BritishGuy36

Does anyone have an interview date in London for after April 15th?

If so, will you please inform us if you are going to attempt to use a subject access response? Then after the date perhaps you can report back with whether you were successful or not.

I am in contact with someone in my county police department by email about the situation, they are saying that the Embassy are saying that subject access is still good until August 15th.

fatbrit

Just wanted to add this to the knowledge base though I'm not sure it provides very much. It was the reply to a WTF question (on another site) I asked of a British consul here in the US when this monster surfaced:


With apologies for the time it has taken me to respond to this one, I asked the Home Office for advice on the new system. They, in turn, directed me towards to the ACPO Criminal Records Office. The following answer has been provided by ACPO, it covers the basics as to why the Police Certificate system has been changed for visa applications:

For some time now the Information Commissioner has expressed concern regarding the continued use of the Subject Access system by a number of Agencies who require a person to provide certificated proof of their character so far as it applies to being 'known to the police'.

Section 56 (1) Data Protection Act 1998 states that - "A person must not, in connection with - (a) the recruitment of another person as an employee, (b) the continued employment of another person, or (c) any contract for the provision of services to him by another person, require that other person or a third party to supply him with a relevant record or to produce a relevant record to him."

Section 56 (20) - " A person concerned with the provision (for payment or not) of goods, facilities or services to the public or a section of the public must not, as a condition of providing or offering to provide any goods, facilities or services to another person, require that other person or a third party to supply him with a relevant record or to produce a relevant record to him."

Although the legislation has been enacted it has not yet been implemented. Given these facts the Police and the Information Commissioner agreed to consider new ways of providing information to certain agencies, within the law. The Embassies of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States require persons applying for Visa entry, to provide information as to whether they have any criminal convictions recorded against them. The Police Certificate was introduced to cover this important area of business. The police Certificate clearly states it is for Immigration Purposes.

The price increase takes account of a much more robust process.

The inclusion of the photograph is at the request of the respective Embassy staff involved in Visa processing, as an extra level of fraud prevention.

Given that the Police Certificate was only introduced in January 2008, the first Certificates issued did state an expiry date - six months from date of issue. That has now been changed to a 'Date of Issue'. It is for the respective countries to determine a date of expiry or validity. It should be understood that the certificate could only be safely assumed to be accurate on the date of issue. The United States Embassy "consider the Police Certificate valid for 12 months from date of issuance".

ACPO covers the police services in England and Wales. ACPOS is responsible for policing matters in Scotland. The Police Certificate is issued to persons who are UK Citizens and therefore includes those residents of Scotland and Northern Ireland.

I hope this helps. If you need more information on the system, please contact ACPO.

robnewman

This is unbelievable!

I have only just received my subject access certificate (saying that they have no records of me) two days ago... I applied for it just over a month ago, and the embassy didn't think it was a good idea to inform those who are applying for a visa of the new procedure?! :curse:

It's bad enough that the old, now defunct certificate cost a tenner... now I have to shell out another £35...

Here's a question though...

I have only lived in Aylesbury for 15 months... the only "official" people I know have known me for the same... How the hell am I supposed to get my photo approved?!

Oh well... I guess it's just one more hoop to jump through... Leap dolphin... Leap!

Matt34

According to the staffordshire police website the last date is 31st March.

http://www.staffordshire.police.uk/f...protection.htm

and yet the Embassy website still says August.


Would be interested to hear if anyone has gone to an appointment after the 15th April with their subject access and see what happens ?

defairmans

What???!

We paid £10 about a month ago and just received the certificate the other day and now we have to get a new one? This is a nightmare!

What would happen if we went to the interview with the current one? We wouldn't have known it wasn't valid unless we came to this board. It is supposed to be valid for a year.

I'm sooooo pissed off. :curse:

nettlebed

Does anyone know if the new style certs are required for natz (bearing in mind that I have a record, and have to submit all details of my nefarious activities).

meauxna

Have you received your visa document checklist from the Embassy, that directed you to get that police certificate?

I understand that you may have been preparing ahead of time with the information you had at that time, but things DO change, even in the middle of your own process.

defairmans

Yes, we received the checklist and we were going by that. I had no idea it could just change like that. It's crazy. I would have gone to the interview none the wiser if it wasn't for this board. I think I'm actually just going to hold off now.

Matt34

Thing is if the Embassy website still says August since it is updated regulary then if folk are turning up with the subject access they should still accept it ? Since their information is misleading. Then again what with there being several differnt dates of when they stop accepting it who knows ?

If no new information comes to light by the time i have my appointment in 2months i might just print the website and take it with me encase of any grief..........

BritishGuy36

The problem is that the USCIS/conlsular staff are a law unto themselves, if they say black is white you have to accept it, you have no way to change their minds. Even the act of arguing the case with them could harm your chances of getting a visa.

Best thing is to be as prepared as you can be (which is why thread was started) and hope for the best! Not ideal or even acceptable in my opinion but there's little or nothing we can do about it.

There are many things that make us mad about this process, like inconsistencies on the website, seeming inconsistencies on how different individuals are treated, and scandalous premium-rate "information" lines where the persons on the other end have been known to give wrong advice.

One just has to try and take it all as calmly as one can and try not to let it affect you as you work through the process.

Matt34

I argee i have had this problem with them in the past. If they say the sky if green you just have to agree. Still i did file a complaint with the ISO about this new process for criminal records. Though i doubt it will do much good since its just another way of stiffing us folk even more before we can leave the country

However thankfully i found this website which explains things. It seems the reason's why we are hearing differnet dates is because 14th April applies to Immigrant Visa applicants and 15th August applies to Non Immigrant applicants. Wish they would have made that clearer....:curse:

www.usvisalawyers.co.uk/whatsnew.htm