Not sure what to put for a couple of questions on the form for Replacement BRP

[James6384]

Hi.

My American wife is in the UK on a spouse visa (FLR M), and she lost her BRP five weeks ago when she was in a taxi in London, on her way to the US embassy (she was going there to apply in person for a US passport for our child). She is now filling out the form, five weeks later, to apply for a replacement BRP. She reported it lost to the Home Office a few days ago. There are a couple of questions on the form that she is a bit unsure of how to answer. I've pasted below her draft answers to these questions (no personal details included), and I'm wondering if any knowledgeable forum members could give your thoughts on whether these answers are alright. The steps she took after she realised her BRP was lost are stated in these answers. As you'll read, she did report it lost to the police, but not at an actual police station, and no police report was filed. I hope that this won't cause a problem for the application. Anyway, here are her draft answers.

In answer to the question "How was your document lost or stolen?", she has answered:

"I left it in a taxi in London on the way to the US Embassy. I tried to track it down, going from the embassy security, to the police officers outside, having them call the officer on duty at the time of loss. They determined in the end that my wallet (with my BRP in) was in the possession of the taxi driver, even though he alerted the police officers outside the embassy that he had it. I was told to file a report with the Transport for London Lost Property office. After 5 weeks, I've received no response."

And in answer to the question ""Location of the police station reported to?", she has answered:

"Reported to police officers at US Embassy, who contacted the officer on duty at time of loss. I was instructed to file a report with the Transport for London Lost Property office."

And in answer to the question asking if she has a police report, she has answered "no".

Thanks for any help

[AmazonianX]

The answers provided are fine so far they depict what happened and how and the steps taken.
Do not that having a report i.e official police report would be the way to go. Dont know if it is a must, but considering similar situation from other jurisdiction it makes it more formal and contemporaneous evidence of documenting the loss e.g. if at a latter date the BRP is found or discovered to have been used for fraudulent purposes what can she point to as record of reporting the loss?

[James6384]

Thank you for your response.

We went to our local police station also to try to report it, but the police officer there was not interested in filing a report, and just said that it is not the police who deal with it and that we should just report it to the Home Office (which we have done). I understand that it is better to get a police report if we can, but at this point I think we'd rather just get the BRP replacement application submitted and only get a police report if it is absolutely required as part of the application. We do at least have a record through an email sent to us from the Transport for London Lost Property office that we reported the loss to them at the time of loss.

Is anybody able to tell me if a police report is actually required as part of my wife's application for a replacement BRP? This is the question that we basically need answered.

Many thanks.

[CR001]

You don't need a police report.

[James6384]

Thanks.

One more thing we're a little unsure of is what and how many supporting documents my wife should submit as proof of her address. If we include our most recent joint bank statement, our most recent rent statement in joint names from our Housing Association, a Tax Credits award letter in joint names that was sent in April, and a registration letter from my wife's current GP surgery from around a year ago, would these documents be sufficient? Thanks.

[seagul]

Thanks.

One more thing we're a little unsure of is what and how many supporting documents my wife should submit as proof of her address. If we include our most recent joint bank statement, our most recent rent statement in joint names from our Housing Association, a Tax Credits award letter in joint names that was sent in April, and a registration letter from my wife's current GP surgery from around a year ago, would these documents be sufficient? Thanks.

Checklist at the end will guide you as what to include.

[James6384]

The checklist at the end is not very helpful unfortunately, as it doesn't provide any details of what we should include as proof as address, or how many documents are required.

[James6384]

At the beginning of the online application form was a single sentence giving a couple of examples of what we can include as proof of address (one example being a bank statement and the other a utility bill), but there was no information on what else we can or should include, or how many documents, or within what time frame.

[seagul]

At the beginning of the online application form was a single sentence giving a couple of examples of what we can include as proof of address (one example being a bank statement and the other a utility bill), but there was no information on what else we can or should include, or how many documents, or within what time frame.

By delving briefly via google search, the following helpful material has been unearthed which was for the students of Warwick University (UK's public university)until around 21.03.2018. So nothing stops from reading it for just extracting the relevant bits by ignoring what relates to students.

https://warwick.ac.uk/study/internation ... nal_v4.pdf

[James6384]

Thanks for that info. The supporting document checklist on the application form only asked for proof of address plus a downloadable consent form that was in three parts, so there mustn't be anything else required.

I booked a biometrics appointment on the UKVCAS site earlier tonight at an enhanced service point. I cancelled the appointment after I made it because I realised that I need to reschedule it for a different day. Do you know if I need to wait 14 days now before I can book a new appointment? Or can I book a new appointment straightaway? Thanks.

[seagul]

I booked a biometrics appointment on the UKVCAS site earlier tonight at an enhanced service point. I cancelled the appointment after I made it because I realised that I need to reschedule it for a different day. Do you know if I need to wait 14 days now before I can book a new appointment? Or can I book a new appointment straightaway? Thanks.

You should be able to book a new appointment straightaway (if available) as there is no cap of waiting for 14 days on cancellation.

[James6384]

Thanks again for your reply.

I'm just a little confused because the terms and conditions page on the UKVCAS site (https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/sopr ... TandCs.pdf) says the following at the end of page 2, which seems to be saying I do need to wait 14 days to book a new appointment:

We will wait to carry out the Services until the 14 day cancellation period is over (and no
appointment may be booked by you for attendance during this period) unless you and
we have agreed to start within the cancellation period. If you wish to receive the Services
(and/or book any appointment for attendance) during the cancellation period then you
acknowledge that you will lose the right to change your mind and cancel the Contract
during the 14 day cancellation period once the Services have been carried out by us and
we will charge you for the total cost of the Services which we have carried out.
UKVCAS Official Partner of
Last updated 13 February 2020 3
If you do wish to receive the Services (and/or book any appointment for attendance) during the
14 day cancellation period you should read and tick to confirm your acceptance of the following
confirmation:
By ticking this box you agree that, on your request, we can start to carry out the Services
during the 14 days cancellation period. However, you will lose the right to change your
mind and cancel the Contract during the 14 day cancellation period once the Services
have been carried out by us and we will charge you for the total cost of the Services
which we have carried out.

[James6384]

Thanks again for your reply.

I'm just a little confused by a paragraph on the Terms and Conditions page of the UKVCAS site, and I'm wondering if you could give your thoughts on what it means. Unfortunately I'm not able to post a link to the page on here without my post needing to be approved by a moderator, but the page can be easily found on the UKVCAS site. The paragraph appears to be referring to the cancellation of biometrics appointments, and says the following:

"We will wait to carry out the Services until the 14 day cancellation period is over (and no appointment may be booked by you for attendance during this period) unless you and we have agreed to start within the cancellation period. If you wish to receive the Services (and/or book any appointment for attendance) during the cancellation period then you acknowledge that you will lose the right to change your mind and cancel the Contract during the 14 day cancellation period once the Services have been carried out by us and we will charge you for the total cost of the Services which we have carried out.
If you do wish to receive the Services (and/or book any appointment for attendance) during the 14 day cancellation period you should read and tick to confirm your acceptance of the following confirmation:
By ticking this box you agree that, on your request, we can start to carry out the Services during the 14 days cancellation period. However, you will lose the right to change your mind and cancel the Contract during the 14 day cancellation period once the Services have been carried out by us and we will charge you for the total cost of the Services which we have carried out."

[seagul]

There are several general templates & messages which are circulated unamended from time to time, so just carrying on searching the replacement appointment.

[snowysky]

Hi James and all,

I am also in London and lost my BRP and have submitted the application for a replacement. I entered a "Yes" for the police report as that's what the officer at the Police Station told me - they said the Home Office are well aware that the London Met police do not issue a specific report number, and if their form said that you must have a police report, we can put Yes as we did report it to the police. I hope this will be fine!

They said if I want to, then for a small fee I can make a report on "removed by moderator" which I already did before I went to them.

Btw, can I check that this is also your understanding: The form said not to send any documents to the Home Office unless asked to. And then they require to see the originals for the Passport, and original Home Office letter granting the current visa. So the originals we need to bring to the centre are:
1. Passports
2. Letter granting the current visa (in my case is ILR)
3. Signed consent form (in my case only part 1 as part 2 & 3 are not applicable to me)

And I suppose UKBA will only need to verify that these documents are indeed genuine, but will not keep them as they have not asked for a self-addressed envelope for these to be returned to us?

[seagul]

but will not keep them as they have not asked for a self-addressed envelope for these to be returned to us?

All documents are sent electronically instead post unless under rarest scenarios when these are being asked to send in original. Also most of correspondence between the applicant and caseworker is performed via email and the delivery of BRP is made through tnt courier.

[James6384]

Hi James and all,

I am also in London and lost my BRP and have submitted the application for a replacement. I entered a "Yes" for the police report as that's what the officer at the Police Station told me - they said the Home Office are well aware that the London Met police do not issue a specific report number, and if their form said that you must have a police report, we can put Yes as we did report it to the police. I hope this will be fine!

They said if I want to, then for a small fee I can make a report on "removed by moderator" which I already did before I went to them.

Btw, can I check that this is also your understanding: The form said not to send any documents to the Home Office unless asked to. And then they require to see the originals for the Passport, and original Home Office letter granting the current visa. So the originals we need to bring to the centre are:
1. Passports
2. Letter granting the current visa (in my case is ILR)
3. Signed consent form (in my case only part 1 as part 2 & 3 are not applicable to me)

And I suppose UKBA will only need to verify that these documents are indeed genuine, but will not keep them as they have not asked for a self-addressed envelope for these to be returned to us?

A police report is apparently not required as part of the application. We just selected "no" to the question asking if we have a police report. But I don't think there will be any problems with you selecting "yes" to that question.
In your case, do you have to submit proof of address with your application? My wife has to submit documents to prove her address. The application form didn't provide much clarification on what specifically to include.

[snowysky]

Hi James and all,

I am also in London and lost my BRP and have submitted the application for a replacement. I entered a "Yes" for the police report as that's what the officer at the Police Station told me - they said the Home Office are well aware that the London Met police do not issue a specific report number, and if their form said that you must have a police report, we can put Yes as we did report it to the police. I hope this will be fine!

They said if I want to, then for a small fee I can make a report on "removed by moderator" which I already did before I went to them.

Btw, can I check that this is also your understanding: The form said not to send any documents to the Home Office unless asked to. And then they require to see the originals for the Passport, and original Home Office letter granting the current visa. So the originals we need to bring to the centre are:
1. Passports
2. Letter granting the current visa (in my case is ILR)
3. Signed consent form (in my case only part 1 as part 2 & 3 are not applicable to me)

And I suppose UKBA will only need to verify that these documents are indeed genuine, but will not keep them as they have not asked for a self-addressed envelope for these to be returned to us?

A police report is apparently not required as part of the application. We just selected "no" to the question asking if we have a police report.
In your case, do you have to submit proof of address with your application? My wife has to submit documents to prove her address. The application form didn't provide much clarification on what specifically to include.

Gosh I hope me putting a "Yes" will be fine! I did so as the form said it is a requirement to have one; and the police officer seemed very familiar with this as he said they kept getting people coming to lodge reports when London Met no longer gives out specific report number for the BRP replacement.

With regards to proof of address, I am simply submitting a bank statement as this is amongst the examples given by the form as a document which has both my name and address.

[snowysky]

I just want to add that I had to queue for three hours in the scorching sun outside the police station on 2nd August, as they were only allowing 2 people in at a time due to CoVid social distancing rules.

And when it was finally my turn, upon explaining my objective of being there, my case took less than 10 minutes!

The officer said, "yes you reporting this to me is you making the report, but we do not give out a specific reference number for your report which you can use the application. This has been the case for many years and of course Immigration will be aware of this too as it's all under the Home Office, so if they state you must have a report to proceed then this is it and you will be fine."

I hope it will really be fine, fingers crossed!

[snowysky]

but will not keep them as they have not asked for a self-addressed envelope for these to be returned to us?

All documents are sent electronically instead post unless under rarest scenarios when these are being asked to send in original. Also most of correspondence between the applicant and caseworker is performed via email and the delivery of BRP is made through tnt courier.

Hi Seagul, thank you for your reply - just seen it now.

It was a bit vague as the form said we are not required to send any documents; while also stating that we must provide the original passports and original letter granting the ILR when we attend the appointment.

So with your reply, I think I now understand that the Home Office Case Worker will electronically review the documents; while the UKVCAS agent will verify the most important documents, which are the (1)Passports and (2)the original Home Office letter granting ILR, are indeed genuine, in addition to (3)recapturing our fingerprints and photo.

And they will need the signed consent form too so they can scan it themselves I suppose? I will still scan and submit this via the website, just in case!

[James6384]

I just want to add that I had to queue for three hours in the scorching sun outside the police station on 2nd August, as they were only allowing 2 people in at a time due to CoVid social distancing rules.

And when it was finally my turn, upon explaining my objective of being there, my case took less than 10 minutes!

The officer said, "yes you reporting this to me is you making the report, but we do not give out a specific reference number for your report which you can use the application. This has been the case for many years and of course Immigration will be aware of this too as it's all under the Home Office, so if they state you must have a report to proceed then this is it and you will be fine."

I hope it will really be fine, fingers crossed!

I don't think there'll be any problem caused by you selecting "yes" to that question. But if you wanted to, you could just mention in a cover letter what you've explained in your post above.

I didn't see anywhere on the application that stated that a police report is required. And CR001 also said in his above reply that a police report is not required.

I don't have reason to believe that a bank statement alone will not be sufficient proof of address, but I would recommend including a couple more documents too such as a utility bill or a Tax credits letter, just to be on the safe side.

[seagul]

The officer said, "yes you reporting this to me is you making the report, but we do not give out a specific reference number for your report which you can use the application.

Officer said correct because reference number is only allocated where the passport is stolen instead where the passport has been lost. However, it is always best to ask some copy of the lodged complaint for personal reference.

[James6384]

My wife attended her biometrics appointment today as part of her replacement brp application. She had her documents scanned during her appointment. She brought with her several documents to use as proof of address, but was only required to provide one. She used her GP registration letter as proof of her address. It has just occurred to me that the GP registration letter is from last December. It is 10½ months old, and I am a little worried that this could cause a problem with her application. The UKVCAS agent who scanned the GP registration letter didn't seem to actually check it over. She just scanned it into the system. Is anyone on here able to tell me if there could be a problem caused by the fact that the proof of address that we provided is from last December? Thanks for any help.

[AmazonianX]

My wife attended her biometrics appointment today as part of her replacement brp application. She had her documents scanned during her appointment. She brought with her several documents to use as proof of address, but was only required to provide one. She used her GP registration letter as proof of her address. It has just occurred to me that the GP registration letter is from last December. It is 10½ months old, and I am a little worried that this could cause a problem with her application. The UKVCAS agent who scanned the GP registration letter didn't seem to actually check it over. She just scanned it into the system. Is anyone on here able to tell me if there could be a problem caused by the fact that the proof of address that we provided is from last December? Thanks for any help.

Do not worry yourself to death, if it is not suitable you will be contacted to provide another.

[seagul]

The UKVCAS agent who scanned the GP registration letter didn't seem to actually check it over. She just scanned it into the system.

The staff at UKVCAS centre aren't a immigration staff who can advise correctly and that is why it has been repeatedly echoed here to always upload by yourself before attending the appointment. Despite this, still that alone wont affect anything as you might be contacted by the ukvi if anything further will be needed.