Hi everyone, I am a long time reader of this forum, but this is my first post. My wife and I applied for ILR almost 6 months ago and have not heard anything since. We applied via the postal route on the basis that according to UKBA guidance "we will: decide 95% of postal applications within six months..." (
http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas ... tingtimes/). Clearly we rolled the dice here, but I given those odds I thought it was better to wait a month or two extra rather than fork over the extra cash for the premium service. However, after finding this document
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/ ... 026061.pdf
it is clear that the advertised standards are not even close to being met. The reply to the freedom of information request referenced above is dated 5/4/13, so that means that September applicants have been waiting for longer than six months. However, 78% of applications are still pending. The statistics for the previous 2 months are almost as bad (both have 66% still pending).
This has had quite an impact on my life. We have not been able to travel back to see friends and family. My parents have not been able to see their new grandson, etc. Aside from the emotional/family stuff, I do feel that this delay has also come with a financial penalty. I have not been able to travel for work, and this is beginning to impact on my ability to do my job. I am an expert in a specialist field of engineering. My work requires me to travel occasionally to meet with other technical specialists - particularly if we are working on collaborative projects funded via the EU. Obviously I have not been able to fulfill this component of my job and I feel this is beginning to harm my career progression. However, given the application has been with the UKBA so long, I am loathe to pull it now and lose the £1500 application fee.
Given the above, I am eager to hear the opinions of those on this forum about the possibility of seeking compensation from the UKBA for the inconvenience that they are causing. The grounds for the action would be that the UKBA do not accurately advertise their processing times and that this misadvertisment induces people to apply via the postal route at significant emotional/financial cost. I am not too sure about proceeding with a case by myself, but am interested in hearing your thoughts on whether it would be possible to organise a class-action type lawsuit to prosecute this case.