Urgent - Sopra Steria booking service down and unable to contact over phone

[engineer86]

Good Afternoon,
I just submitted my application through the online system and paid for the super priority service. However, when I click on the 'Continue' button in the 'Book an Appointment' section, the below error message is displayed:


Sorry, there is currently a problem with this service
Please try again later.

We are working as quickly as possible to fix this problem. We advise you to keep checking and when it is available, you will need to make arrangements to provide your biometrics with our commercial partner so that you can complete your application.

You can return to your application by logging in via the link that was sent to you in your payment confirmation email. The link will take you to the 'Further actions' page where you should follow the instructions on how to make arrangements to provide your biometrics.

I'm guessing people on this forum have experienced similar service outages in the past. Does anyone have an idea how long such outages last?

Thanks

[engineer86]

Good Morning,
I checked again and the service is still down.

On the Sopra Steria website, there’s a number for their contact centre and it says calls cost £2.50 per minute.

I’m wondering whether there’s a requirement to upload documents prior to booking a biometrics appointment?


Has anyone else experienced the same issue?

I would really appreciate any advice, especially from the moderators of this forum.

Thanks

[engineer86]

Hi all,
I submitted my UKVI application for ILR yesterday but when I click on the 'Book an Appointment' link a page with an error message is displayed suggesting Sopra Steria's booking service is unavailable. I've been checking this every few hours since 5 pm yesterday. I paid for the super-priority service.

Earlier I phoned their contact centre. I was put on hold for a few minutes and then a recording was played saying all agents were busy and that I should try back later.

Could anyone please advise what course of action should I take?

Thanks

[zimba]

Try your best to contact Sopra Steria. Only they can answer your question

[engineer86]

Thanks Zimba. I’ve submitted a complaint through the form on their website and the confirmation message says they’ll try to respond within the next 5-10 days.

I submitted my application, paid for the ‘next-day’ super-priority service. If worse comes to worst and my current leave to remain expires then it’s Sopra Steria’d fault not mine. I’m sure any court would accept that argument.

I can keep trying to contact them over the phone but it costs £2.50 per minute before the call automatically gets terminated after playing a recorded message after a few minutes.

[CR001]

I submitted my application, paid for the ‘next-day’ super-priority service. If worse comes to worst and my current leave to remain expires then it’s Sopra Steria’d fault not mine. I’m sure any court would accept that argument.

Date of application is the date you submit and pay online and NOT your Sopra appointment date!!

[engineer86]

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/h ... 67706.html

[engineer86]

I submitted my application, paid for the ‘next-day’ super-priority service. If worse comes to worst and my current leave to remain expires then it’s Sopra Steria’d fault not mine. I’m sure any court would accept that argument.

Date of application is the date you submit and pay online and NOT your Sopra appointment date!!

Thanks for the clarification CR001.

In a worst case scenario, where I’m unable to book a biometrics appointment before expiry of my current leave to remain, will I continue to retain the right to work?

[CR001]

Yes, if you made an in time application, Section 3C of the Immigration Rules comes into play and your existing visa conditions continue while an application is pending decision with HO, even if your visa expires.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... d-3d-leave

[engineer86]

Hi all,
Is anyone else here experiencing the same issue?

I submitted my application on Thursday but clicking on the link to book appointment returns an error message saying there is currently a problem with the service.

Thanks in advance.

[Terenpo]

Hi,

Yes, I submitted my application on Friday and I am receiving the same error message. Have you any news about when it will start to work again?

Thanks!

[engineer86]

Hi,

Yes, I submitted my application on Friday and I am receiving the same error message. Have you any news about when it will start to work again?

Thanks!

Hi Terenpo,
I phoned UKVI on Friday and they asked me to email the technical support team at the Home Office. I sent them an email asking when the issue is likely to be resolved and am still awaiting a response. I shall post it here, as soon as I receive one.

I also submitted an enquiry through the publicly accessible form on Sopra Steria’s UKVCAS website asking them when the service will be restored.

https://www.ukvcas.co.uk/contact-us/general-enquiry

Moreover, I tried booking an appointment over the phone a couple of times, but was put on hold for a few minutes. The call was terminated each time, after playing a recording, asking me to try back later. Calls cost £2.50 per minute.

It’s quite unusual for such a vital service to be down for more than 4 days.

Please let me know if you have any luck booking an appointment over the phone. I’ll keep you updated here.

Thanks.

[engineer86]

Hi,

Yes, I submitted my application on Friday and I am receiving the same error message. Have you any news about when it will start to work again?

Thanks!

Hi,
I finally managed to get through to Sopra Steria's contact centre. I was asked for the 'Unique Application Number' needed to book an appointment, which I provided. The person on the phone said she wasn't able to find the number on their system because UKVI are yet to forward this to them. She then asked me to contact UKVI on 0300 123 2241. It's worth mentioning I had already phoned UKVI on this number on Friday and described the issue and they asked me to contact their technical support team through email. I received a generic response from UKVI's technical support team this morning, asking me to provide them 'specific details' of the issue; something I had already provided in the original email.

I've come up against a brick wall here! Not really sure what else I can do, other than checking the link in question on a daily basis.

Would CR001, Zimba or other moderators here kindly be able answer the following question:

I submitted my application on 11th April. As UKVI's appointment booking service is down, I haven't been able to upload any of the evidentiary documents. If the service is restored 4 weeks later, will I need to ask my employer to issue a new letter, considering the one I've got is dated 9th April?


Thanks

[CR001]

As has been answered MANY times already, date of application is the date you submit and pay online.

[engineer86]

As has been answered MANY times already, date of application is the date you submit and pay online.

Thank you CR001.

[engineer86]

As has been answered MANY times already, date of application is the date you submit and pay online.

Thank you CR001.

Hi CR001,
As this is an ongoing issue with the UKVI online system, please would you be able to flag this as a ‘highlighted topic’ so that it always appears on the first page of the ILR section?

Thanks

[zimba]

This is not relevant to ILR subforum. Also many have secured appointments recently without any issues. This may affect only some people

[Nedkel]

I have had the same problem, contacted ukvi and was told to email appointments exceptions and they just came back to me with this

Good morning,

We advise you to keep checking and when it is available, you will need to make arrangements to provide your biometrics with our commercial partner so that you can complete your application. Additionally, there are no reported issues with Sopra’s site.

Regards

Appointment Exception

[engineer86]

I have had the same problem, contacted ukvi and was told to email appointments exceptions and they just came back to me with this

Good morning,

We advise you to keep checking and when it is available, you will need to make arrangements to provide your biometrics with our commercial partner so that you can complete your application. Additionally, there are no reported issues with Sopra’s site.

Regards

Appointment Exception

Hi,
When did you submit your application? I submitted mine last Thursday. I’ve been checking multiple times each day since. I emailed UKVI again yesterday asking for a time frame for resolution and am waiting for their response.

Not sure what they mean by ‘Appointment Exception’. Perhaps it’s a software bug in their system affecting only a subset of applicants. Hope they fix the issue quickly as this is becoming increasing frustrating.

Keep us posted please if there’s a breakthrough.

Kind regards

[Nedkel]

Hi
Appointmentexceptions@homeoffice.gov was who I was told to email by ukvi. I have responded and asked if they could also give me a little more info, but I’m not hopeful.

I can only assume it might be something to do with the issues they had on Friday when hundreds of people were turned away from their biometric appointments.

I applied on Saturday.

Will let you know if I get anywhere with them.

[engineer86]

Hi
Appointmentexceptions@homeoffice.gov was who I was told to email by ukvi. I have responded and asked if they could also give me a little more info, but I’m not hopeful.

I can only assume it might be something to do with the issues they had on Friday when hundreds of people were turned away from their biometric appointments.

I applied on Saturday.

Will let you know if I get anywhere with them.

Hi,
The email address I was provided by UKVI’s contact centre is ApplyOnlineE-Support@homeoffice.gov.uk

I just received an email from them confirming that they have now escalated it to a higher level in their technical team for investigation. In their previous email, they had asked for details specific to my application i.e. application UAN, payment reference, name, date of birth, nationality, link to the application etc which I provided.

I would suggest you email them as well. I’m not sure if they were previously aware of this system issue, as the error message is somewhat generic.

I’ll keep you posted here as soon as I have an update.

Kind regards

[Nedkel]

I have contacted that address and they have said they do not know of any issues with the system and have requested screen shots.

It sounds like you’ve got them going on it, hopefully they will have it resolved soon.

[Terenpo]

Hi @engineer86,

Many thanks for the details that you have provided. I have contacted my Sponsor Immigration Advisor and she said unfortunately since the Home Office changed the service provider, applicants have been having various issues with the new system. Bad Luck...

I just send an e-mail to online support asking for an urgent solution, let's see what I will hear from them.

[Nedkel]

the reason it is not working is apple, use android or windows

[Nedkel]

Hi
Appointmentexceptions@homeoffice.gov was who I was told to email by ukvi. I have responded and asked if they could also give me a little more info, but I’m not hopeful.

I can only assume it might be something to do with the issues they had on Friday when hundreds of people were turned away from their biometric appointments.

I applied on Saturday.

Will let you know if I get anywhere with them.

Hi,
The email address I was provided by UKVI’s contact centre is ApplyOnlineE-Support@homeoffice.gov.uk

I just received an email from them confirming that they have now escalated it to a higher level in their technical team for investigation. In their previous email, they had asked for details specific to my application i.e. application UAN, payment reference, name, date of birth, nationality, link to the application etc which I provided.

I would suggest you email them as well. I’m not sure if they were previously aware of this system issue, as the error message is somewhat generic.

I’ll keep you posted here as soon as I have an update.

Kind regards

It seemed to work when I used my partners android phone, I have an apple phone and a macbook so there must be something going wrong there. Good luck