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Article

29 Oct 2023

Author:
By Shanti Das, The Guardian (UK)

Overseas students and workers targeted in illicit UK visa trade

See all tags Allegations

UK visa appointments are being booked up by brokers and sold on for hundreds of pounds in an illicit trade targeting overseas workers and students.

… brokers in some parts of south Asia charging up to £800 for the biometric appointments, which are widely advertised on Facebook and the Telegram messaging service…

The underground market is thriving as agents exploit pressure on some consular services overseas, driven in part by increased visa applications from international students and healthcare workers…

But while direct booking of biometric appointments is typically free or between £30 and £85 for priority services, some people in south Asia are facing difficulties securing slots via VFS Global, the outsourcing company contracted by the Home Office to handle UK visa applications in the region…

“We take all attempts to misuse the visa application appointment system exceptionally seriously. We have not experienced this type or scale of abuse in any other UKVI [UK visas and immigration] locations and have been working closely with the UK Home Office to combat this abuse,” a VFS Global spokesperson said…

One applicant described finding a free appointment on VFS Global’s system as a lottery” and said that they had to check the website at various times during the night…