March 16, (THEWILL) – The British High Commission in Nigeria has apologised for any inconvenience caused to Nigerians, due to its statement on March 15, in which it announced its inability to offer Priority Visa for visitor applications in Nigeria including “temporary suspension of priority visas for student, work and family applications.”
THEWILL earlier reported that the government of the United Kingdom (UK), had stated that it was giving priority to the “Ukraine Family Scheme”, which allows Ukrainians, those residing there or the immediate family member of a Ukrainian national to make applications based on new study, work, and family.
It had also said it would give priority consideration to anyone with medical emergencies.
But in a statement issued on Wednesday, the UK government said the “reports circulating in the Nigerian media and online that the UK has suspended student, work and family visas for Nigerian applicants” is not true.
Apparently due to the interest of the Nigerian public, the UK said “it is still possible to apply for any category of UK visa in the usual way on gov.uk and via our Visa Applications Centres (VAC) in Nigeria.”
The statement reads: “Following the statement issued by the British High Commission in Nigeria on 15 March, ‘Temporary suspension of priority visas for student, work and family applications’, we are aware of reports circulating in the Nigerian media and online that the UK has suspended student, work and family visas for Nigerian applicants.
“This is not true. It is still possible to apply for any category of UK visa in the usual way on gov.uk and via our Visa Applications Centres (VAC) in Nigeria.
“Our VACs remain open and customers are welcome to apply for a standard visa of any category in the usual manner, this includes student, family, work and visit visas.
“However, due to a reprioritisation of resources in response to the humanitarian crisis arising from the invasion of Ukraine, the UK has temporarily suspended its priority visa service.
“As our 15 March statement, made clear, this temporary suspension only applies to the UKVI’s expedited, added-value ‘Priority’ and ‘Super Priority’ visa services. This suspension is to enable the UK’s global visa operation to prioritise applications for the new Ukraine Family Scheme.
“This decision to suspend priority visa services is also clearly stated on UKVI’s guidance page, which sets out the latest decision waiting times for visa applicants outside the UK: www.gov.uk/guidance/visa-decision-waiting-times-applications-outside-the-uk.
“On behalf of UKVI, the British High Commission in Nigeria would like to apologise for any inconvenience this development has caused.
“The British High Commission in Nigeria will issue an updated statement the moment ‘Priority’ and ‘Super Priority’ visa services resume.”
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