UK Visas and Immigration: Telephone Services
(asked on 21st November 2017) - View Source
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2017 to Question 111996 on Visas: Married People, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the advice his Department provides to sponsors of (a) spousal visa applicants or (b) EEA family permits residing in the UK to ensure that such people do not pay premium charges for using helplines; and if she will make a statement.
Those who use the services overseas are predominantly prospective customers and in many case no application will be made and no application fee collected. Those that use the services from within the UK will very often already have an immigration status with UKVI, have already paid an immigration fee and will also pay for any additional applications.
For UK Visas and Immigration in–country customers the contact centres provide information about the Immigration Rules and the Points Based System requirements via a number of published customer enquiry line numbers. In 2014, in line with Cabinet Office guidance, UKVI changed all 0845 and 0870 prefix helpline numbers to lower call tariff rate 0300 prefix numbers. UKVI do not generate any income from these non-geographic numbers enquiry lines.
UKVI have in place self selection pages on the Gov.uk website (see link below), as well as effective use of informative telephony message on our help lines to further ensure and assist customers wanting to contact UKVI. This initial triaging activity on our website ensures customers are provided with the correct point of contact within our business regarding their in country or overseas application enquiry.