Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help mitigate the potential impact of delays in family visa applications on applicants who are unable to work while awaiting a decision.

The number of family visa applications outstanding for more than 12 months is not currently available from published statistics. The relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

All family visa applications are carefully considered on their individual merits in accordance with the Immigration Rules and in line with the published family visa processing times available here: Visa processing times: applications inside the UK - GOV.UK. Where applicants require their application to be expedited owing to their individual compelling and compassionate circumstances, we will consider each case on its own merit.

The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, including service standards for processing visa applications, where applicable. The department is also in the process of implementing technology changes to improve efficiency and support faster processing of family visa applications.

Applicants on certain family routes may choose to use optional priority or super priority services, where available, for an additional fee to receive a faster decision on their application. Applicants using the priority service will usually receive a decision within five working days.

Further information on the priority service is available here: Get a faster decision on your visa or settlement application: Applying for a faster decision - GOV.UK

When an individual is considered for assessment of Change of Conditions, various No Recourse to Public Funds conditions are checked, with ‘destitution’ being one of these conditions.