• UK
  • 02:41 25 Nov 2009
  • |    Suva
  • 14:41 25 Nov 2009
 

How do I apply

If you are normally and legally a resident in Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu, you should apply for a visa to the United Kingdom at the Visa Section of the British High Commission in Suva, Fiji. If you are staying only temporarily in these countries, the Visa Section may not accept your application and may direct you to apply in your country of normal residence.

All visa applicants will have to apply in person at the High Commission and provide their fingerscans and a digital photograph in support of their application. 

What do I need to apply for a visa?

  • a valid passport, with enough space for a visa
  • a fully completed and signed application form. The type of application form that you complete depends on the type of visa that you are applying for. Please ensure that you fill in the correct form. Remember to read the form carefully to ensure that you fill out every section which is relevant to the type of visa you are applying for
  • do not forget to sign it
  • it is particularly important that you write your contact details on your application form. If you have an e-mail address, please ensure that you enter it
  • a recent passport-sized (45mm x 35mm) colour photo of yourself :
     > taken against a light-coloured background (not framed or backed)
    >     clear and of good quality, printed on normal photographic paper
    > full face and without sunglasses, hat or other head covering unless you wear this for cultural or religious reasons (but the face must not be covered) 
    Please note: the photo should be glued to the application form (please do not staple)
  • correct visa fee.

Supporting Documents
Everyone’s circumstances are different. This is why we do not have a checklist of documents that you must bring in. To help the Entry Clearance Officer make a decision, it is up to you to show evidence of your own personal circumstances. This includes your employment, studies, financial circumstances, any assets that you own, details of travel outside Fiji, details of your family members in Fiji and overseas. If someone else is paying for your trip, or sponsoring you in another way, then the Entry Clearance Officer would find it helpful to see the same kind of evidence relating to that person too.

Please ensure that you include all supporting papers with your application, and do not send, or fax us any papers separately. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to link any other papers with your application.

The Entry Clearance Officer needs to see original documents. Please submit the original document with a photocopy. Applications WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED if the originals and photocopies are not provided. Original documents can be returned immediately to the applicant.

If you include documents that are not in English, we strongly advise you to get them translated beforehand.

As a guide , we recommend you submit the following documents, if applying for a visit visa:

  • your last 6 months bank statements or other evidence of your personal savings/funds
  • your flight itinerary
  • release letter from your employer or school (if applicable)
  • Marriage Certificate
  • Birth Certificate
  • Your children's Birth Certificates (if applicable)

Your British Army sponsor should provide you with the following documents to be submitted with your application:

  • invitation letter from your sponsor stating their relationship to you and purpose of visit
  • copy of sponsor's passport and immigration status (certified in the UK)
  • evidence of your sponsor's immigration status [i.e copy of passport page showing their exemption stamp] (certified in the UK)
  • letter from Defence Estates giving permission for you to stay in your sponsor's Service Accommodation
  • sponsor's utility bill as proof of address if they rent or own their own property
  • sponsor's last 6 months bank statements, if providing financial assistance.

Please note that providing the above documents does not guarantee that a visa will be issued.

Processing times
Please apply early to avoid disappointment. Visas can be issued up to 3 months before your intended date of arrival in the UK.

We aim to process all straightforward non-settlement visa applications within 10 working days. We aim to process all settlement visa applications within 10 weeks. De facto / unmarried partner applications may take longer.
If you require any further information on the application process, UK immigration rules or any other visa related issues, please see the Home Office UK Border Agency Visa Services website



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Visa Customer Satisfaction Survey

Our visa customers are encouraged to participate in this on-line survey or by completing the questionnaire available at the Visa Section.

Christmas and New Year Closure for Visa/Consular/Passport Section

The Visa/Consular/Passport Section will be closed over the Christmas/New Year period from Thursday 24 December 2009 and will re-open on Monday 4 January 2010. See Public Holidays observed by the British High Commission in 2009.

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