How long will my application take?

We cannot guarantee how long the Home Office will take to process your application. Read the current processing times. We will normally be able to submit these types of application within 4 weeks of you instructing us, but we will let you know at the earliest opportunity if it is likely to take longer than this.

Who will work on my case?

All Immigration casework is carried out by our solicitors and supervised by the firm’s Senior Solicitor, Mr Jitendra Acharya. He is a solicitor with over 30 years post-qualification experience and his expertise range from all aspects of private immigration work including, asylum, human rights, all types of entry clearance applications, family visa applications and renewals, long residence, European applications, and also appeals at the First Tier Tribunal. The Firm under the supervision of the Senior Solicitor, strives to provide a comprehensive and satisfactory service to all our immigration clients as evidenced by a large number of satisfied client reviews on our website.

TYPICAL STAGES OF AN APPLICATION

Every application is different, and every client’s situation is unique. This makes it difficult to provide an accurate overview of the application, but in order to let our potential clients understand what to expect, we have listed some guidelines below. Not all cases follow this format, because shorter deadlines or special immigration history or circumstances may extend or shorten these stages.

Contacting our office to arrange a meeting:

You can call our office and ask to speak with and arrange a meeting with us about your immigration issues. If you would like us to help you we will invite you to our office and talk to us about your case.

Once you have met with us, you are under no obligation to direct us to proceed further with your case if you do not wish to.

Initial consultation:

If you wish, we can arrange a consultation first. This meeting is for a fee and fees are in the guide. Your first Consultation provides comprehensive oral advice about your case and offers suggestions on how to proceed. We also give you billing instructions to get you to work.

Again you are not obligated to use our services if you do not want to.

Client Care Letter:

If you decide to instruct us, we will provide you with a Client Care Letter, the terms our business, which describes the terms and conditions of your contract.

This will include what we have agreed to do for you, who will work on your case, the likely costs involved as well as details about what other costs you may incur. We will ask you to sign and return to us the Agreement slip and consent forms . If someone else will be paying your fees, we shall ask you to provide their details and proof of their identity.

Timing:

We will advise you of the likely time scale of your application. The Home Office publishes guidelines about how long they take to process various types of applications, but these are only guidelines. Based on our experience, we will advise you on how long the Home Office usually takes to make a decision on the kind of application you have instructed us to make. We will also advise you on how long it is likely to take for us to prepare your application and any factors which may speed up or delay that process.

Information we will require from you:

At the outset of your case, we will ask you to provide us with proof of your identify, by way of a passport or another type of photo Identity and proof of your current address. Depending on your circumstances, we may require further information from you and will advise you on this.

When our fees are payable:

Our fixed fee, will usually be payable at the start of your matter. We can discuss this with you and make arrangements to suit your circumstances and the time frames of your matter.

Other Fees

The anticipated Home Office fees, the Immigration Health Surcharge or any Court Fee, will be payable nearer the time that your application is submitted or your appeal is lodged. We will advise you when any other fees which we have told you about for example fees for a translation of a document or for a medical report, require to be paid.

Unpaid fees or costs:

If you do not pay all the fees and costs associated with your application, we may decline to submit your application. If we do submit your application and there are fees and costs outstanding at the conclusion of your matter, we are entitled to hold on to your documents, including originals, until all our fees have been settled.

Advice on your case:

Depending on what you have instructed us to do, or the type of application, or your particular circumstances and the time frames, we shall provide you with a letter setting out our advice to you and our recommended course of action.

We will require further information and documents from you

We will ask you to provide us with the information we require to start doing the work you have instructed us to. The Home Office is very strict and we will have to obtain the information they require in format that they specify. How soon you are able to provide us with the information we request from you, and its accuracy, will have a bearing on the timing of your case and how long it takes us to prepare and finalise your application.

Clarification, or additional evidence based on the information provided:

The Immigration Rules and policies are constantly changing and as we prepare your matter and complete the application forms it may become apparent that we require information or details which we had not asked you for before. Again the speed and accuracy with which you are able to provide these will impact on how quickly we can complete the work.

Draft application form:

Where we can, we will complete the application form on your behalf and we will ask you to confirm that all the information on the form is accurate. This is your responsibility and if there are any errors, or omissions, or information which is incorrect ( for example you have not advised us of a criminal conviction, or previous immigration refusal ) it is up to you to ensure that this is correct. The consequences of providing incorrect information can be severe and we set out further details about this in our Terms of Business.

Final application form:

We will prepare a final application form and ask you to confirm that this is correct before we submit this on your behalf. Again, we stress the importance of ensuring that this information is absolutely accurate.

Covering letter:

Depending on your application, we will usually prepare a coving letter to be submitted with the documents we are required to provide in support of your application. This letter will be provided to you in draft for you to check as well.

Creating the bundle:

We will create a bundle of the documents we are required to submit in support of your application. In some circumstances these may have to be original documents, or certified copies of originals.

Biometrics:

In some circumstances you may be asked to submit your biometrics, this means that you will need to go to one of the appropriate centres and provide your fingerprints. Your signature and a digital photograph will also be taken.

Home Office Interview:

Some applications require that you have an interview with the Home Office or that the application is submitted in person. Depending on the type of application there are various methods of submission, all taking different lengths of time and with different associated costs. This may include postal applications, Priority Service and the Super Premium Service.

Depending on your particular application and circumstances, we will advise you on which of this is available to you and the likely costs. We will discuss this with you and will select the best option, depending on time and cost.

Outcome:

The Home Office will usually advise us directly about the outcome of your application and where applicable will usually send your passport, or biometric permit, or other documents to us. We will advise you as soon as we have this and make arrangements as to how to get this to you.

Your obligations:

Depending on the application and the status you have been granted you may be obliged to take further steps, for example, registering with the police or collecting your biometric residence permit from the post office. We will advise you about this. We will advise you of the consequences of not meeting these obligations.

Further steps:

We will also tell you about any expiry or renewal dates which are applicable, and what steps you will need to take to make sure you meet these dates. We will advise you of the consequences of not meeting these dates

COMPLAINTS INFORMATION

At Acharyas we are committed to providing a high quality legal service to all our clients. When something goes wrong we need you to tell us about it so that we can resolve the problem and continually improve our standards.

If you have a complaint, please contact Mr Jitendra Acharya by email, or our address: 2 Kensington Street Leicester.

What will happen next?

1. Within seven days of receiving your complaint we will send you a letter/email acknowledging receipt. We will provide details of who will be dealing with your complaint, and when you can expect to have a response. It may be necessary at this stage to ask you for more information, or to invite you to meet with us to discuss your complaint.

2. We will record your complaint in our central register and will investigate your complaint by reviewing the relevant file and the issues you raise.

3. We will then provide you with a detailed written response to your complaint, this may include our suggestions for resolving the matter. We will aim to do this within fourteen days of acknowledging your letter. If your complaint is very detailed, or your matter has been very complex, it may take us longer to complete a review and to respond to you, but we will keep you advised if this is the case. Once again, it may be necessary to ask you to come in and meet with us in order to discuss your complaint before we are able to respond fully.

4. Within seven days of any meeting we have with you we will write to you to confirm what took place and any suggestions we have agreed with you.

5. At this stage if you are still not satisfied, please let us know. We will then arrange to review our decision. We would generally aim to do this within 14 days.

6. We will then write to you confirming our final position on your complaint and explaining our reasons. We will always do this within eight weeks of receiving your complaint, unless there are exceptional reasons why we cannot and we will keep you advised if this is the case.

7. If you are not satisfied with our handling of your complaint, you can ask the Legal Ombudsman (contact details below) to consider the complaint. Normally you will need to bring your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final written response from us about your complaint. The Legal Ombudsman will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case.

Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

• Within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint

                                and

• No more than six years from the date of act/omission; or
• No more than three years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.

Contact details

Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Call: 0300 555 0333 between 9.00 to 17.00.
Email: [email protected]

Legal Ombudsman 
P.O Box 6806
Wolverhampton
WV1 9WJ

Complaining to the Solicitors Regulation Authority

For some types of complaints about solicitors, for example dishonesty, taking or losing your money, treating you unfairly because of your age, disability or other characteristic, you may contact the Solicitors Regulation Authority, (SRA). This is the regulatory body which authorises and regulates UK law firms.

Complaining to the Legal Ombudsman or the SRA about us.

You must always complain to us first and in most cases you will not be able to take your complaint any further if you have not done so. Please use the process set out above to complain to us about the service you have received. We will always try to resolve your complaint as quickly and satisfactorily as we can.

More information about how to complain to the Legal Ombudsman or the SRA can be found on the SRA website.