UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) are developing a digital immigration system. This means they are replacing physical documents with an online record of your immigration status. This is known as an eVisa.
Our advice is:
- Do not panic!
- Look out for an email – check your inbox and spam/junk folder.
- If you receive an email about setting up an eVisa, please let us know – we may able to help if you don’t feel confident to do it yourself – this may be because of your level of English or access to a smart phone. Details of how to contact us are here.
You can find out about eVisas here:
An eVisa is an online record of your immigration status and the conditions of your permission to enter or stay in the UK. You will need to create a UKVI account to access your eVisa. Creating a UKVI account is free and straightforward. A video about how to create a UKVI account and access your eVisa is available here.
Updating your physical document to an eVisa does not affect your immigration status or the conditions of your permission to enter or stay in the UK.
The documents being replaced are:
- Biometric residence permits (BRP)
- Biometric residence cards (BRC)
- Passport endorsements, such as indefinite leave to enter wet ink stamps
- Vignette stickers in passports, such as entry clearance or visa vignettes
If you use a physical or legacy paper document to prove your immigration rights, go to www.gov.uk/evisa to find out what you need to do next, and when you can do it. You must make this change by 31 December 2024.
The Home Office are asking all applicants to keep their physical documents even after they expire in case they require any information from them at a later date.
Lancashire County Council have produced information in a range of community languages:
e-visa Guidance – Ukrainian
e-visa Guidance – Pashto
e-visa Guidance – Dari
e-visa Guidance – Arabic
e-visa Guidance – English