If you’re in the United Kingdom and you have a BRP (Biometric Residence Permit) or if you are a migrant or would-be migrant who holds (or is pursuing) a UK visa, you will have to report a change to your name or personal details in the event that this information changes. Today’s blog will teach you how to report a change of circumstances for a UK visa or BRP. Because failure to report a change to your name or personal details can negatively affect your immigration status (or result in fines), it is essential that you keep on top of any changes in personal circumstances. Read on to find out the information required to submit a change of address, how to correct the BRP card (in the event that you need to update a passport address or alter incorrect personal information), and other essential information that will cause you to avoid making immigration mistakes—below.
Report change of circumstances for a BRP
- UK visa recipients who enter the UK will need to receive a BRP in order to continue residing legally in the country. If you you’re in the UK and already have a BRP (or you are expecting to receive one), it is your responsibility to make sure the information it reflects is accurate. If the information is not accurate, you will need to either submit a correction (i.e. report a change of circumstances) or apply for a new BRP—how to correct the BRP card will depend on the nature of the information that needs to be changed).
- When you receive your BRP (either in the mail or when you pick it up in person), check to make sure, for example, that your name is spelled properly, that your gender and nationality are correct, and that your birth date is accurate. If everything is correct on the BRP except for your home address, you may simply report a change of address. You can report a change of address online, by contact us here.
- However, if information other than your address is incorrect (including if your physical appearance no longer reflects your appearance on your BRP photo) you cannot simply report a change to your name or personal details; you must apply for a brand new BRP.
- UK visa holders who require a new BRP and fail to re-apply for one in 90 days may find their visa validity length officially curtailed or be subject to a fine of £1,000.
- Finally, please note that you are also required to report additional changes in personal circumstances for a BRP—these are facts that may not be reflected on your BRP card, but which you included on your application for the ID (an example of this would be if you get divorced or are convicted of a crime after receiving your BRP). You must report these changes in personal circumstances for a BRP by submitting a “change of circumstances form.” Contact us here to receive this form.
Report change of circumstances for a UK visa
- If you experience a change of circumstances as a UK visa holder (or as someone whose application for a UK visa is still being processed) you will need to report these changes.
- Migrants who are pursuing long-term stays in the UK who have a different name, citizenship or gender from when they first applied for their visa (or those whose name is incorrectly stated on their visa) will need to transfer said visa to a BRP. If your migrant change of circumstances is experienced during the processing stage of your visa, you may simply submit a change of circumstance document (rather than apply to transfer your visa to a BRP). This is also the form you will submit in the event that you experience additional changes of circumstance, such as if you are charged with a crime or get divorced.
- UK visa holders or applicants who need to update a passport address (either because they moved or because their original address was incorrectly copied) may update their address online, by contacting us here. Information required to submit a change of address includes the following: your original postcode, new address, complete name, birthdate, nationality, and passport number.
- Please note, if you need to report a migrant change of circumstance from abroad, you will likely be able to do this online (by contacting us here), by reaching out to the visa application center you applied through, or by accessing your UK Immigration: ID account on the official government app.
Asaad