UK to shift visa approvals from Bangkok to New Delhi

United Kingdom Visa and Immigration (UKVI) will relocate its visa approval centre from Bangkok to New Delhi, starting in June this year.

The move is part of UKVI’s longstanding global strategy to modernise its visa operations and consolidate visa decision-making in large regional hubs, said a press release issued by the British Embassy to Thailand on Friday. There will be no change to the current visa application process in Bangkok and Chiang Mai, or to overall service standards, the release said.

The move to New Delhi will maximise the benefits of new technology that allows visa decision-making to be independent of the country of application. It will drive efficiency savings and achieve greater standardisation of visa decisions around the world, according to the release. British Ambassador to Thailand, Brian Davidson, said the number of Thai nationals applying for UK visas and travelling to the UK rises every year.

“We are delighted at this growth as it shows the strength of the links between the two countries and that Thai people still love to visit the UK, whether for work, study, family or leisure,” he said in the release.

UKVI is committed to supporting these links and ensuring that the body continued to provide safe and secure visa decisions, excellent customer service and value for money to the UK taxpayer, he added. Customers in Thailand are not expected to experience changes in visa service standards.

Visa applications would continue online, with people also submitting their biometrics and documents at two Visa Application Centres (VACs) in Bangkok and Chiang Mai managed by VFS-Global.