UK changes provider for visa centres management

From Europe to Central Asia, Africa and the Middle East, the UK is about to change its visa application center service provider.

The United Kingdom is set to change its commercial partner for running its visa application centres in different regions of the world, a move that will have some implications for UK visa applicants.

The contract, which has been handled by TLScontact, will gradually be transferred to VFS Global in several countries.

UK Visas & Immigration says the move is aimed at improving the services it provides to UK visa applicants, including “shorter appointments and a new average passport collection time of 20 minutes”.

Background to this change of provider for visa management in the UK

The UK relies on third-party service providers to process visa applications, a task that includes collecting documents, managing biometric data and coordinating appointments with visa centres.

Since 2014, TLScontact, a subsidiary of the Teleperformance Group, has been one of the UK government’s main partners for these services in the relevant regions.

However, in late 2023, VFS Global, a global leader in outsourced visa application management and a service provider to the UK government since 2003, was awarded a global contract to manage the UK’s overseas visa and citizenship services.

This contract includes the deployment of 240 UK Visa and Citizenship Application Service (VCAS) centres in 142 countries around the world.

Countries where the UK is changing its visa centre provider

In a statement, the British government explains that between September 2024 and January 2025, the commercial partner will therefore switch from TLScontact to VFS Global in Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia. Other regions of the world are not affected by this change.

As of October 22, 2024, VFS Global will operate Visa Application Centers in the following countries:

As of November 5, 2024, VFS Global will operate Visa Application Centers in the following countries:

Changes for UK visa applicants

If you are affected by this change, you will receive email communications from TLScontact and VFS Global shortly to advise you on the steps you need to take to continue your visa application.

If you have booked an appointment at a TLScontact managed centre, please attend your appointment as usual. Check your confirmation email for the address of your appointment.

“If you change your appointment, you may need to pay the mandatory user pay (MUP) fee again. If this happens, ask TLScontact to refund your MUP fee,” the UK government warns.

According to the UK authorities, this change in UK visa centre manager will not affect the decision on your application or the approval time.

UK to fully roll out Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) by 2025

The United Kingdom is set to introduce a new Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) system for overseas visitors who are currently visa-exempt.

The scheme is designed to strengthen border security and simplify entry procedures for travellers while ensuring more effective screening.

The ETA, which must be applied for online before travelling to the UK, will be required even for short-term visits, whether for tourism, business or transit. UK visa-exempt travellers will need to provide personal information, their itinerary and passport details to submit their application. The ETA costs £10, or around €12 / $13.

The ETA application can be submitted via the UK government portal www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-an-electronic-travel-authorisation-eta or via the “UK ETA” mobile app available on the App Store and Google Play Store.

The ETA system was initiated in October 2023 with citizens of Qatar, then extended last February to nationals of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan (since suspended), Kuwait and Oman. The full deployment of ETA will be carried out in two final phases in the coming months.

January 8, 2025: 48 countries will need an ETA to travel to the UK

From November 27, 2024, citizens of the following 48 countries will be able to apply for ETA authorization to travel to the UK from January 8, 2025, when this formality will become compulsory:

April 2, 2025: European travelers will need an ETA to enter the UK

From 5 March 2025, the system will open to tourists and business travellers from the following 34 European countries and the ETA requirement to travel to the UK will come into effect on 2 April 2025 for these visitors: