The UK Government is replacing physical immigration documents including biometric residence permits with e-visas/digital status. You can read more about this here.
The UK Government have created e-visas for many people already and they have said their intention and ambition is to ensure that all people can prove their immigration status with an e-visa. An e-visa is an online record of a person’s immigration status.
Please note that the move to e-visas will not affect a person’s underlying immigration status.
You can access your e-visa through this government website.
You will need to create a UKVI account to access your e-visa if your biometric residence permit runs out on 31st December 2024. There is no fee for creating a UKVI account or accessing your e-visa. You will need a current or expired biometric residence permit, a travel document or application reference number to create a UKVI account. Click here for video instructions on how to create a UKVI account and access your e-visa.
There is also free support available from some charities to create a UKVI account. The contact details of the organisations can be found here.
The Free Movement blog have helpfully posted step by step instructions on how to access an e-visa and set up a UKVI account. You can read the post here.
There is information on the same government website that relates to people who have immigration status on older style immigration documents, including stamps on passports and letters. They are people that would have been granted indefinite leave to remain or indefinite leave to enter before biometric residence permits were introduced for their immigration route. The Government says that they have to first apply for a ‘’ Biometric residence permit (BRP) and a ‘no time limit stamp’ (confirmation of their indefinite leave) before they can access an e-visa.
Supporting Vulnerable People
If you work with people who have immigration status and a BRP expiring on 31.12.2024 please pass this information to them and direct them to the government website for further information.