The Home Office’s global network of UK Visa Application Centres (VACs) has reached a major milestone today as the final tranche of sites transfers from long-time supplier TLScontact to new operator VFS Global. The switchover, first announced in 2024, affects more than 240 centres used by millions of overseas nationals each year to enrol biometrics and submit documents for work, study and family visas. Immigration consultancy Five Star International, which tracks VAC performance, reports the transition has largely completed on schedule, with VFS now live across Africa, the Middle East and Europe following earlier deployments in Asia-Pacific. UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI) says the new contract will deliver shorter appointment lead times and reduce average passport-collection waits to just 20 minutes thanks to co-located decision-making hubs and upgraded document-scanning equipment. Practical impacts for employers and assignees are modest but important. Applicants may start a case under TLScontact and finish it under VFS; UKVI confirms this will not affect processing times or outcomes, but contact emails will now come from “@vfsglobal.com”. Mobility managers are urged to whitelist the new domain to avoid missing biometric or collection notices. In countries where VFS has introduced its premium ‘biometric-at-location’ service, on-site enrolment can cut visa lead-times by up to four days—useful for last-minute assignments. The hand-over also standardises the recently introduced ‘Mandatory User Pay’ fee: rescheduling an appointment now triggers a fresh charge, though TLScontact has agreed to refund duplicate payments made during the overlap period. Employers should advise travellers to finalise travel dates before booking slots and to budget for new scanning fees if supporting papers are not uploaded in advance. UKVI will run dual help-desks until January 2027 to deal with legacy cases. Larger sponsors should update policy handbooks immediately, listing new VAC addresses and noting that courier return options and walk-in ‘visa printing’ counters have changed in several markets including Nigeria, France and India.
Source: Five Star International
