Indians throng British High Commission for visas

Chennai: After the frenzied temperatures soared over the Indian Premier League, the cynosure of all eyes is on ICC World Cup that kicks off on May 30 with the host England taking on South Africa at Kennington Oval in London. India will play its first match of the tournament against South Africa at The Rose Bowl in Southampton on June 5.

And aiming to be the early birds to witness the spectacular events that unfold before them, at least 2 lakh Indians have sought for visas to visit UK.

“On an average more than 3,500 applications a day from India is common. Our visa services partner VFS Global has already processed over 2,00,000 UK visa applications in India, during January to April 2019,” British High Commission spokesperson said.

In March and April of 2019 alone, over 1,32,000 UK visa applications were submitted at VFS Global, accounting for around 65 per cent of the overall UK visa application count in January to April 2019. “Despite this we are confident that we will keep up our 2018 record of 97 % of all applicants receiving a decision on their application within 15 working days, the spokesperson said.

  “During summer we see a much bigger number coming in due to the seasonal increase in travel, and this certainly appears to be even higher due to the cricket this year. An average is hard to say, but during peak ( April-July) it is usually 100-150 per cent higher than off-peak (November-January),” the spokesperson added.

 Keeping in mind the high demand for travel to the UK, ahead of the Cricket World Cup, VFS Global has been offering a range of value-added services aimed at enhancing the experience of the UK visa application process. “Since the tournament is coinciding with the peak travel season from India, VFS Global’s special packages for UK visa applicants include Group appointments, Priority and Super Priority Visas, doorstep visa application services, and even match tickets through Britain Travel Shop - to ensure applicants have a good innings beginning at the Visa Application Centre itself,” says Vinay Malhotra, Regional Group Chief Operating Officer, VFS Global.  Though there’s no global estimate on how many people in total will travel, it is likely that Indians will be the highest number, given the market size and passion for the sport, besides good flight connections between India and UK.