Baroness Lister of Burtersett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Lister of Burtersett on 2016-03-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have received an explanation from the government of the United States as to why the approved biometric permit enrolment centres are delayed in that country; what is the revised targeted roll-out date; and what steps they are currently taking to assist those applying under the UKF form citizenship route to achieve their UK citizenship in a timely manner, whilst those centres are facing delays in implementation.

Lord Keen of Elie

The use of US Application Support Centers (ASCs) to capture biometrics for nationality (‘citizenship’) applications has required new IT provisions, as well as a refreshed Memorandum of Understanding. These changes have required the approval of both the US Department of Homeland Security and the State Department. Agreement has drawn on our strong existing relationships, but due to competing priorities has taken longer than expected.

There were some initial challenges in delivering the intricate IT arrangements, resulting in delays in implementation; these have now been resolved and the IT is in place.

We have advised applicants of the reasons for the delay and have put in place provisions for customers in urgent cases to attend the UK Visa office at the UK Consulate in New York to exceptionally enrol their biometrics there.

Within the last week, the necessary authority has been received to proceed and we will now move to urgently finalise arrangements. We hope to be able to complete the necessary contractual work as a priority and then to begin the roll out as soon as possible thereafter.