Coronavirus and the UK immigration system (as of 15 July 2020)

COVID-19 related automatic visa extensions

The situation is particularly pressing for people who are in the UK on an expiring visa and unable to leave because of travel restrictions. The government had been extending people’s visas through a simplified online application process, but that concession is now coming to an end.

On 22 May the Home Office extended the concession to 31 July.

However, the given concession is unlikely to be extended any further. An official announcement is expected shortly, but a senior Home Office official told MPs on 14 July:

“it is not our intention at the moment to provide any further extension. We will of course continue to look at more information that comes forward on a case by case basis, but we are not at the moment intending to do a blanket further extension”.

The Home Office has also said that almost 65,000 COVID-19 related extensions had been granted by the end of April.