Starting today, millions living in the UK will receive email invitations to sign up for an e-visa account that will replace their physical immigration documents like Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs).
The move is, according to the Home Office, “a key step in creating a modernised and digital border” that will “boost security and value for the UK public” and provide greater reassurance, convenience, and flexibility.
Email invites sent to millions
The Home Office has started rolling out e-visas for existing holders of physical immigration documents like Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) and Biometric Residence Cards (BRCs).
Millions of such residents will start receiving email invites from today, in batches, prompting them to create a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account that will serve as digital proof of their legal immigration status.
“These invitations will be issued in phases, and although initially by invitation only, the process will open to all BRP holders in summer 2024,” states the Home Office.
“eVisas are central to making the UK safer by reducing the risk of fraud, loss and abuse of physical documents, strengthening border security, and providing a more secure way to prove immigration status. This will pave the way for increased automation to deliver the government’s vision for a contactless border.”
“It is free and straightforward for customers who hold physical and paper documents to create a UKVI account to access their eVisa. Creating a UKVI account will not change, impact or remove customers’ current immigration status or their rights in the UK.”
Minister for Legal Migration and the Border, Tom Pursglove MP, said in a press statement:
“We’ve already taken really significant steps to digitally transform the border and immigration system, and this wider rollout of eVisas is a key part of that process.”
“Replacing physical immigration documents with eVisas will ensure firm control over who comes here to live, work or study, strengthening border security and preventing abuse of the immigration system, while delivering cost-savings for UK taxpayers.”
‘Tried and tested’
The announcement follows the British government’s plans we had earlier reported on that focus on fully digitalizing the border systems and phasing out physical immigration documents by 2025.
According to the Home Office, eVisas bring “substantial benefits” to the UK public and are secure as “unlike a physical document cannot be lost, stolen or tampered with.”
