# Confused about travel without BRP - Need advice urgently please!



## recoisiche (Apr 8, 2015)

Hello, I'm afraid I'm desperate for urgent advice... help me Joppa, you're my only hope! :heh:

I am a Canadian citizen (so a non-visa national) in the UK on a Tier 2 General visa. Today (Tuesday 7th April) I switched to a new Tier 2 General visa under a different employer. I did the in-person, same-day decison application at the Croydon office. Application accepted, no problems, got my passport back.

Like many others before me, I didn't know that I would have to wait another week for the BRP (a specialist agency completed my application without me lifting a finger). Same-day appointment, what a load of rubbish...

Of course I had already booked a trip to Spain to depart Wednesday 8th April, and arrive back in UK Sunday 12th April. I am due to start work on Monday 13th April.

I don't know what to do tomorrow... I don't have my biometric residence permit card yet, and have read that they've gotten really tight on the rules for showing up without it. However most of the people who have gotten advice on this forum have been visa nationals, so it was incredibly important for them to have it. As a Canadian citizen, I know immigration generally won't be as tough on me, but perhaps that won't help me in this case.

Apologies for a flood of questions, but I'm very unsure...

1) Would travelling tomorrow evening be just a bad idea, or would it be a really, really bad idea?

2) I have the vignette from my original Tier 2 in my passport, and it does not expire for a long time. Will this help?

3) What is the absolute worst that could happen? Could I be refused entry? Sent back to Spain? Sent back to Canada???

4) Could I enter as a visitor, or on an open-end-date stamp thing?

5) These days if you apply from abroad, you get a temporary 30-day vignette in your passport, and have to pick up your BRP as soon as you get to the UK. Seems to me that if I were let in on an open-end-date stamp, and my BRP is waiting for me when I get back, that is basically the same thing... and yet it doesn't really work like that, does it?

6) Is it wrong to start work if I don't have BRP in hand already, even though visa is approved?

7) If I'm let in as a visitor, would I have to leave and re-enter under my BRP before I can start work?


I've got about 17 hours to figure it out. Please help!

Also interesting to note that as of 8 April, there are supposed to be exit checks at all UK exit points or something.


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

You shouldn't leave UK without your BRP. If you do, you will have to apply for replacement BRP visa in Madrid before you can return. It costs £81 and may take a week or two to come through.
If you try to re-enter using your existing Tier 2 vignette in your passport, on placing it in the reader they will find out that it has been replaced by a new leave, for which you hold no BRP. They have no authority to let you enter so being sent back to Spain is a likely outcome and being told to apply for appropriate visa. If there is someone at home who can take delivery of your BRP, then they can courier it (don't post it) to where you are staying in Spain. Or the best solution of all, scrap or postpone your trip.
We had someone in almost exactly the same situation at the end of last year, also a Canadian, left UK without BRP, and had to apply for a replacement BRP visa in Canada before returning.
While in the past, there was a way for those without BRP to be let in after doing a check at UK border, they have tightened the rule so they won't let you enter without the appropriate visa, visa national or not.


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## recoisiche (Apr 8, 2015)

Going to start by saying I don't recommend anyone attempting to travel without their BRP, it's just not a good idea, and has big risks. But thought I'd share my experience for those looking for more information.

I ended up going on my trip after all. I spoke to the immigration advisor who handled my visa application, and he said that there were definitely risks in me going, but he thought they would probably let me in. He called immigration at Stansted (where I was going to be flying back into London) before I left, and they said they said it was ultimately at the discretion of the immigration officer. He also said Stansted tends to perhaps be slightly less sophisticated than say Heathrow, so they might not be up-to-date on enforcing the new rules. Also, he was pretty confident my BRP would arrive before I got back so if it came down to it, someone could bring it to the airport (it did indeed arrive on Friday, and I got back on Sunday).

I landed in London, and when the immigration officer asked what I do for work I told her I was starting a new job the next day, and had my new visa accepted last week. She said "So this visa [vignette in my passport] isn't for your new job?" and I said no. Weirdly she never actually even asked me for my BRP, but I showed her my acceptance letter, and she went to the back room to do some checks. I waited in the holding pen for maybe 5-10 minutes until she came back. She told me off for traveling without my permit, stamped my passport and wrote a reference number in it. I apologized profusely and said I would never do it again (which I definitely won't!), and she let me in.

Long story short, I managed to get away with it, but definitely say to others you should never ever try unless you're prepared to deal with consequences. Just attach the card to your passport so you never forget it at home.


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