BRPs, eVisas, vignettes, stamps and status letters explained

Just at the moment, our immigration lawyers are frequently asked by Isle of Man residents “Do I have to convert my BRP into an eVisa?”

This is a rather alarming question, as the Isle of Man has never issued either Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) or eVisas, and so Isle of Man residents who hold those documents are likely not to hold valid evidence of their Isle of Man immigration status.

Isle of Man residents’ immigration permission is monitored by the Isle of Man Immigration Service (part of the Treasury department of the Isle of Man Government). UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI – a division of the United Kingdom’s Home Office) should never ordinarily be contacting Isle of Man residents. If you are an Isle of Man resident and receive an unexpected UKVI email or letter, treat it with caution as it may be a scam. It’s a good idea to take advice from an Isle of Man immigration lawyer.

At Kinley Legal we always ensure our existing clients receive valid immigration documents, so we find these questions are only asked by people who have not previously taken our advice!

What are BRPs?

Since 2008, the UK has been issuing Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) to the holders of long-term immigration permission. The BRP is a credit-card sized plastic card featuring an individual’s photograph, personal details and immigration permission.

People applying for UK immigration permission from overseas are initially issued a visa vignette, which is a full-page visa sticker in a passport. Unlike Visitor visa vignettes, the UK’s visa vignettes are expressed to expire after a short period (currently 90 days) during which the person is expected to travel to the UK and collect a BRP. It’s never been possible to collect a BRP in the Isle of Man.

BRPs are now being phased out by the UK, with most expressed to expire at the end of December 2024.

What is an eVisa?

An eVisa is an online record of a person’s UK immigration status and the conditions of their permission to enter or stay in the UK. eVisas replace BRPs and other UK immigration documents. People in the UK are expected to create a UKVI website account to be able to access their eVisa.

The UKVI website provides a “share code” which airline staff, overseas outbound immigration staff, employers, banks and landlords should be able to use to check UK immigration status online. It is unclear how many people will be denied travel or services in the event of the UKVI checking website going down, or a more general internet outage.

Why was I issued an incorrect document? Surely the government doesn’t make mistakes?

Home Office policy guidance is very clear that BRPs and eVisas are not issued to Isle of Man residents. Unfortunately, not all UKVI officers or the agencies to which UKVI delegates the running of its overseas visa application centres have read the policy guidance. UKVI and its agents simply process so many applications, that most of their staff have never heard of the Isle of Man or know that it is not part of the UK.

As a consequence, future Isle of Man residents are sometimes issued incorrect visa vignettes or receive UKVI emails or letters wrongly instructing them to collect BRPs.

I’m Isle of Man resident – is my BRP or eVisa definitely invalid?

Not necessarily. For some types of immigration permission, the Isle of Man permits former UK residents to move to the Isle of Man without needing to reapply for their immigration permission, meaning that a limited number of Isle of Man residents may continue to hold BRPs or eVisas until the expiry of their permission.

However, the holders of several types of immigration permission, including the most popular routes, do need to apply for Isle of Man immigration permission if they move from the UK to the Isle of Man. This will be issued as traditional immigration documents.

Will the Isle of Man issue eVisas in future?

According to the Isle of Man Government, digitisation of the Isle of Man immigration system is likely to happen within the next few years, but no specific timetable has been published, presumably due to the technical challenges. When it happens, this is likely to mean that Isle of Man eVisas will start to appear on the UKVI checking system.

Until then, Isle of Man immigration documents will continue to be documented in people’s passports, with paper visa vignettes and “wet ink” stamps, as well as with status letters issued by the Immigration Service.

What to do

If you applied for Isle of Man immigration permission and currently hold either a BRP, an eVisa or an expired visa vignette, contact Kinley Legal and we can advise you on any action that should be taken to obtain valid immigration documents. Contact us by direct message, by sending an email to us at immigration@kinleylegal.com or by completing our simple contact form.