A joint investigation by The Independent and Finance Uncovered revealed on Sunday that the UK government made £1.6bn from visa applicants in the five years since it outsourced the bulk of its overseas visa services to Dubai-based firm VFS
MPs and lawyers have called for an urgent review into outsourced immigration services after it emerged Home Office profits on UK visas had surged by millions of pounds a week since visa operations were contracted to a private firm accused of exploiting applicants.
A joint investigation by The Independent and Finance Uncovered revealed on Sunday that the UK government made £1.6bn from visa applicants in the five years since it outsourced the bulk of its overseas visa services to Dubai-based firm VFS â€` a ninefold increase on the five years before.
The company, which has its headquarters in the UAE but is owned through holding companies in Jersey, the Cayman Islands and Luxembourg, has been accused of “gross maladministration” and “aggressive” selling of optional services since taking the contract in 2014.
Labour MP Paul Blomfield called on the Home Office to urgently review all of its contracts for outsourcing immigration services, and said he would be writing to the chair of the Public Accounts Committee and the Home Affairs Committee to request they investigate the matter.
He added: “Outsourcing visa applications has led to poor service and high costs. The Home Office and private companies are making billions from ordinary people paying through the nose for visa applications. It’s not fair and ripping them off damages the UK’s international reputation.”
Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesperson Ed Davey said he had asked the National Audit Office to investigate.
“The UK is richer economically and culturally by people moving to work and study here as well as from tourists who want to visit some of the best places in the world. To put up barriers to this by allowing private firms to excessively profiteer from visa applications makes no sense,” he added.
Contract documents released under freedom of information laws to Finance Uncovered show the Home Office takes a cut of the revenues these premium services generate, but the department refused to state how much it has received.
Stephanie Boyce, deputy vice president of the Law Society of England and Wales, said: “The Home Office’s duty to ensure contracted visa and immigration services are reasonably priced is undermined if it benefits from increased revenue generation.
“We want to see far greater accountability and transparency in outsourced visa and immigration

services â€` a review of domestic and overseas arrangements with contractors is urgently needed.”
Nicole Francis, chief executive of Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association, said there was a lack of transparency in the Home Office’s contract with VFS and called on the department to “urgently review the contractual arrangements in place with VFS to ensure that customers are adequately protected”.
The joint investigation found the amount the Home Office makes on average per visa application had increased from £28.73 to £122.56 in the five years since it outsourced the services to VFS.
VFS, which is contracted to process visas from all countries outside Europe and Africa, has meanwhile increased its average revenue per applicant by 38 per cent between 2016 and 2018 by selling more premium services.
The contract handed to VFS made it mandatory for contractors to provide certain “premium services”, including premium lounges and priority visa services, some costing in excess of £1,500. The Home Office said that when the contract was renewed in 2018, premium lounges were removed as a mandated service.
Fees were also introduced for applicants wishing to make a query about their application, at £5.48 per query for the email service and £1.37 per minute for the phone helpline.
It follows calls for an independent investigation into the in-country visa system, which has also been outsourced to a private company â€` French firm Sopra Steria â€` after it emerged vulnerable people were forced to pay “extortionate” fees and travel long distances to apply for UK status.
A Sopra Steria spokesperson said at the time that its service was experiencing “higher than anticipated demand” and that it would be increasing the availability of free appointments at its core centres.
In relation to the VFS contract, a Home Office spokesperson said it demanded the highest standards from service providers.
A VFS spokesperson said optional services were “developed in response to specific demands from applicants for greater accessibility, personalisation and convenience in visa services â€` they are determined in consultation with, and agreed by, the respective governments”. The spokesperson added that the services were clearly labelled as optional, while visa decisions were “the sole prerogative of the concerned embassy/consulate”.
www.samigration.com V.2949

One of the highlighted topics: Critical Skills Visa.

- Key Insight: Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast track to working in South Afr...
- This matter relates to critical skills visa and its broader implications.
- Individuals are advised to seek professional guidance.

Is your profession on the Critical Skills List? This visa is your fast trac V.6139
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One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, became a victim of identity theft in 2012 when fraudulent transactions occurred, using her personal details.

-The Pretoria High Court found that the department of home affairs had violated constitutional rights without due process.
-Only half of Lawyers for Human Rights` test group has been unblocked, while 385 000 identities remain blocked nationwide.
-LHR appeals extension, urges affected people to seek help now.

Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) are intensifying pressure on the department of home affairs over the national ID-blocking crisis, accusing the state of acting too slowly to unblock qualifying individuals despite a landmark court ruling.

In January last year, the Pretoria High Court found that the department`s practice of blocking IDs without due process was unlawful and unconstitutional. One of the applicants, Phindile Mazibuko, a Swati citizen and South African permanent resident since 1998, fell victim to identity theft in 2012 when fraudsters used her personal details.

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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6128
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6129
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A Washington state mother and her 6-year-old son have been released after spending more than three weeks in US immigration detention due to a brief trip to Canada and a small paperwork mistake, her attorney told CNN on Saturday.

Sarah Shaw, a New Zealand citizen who has lived legally in the US since she arrived in 2021, was detained at the Blaine, Washington, Customs and Border Protection checkpoint when returning home after dropping her two oldest children off at the Vancouver airport for a flight to visit their grandparents in New Zealand. Shaw, 33, chose the flight out of Vancouver because it was direct and she didn`t want her children to have to navigate a layover alone, her attorney Minda Thorward, told CNN.

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On 22 July 2025, the Gauteng High Court dismissed Sitrusrand Boerdery`s review of the Department of Employment and Labour`s refusal to issue a Working Conditions and Salary Benchmarking Certificate, an essential precondition for obtaining corporate visas under the Immigration Act.

Acting Judge Kekana AJ held that the Department`s decision was lawful, rational and procedurally fair. This judgment illustrates how businesses can - and must - structure their corporate visa applications to meet statutory requirements, and how legal practitioners should prepare robust review challenges when administrative authorities decline to recommend foreign-work permits.

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The United States could forfeit an estimated 9.4 billion dollars in visitor spending over the next three years following the introduction of a new 250 dollars `visa integrity fee,` according to industry groups, who warn the policy risks undermining tourism and costing thousands of jobs.
The United States’ decision to introduce a 250 dollars `visa integrity fee` on international visitors has triggered sharp criticism from the global tourism industry, with officials warning that the measure could deter millions of travellers and cost the U.S. economy billions.
The 250dollar `visa integrity fee,` part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed on July 4, 2025, will take effect later this year. According to immigration law firm Envoy Global, it applies to all nonimmigrant visa holders which include students, tourists, temporary workers, and business visitors particularly from African countries. V.6132
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The Border Management Authority (BMA) has doubled its staff at Airports in South Africa , including immigration officers.

What does this mean for travelers? V.6127
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1. Right to Legal Representation•You have the right to consult with a legal representative.•Contact an immigration practitioner, legal aid clinic, or attorney urgently.•Do not sign any documents without understanding them fully. 2. Section 34 of the Immigration Act•You must be brought to court with 48 hours to confirm arrest but you can remain locked up very long as courts figure out what to do with you •If you`re found to be illegally in South Africa, you may be detained for up to 30 days (extendable by a magistrate) pending deportation.•BUT this cannot happen arbitrarily. You must be informed of your rights, and Home Affairs must follow due process.- becomes a nightmare , you could lose your job , business , place to stay V.6121
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Driving for Bolt, Uber, Mr D, or Checkers Sixty60?If you`re undocumented, you`re risking more than just your income.The Risks if You`re Not Legal: - Vehicle impoundment - Heavy fines - Arrest & deportation - Permanent bans from working in SA V.6122
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