The wife has been given someone else's Visa!

[Jo12Jo]

Just before SongKran me and the wife went to take her application and docs to the VFS office for her UK Family visit visa

Last Friday we got the e mail to say they had decided on everything

This morning the post man just delivered by ems her passport, we'd paid for this service to save going back to Bangkok

When I opened it to check the visa first thing was it was the wrong picture and not the wife on the visa, the woman looks nothing like my wife and she is wearing a yellow hairband

The name is different and the visa is a student visa

What a mess

Now what do we need to do?

Any advice who to call?

Anyone heard of this before?

I guess this other woman has my wife's visa stamped in her passport...

[Jo12Jo]

So far all I can find is a number to call about visas for the uk but there is a charge of £1.37 UK Sterling per minute which is crazy to pay for something that isn't our fault

Not a happy start to the day

[Paul888]

I know that mistakes can happen, but that is a huge one. How can there not be some kind of process in place to catch things like this before they go out the door?

Anyway about resolving the problem..... best thing to do is bite the bullet and call the UK number and tell them to call you back with the number of who you have to call in Bangkok. I know it is not your fault, but you want this sorted quickly. Oh and obviously, maintain calm in your dealings with whoever you speak to!

[Thanyaburi Mac]

Good luck for them to actually call him back here in Thailand!

No email address available for the visa folks at the Embassy? Or the VFS?

Mac

a Yank

ps: Had something similar happen 20 years or so back. I had my U.S. taxes done by a "service" here in Bangkok. The package I received was for a guy designing golf courses in China, and he received mine, retired here. Another Oops moment in the LoS....

[meatboy]

it happened to my wife when she got a new passport[somelse;s photo,they said no no no your wrong[thai embassey] myself i would phone british embassey.if you have to phone the uk.get an international CAT PHONENET CALLING CARD 300bht for 3hrs.to the uk.

IS THERE A BRITISH CONSULATE HERE.IF SO GIVE THEM A RING.

back to the wife the thai consulate soon sorted them out.cardiff 1996.

[theoldgit]

I would be inclined to call the main switchboard at the UK Embassy in the first instance and try and get to speak to somebody, explaining that this is a major breach of data protection.

I would be expecting the UKVI to cover your costs.

As others have said mistakes can happen but this really beggars belief.

Do let us know how it pans out.

[Jo12Jo]

I decided not to bother calling and wasting time and money on that as I had a feeling it would be a case of go back to the VFS office Bangkok anyway.

So right after starting the OP we jumped in the car, and set off.

Traffic was great, took a little over an hour to get there, 150 THB in tolls though one way, and the same coming back.

Up to the office, the girls at the desk never battered an eyelid, it was just a case of given a ticket number and go through and wait.

5 mins later the wife was out and had been told they'd send the passport back as this isn't the first time this had happened and they had a procedure for this kind of thing.

When the wife asked about the ems they told her nothing they could do about the mistake their end and that we'd get a phone call once sorted and have to go back to collect the passport as and when this happens.

What a mess.

Instead of my wife having a nice clean passport, with correct uk visa stamps in it, now she'll have this stamp of another woman with picture in there , all details of this visa incorrect and not matching my wife's passport and guess they will stamp a VOID stamp through it. Not really what I wanted in my wife's passport.

Also the poor student lass will have the exact same to go through, just imagine if she live in CM or anywhere far up north.

E mail will be sent to the British Embassy Visa section from me once I get my head sorted.

I'll update this once we finally get the correct visa in her passport.

Cheers...

Edited April 16, 2015 by Jo12Jo

[7by7]

This is appalling, and as theoldgit says a serious breach of the Data Protection Act as you now have the other girl's details and she, presumably, your wife's.

It has also put you to extra out of pocket expenses in getting it put right.

In your position I'd make an official complaint: Complaints procedure

Note the following, hidden away at the bottom of the page

If you can show that you have suffered financial loss as a direct result of an error we have made, you may be able to claim reimbursement of the costs you have incurred. We will only consider reimbursing you for these costs if they were reasonable, unavoidable and a direct consequence of our actions - and you will need to provide evidence such as original receipts.

In exceptional circumstances not involving financial loss, we will consider whether a consolatory payment may be appropriate.

[Jo12Jo]

This is appalling, and as theoldgit says a serious breach of the Data Protection Act as you now have the other girl's details and she, presumably, your wife's.

It has also put you to extra out of pocket expenses in getting it put right.

In your position I'd make an official complaint: Complaints procedure

Note the following, hidden away at the bottom of the page

If you can show that you have suffered financial loss as a direct result of an error we have made, you may be able to claim reimbursement of the costs you have incurred. We will only consider reimbursing you for these costs if they were reasonable, unavoidable and a direct consequence of our actions - and you will need to provide evidence such as original receipts.

In exceptional circumstances not involving financial loss, we will consider whether a consolatory payment may be appropriate.

Thanks for that info above, an e mail will be sent.

[JacChang]

Immigration recently started advertising new young students for our interests. For our convenience, they included all the information such as name, age, and address. If your lucky, you might even get a phone number.

[dotpoom]

You say you paid for this service to avoid going to BKK. Go back to the people you paid.

[Jo12Jo]

You say you paid for this service to avoid going to BKK. Go back to the people you paid.

The 'paid' service is the ems sending back of your passport.

This is offered by the VFS office when submitting your application and passport.

That's where we went back to yesterday, they took back the passport, said they wouldn't do the ems again and that we needed to collect in person.

[Time Traveller]

This is appalling, and as theoldgit says a serious breach of the Data Protection Act as you now have the other girl's details and she, presumably, your wife's.

When governments started outsourcing visa collection to an indian owned company the Data Protection Act no longer applies.

[GOLDBUGGY]

Who made the mistake.

Was it the correct name and address on the Package? Even then the Courier could have picked up 2 or 3 that day at the embassy and got them mixed up later.

Embassy's are usually very careful about this so I would check with the courier first.

[Jo12Jo]

Who made the mistake.

Was it the correct name and address on the Package? Even then the Courier could have picked up 2 or 3 that day at the embassy and got them mixed up later.

Embassy's are usually very careful about this so I would check with the courier first.

Passport was correct, the documents were correct, everything was correct but they, the UK visa people in BKK, had put into the wife's passport some other random woman's UK student visa.

[theoldgit]

This is appalling, and as theoldgit says a serious breach of the Data Protection Act as you now have the other girl's details and she, presumably, your wife's.

When governments started outsourcing visa collection to an indian owned company the Data Protection Act no longer applies.

That's simply not correct, of course the Data Protection Act still applies.

[7by7]

Indeed.

VFS are merely a handling agent who collect applications and forward them to the embassy and then receive them back for return to the applicant.

When passports are returned by the embassy to VFS for forwarding to or collection by the applicant they are in sealed packages, so VFS do not know the result of the application.

Visa decisions are made by UKVI staff at the embassy, and UKVI is an agency of the Home Office.

The data Protection Act applies, and this is a serious breach of it.

BTW, VFS Global is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Kuoni Group, a company founded by a Swiss in Switzerland and still headquartered in Zurich. So if you want to make veiled racist remarks, direct them at the Swiss, not the Indians!

[xen]

Indeed.

VFS are merely a handling agent who collect applications and forward them to the embassy and then receive them back for return to the applicant.

When passports are returned by the embassy to VFS for forwarding to or collection by the applicant they are in sealed packages, so VFS do not know the result of the application.

Visa decisions are made by UKVI staff at the embassy, and UKVI is an agency of the Home Office.

The data Protection Act applies, and this is a serious breach of it.

BTW, VFS Global is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Kuoni Group, a company founded by a Swiss in Switzerland and still headquartered in Zurich. So if you want to make veiled racist remarks, direct them at the Swiss, not the Indians!

It is indeed a Swiss company but if you look at the company's office holders they are mainly Indian names . All of them are highly qualified academically and professionally and so it would be difficult to be racist and be accurate . It is just another global company.

[bobrussell]

It sounds as if the mistake was at the embassy. If the wrong vignette went into the passport it is nothing to do with the address on the package.

Might be too late but costs can be claimed back, including tolls and taxis. They would need receipts!

This is a major mistake, a big breach of data protection. Not sure if the Information Commissioner's Office covers UK authorities abroad but might be worth sending an email. You have to assume your wife's details are in someone else's passport therefore your family is affected.

[NanLaew]

What is all this talk about a serious breach of the data protection laws? A serious breach would be if someone got the wrong passport completely. What's on a visa sticker apart from a face and a name that in this case doesn't even match the ones in the passport? The OP's wife knows the name of the other person (and they know hers) but that's about it. Neither can use that do do anything nefarious, open a bank account, get a credit card, obtain a mortgage, nada. Certainly can't try and enter the UK on it and that is its prime function.

It can be a substantial inconvenience though, particularly if unlike the OP, one lives much more than an hours drive from agents and embassies. Or if international travel was imminent.

Edited April 17, 2015 by NanLaew

[Jo12Jo]

What is all this talk about a serious breach of the data protection laws? What's on a visa sticker apart from a face and a name that in this case doesn't even match the ones in the passport? The OP's wife knows the name of the other person (and they know hers) but that's about it. Neither can use that do do anything nefarious, open a bank account, get a credit card, obtain a mortgage, nada. It's the same when the local postman drops the wrong letter through a letterbox, an honest mistake leading to an inconvenience.

It can be a substantial inconvenience though, particularly if unlike the OP, one lives much more than an hours drive from agents and embassies.

One the UK visa stamp I had the picture of this other woman, her full name, her passport number, her date of birth and type of visa, so a lot of information there.

And if she has my wife's visa she will have the same about my wife

[bobrussell]

Definitely enough information for someone unscrupulous to create havoc.

Plenty of serious problems have arisen when post is incorrectly delivered. Most of the time it is a bit of an annoyance but on occasions can have serious repercussions. You are at the mercy of the recipient to be honest and not misuse the data.

Businesses have significant legal responsibilities to ensure that private information is not divulged to people not entitled to it. That is why we have data protection laws. UKVI is a glorified business in addition to being a government organisation.

[matseng]

What is all this talk about a serious breach of the data protection laws? A serious breach would be if someone got the wrong passport completely.

Heh... This (kinda) happened to me at the Swedish embassy in BKK about a year ago.

I applied for a new passport and about 10 days later I got a text saying that my passport was ready so I wen over to the embassy gave my old passport to the Thai clerk at one counter and said that I was here to pick up my new passport, she told me to sit down and wait until called.

Some minutes later a Swedish guy at the other counter called me over and asked me to sign the new passport while he voided my old passport by punching a hole in it. Just as I put the pen to the paper I had a peek at the photo in the passport and I though, "shit, I look really fat in this picture". Then I realized that it was not me, some other Swedish bloke also named Mats, but with Ericsson instead of Engstrom as surname.

Apparently the Thai lady thinks that all farangs looks the same and Engstrom / Ericsson is same-same.

So I was stranded in Bangkok for another 10 days without a valid passport before my real passport arrived. I was offered an emergency passport and also for me real passport to be sent to Kuala Lumpur which is my real home city nowdays, but I declined. Using an emergency passport seemed like more hassle than the non-refundable 3000 baht ticket I already had for going home the next day was worth.

I stayed mostly indoors in my condo the next 10 days since it was in the midst of the coup. Didn't want to take any unnecessary risks even if I would have been caught in a checkpoint with my cancelled passport they would probably just have accepted that. (I hope)

[NanLaew]

What is all this talk about a serious breach of the data protection laws? What's on a visa sticker apart from a face and a name that in this case doesn't even match the ones in the passport? The OP's wife knows the name of the other person (and they know hers) but that's about it. Neither can use that do do anything nefarious, open a bank account, get a credit card, obtain a mortgage, nada. It's the same when the local postman drops the wrong letter through a letterbox, an honest mistake leading to an inconvenience.

It can be a substantial inconvenience though, particularly if unlike the OP, one lives much more than an hours drive from agents and embassies.

One the UK visa stamp I had the picture of this other woman, her full name, her passport number, her date of birth and type of visa, so a lot of information there.

And if she has my wife's visa she will have the same about my wife

I stand corrected as it seems they may be placing a lot more personal information on the sticker than they used to. Maybe student visas have more details than visitor visas? Maybe that's because of all this 'increased security' they keep yakking about (and charging more for)? Many other countries that use sticker of vignette style visas don't have very little personal information. If 'more security' means duplicating pictures and information in the same passport, then I have a different take on what the visa people deem to be more security. Less is more IMHO.

[7by7]

Many years ago when I first became involved in UK visas, the visa was a simple rubber stamp in the passport.

Now, regardless of type, it is a vignette stuck into the passport which, as well as the type of visa, contains the visa holder's personal details, including passport number.

Fraud prevention; to try and prevent the vignette being copied or removed and placed into another passport.

[josephbloggs]

A friend of mine recently applied for a UK General Visit visa for his long time Thai girlfriend. Documents submitted, all boxes ticked, plenty of reasons to return, application seemed solid, wait and see.

They got a rejection letter saying that her travel history was suspicious, especially her time spent in Indonesia. The thing is she has never been to Indonesia, never even left Thailand before, so they had obviously the application mixed up with someone else. My friend complained but there was no recourse, they insisted the rejection stood. So if they reapply in future they will have to tick the box that asks if you have ever had an application rejected before, and why.

It really is sloppy and outrageous in the extreme. I thought that story was bad enough, but being given someone else's visa!!??

Shocking.

[Jo12Jo]

A friend of mine recently applied for a UK General Visit visa for his long time Thai girlfriend. Documents submitted, all boxes ticked, plenty of reasons to return, application seemed solid, wait and see.

They got a rejection letter saying that her travel history was suspicious, especially her time spent in Indonesia. The thing is she has never been to Indonesia, never even left Thailand before, so they had obviously the application mixed up with someone else. My friend complained but there was no recourse, they insisted the rejection stood. So if they reapply in future they will have to tick the box that asks if you have ever had an application rejected before, and why.

It really is sloppy and outrageous in the extreme. I thought that story was bad enough, but being given someone else's visa!!??

Shocking.

That's crazy.

Who knows what's going to happen with my wife's.

Not heard a thing yet from the VFS office.

And after reading the above it makes me wonder if they (not the VFS office that is) have any clue what they are doing.

[7by7]

josephbloggs,

Whilst it is true, unfortunately, that visit visa refusals cannot be appealed, it seems, from what you have said, that this applicant was refused because her application was confused with someone else's.

This is appalling; particularly because, as you say, this refusal and the reason for it will remain on her record and she will have to refer to it in any future application.

What is she supposed to say; I was refused due to an ECO's incompetence when s/he mixed my application up with someone else's"?

I strongly suggest that your friend does not let this lie and takes it up via the complaints procedure and maybe his MP, if he has one.

Unless there is something about his girlfriend's past she's not telling him and the ECO discovered through checking her passport!

[Maestro]

...I stand corrected as it seems they may be placing a lot more personal information on the sticker than they used to. Maybe student visas have more details than visitor visas? ...

This is what a US visitor visa looks like:

Image source: http://www.path2usa.com/what-is-visitor-visa

Probably not so much a security issue, but annoying to know that a complete stranger has unnecessarily been given this type of of personal information: photo, nationality, surname, given name, passport number, date of birth.

[NanLaew]

^ I did a google image search for UK visa sticker and some fairly recent ones that are NOT issued in Thailand have NO personal information apart from the picture and the name in the machine-readable text at the bottom. Some have more and it appears some stickers issued in Thailand have lots of information similar to the US visa sticker. Maybe this is indicative of the level of visa fraud in any particular jurisdiction. It suggests that Thailand may be a 'high risk' case?

I hope the OP gets a fast, no-cost resolution as well as no dicking about with the expenses incurred. If the student who has his wife's sticker hasn't checked her passport or been in touch with VFS or the Embassy yet, it could be a lengthy process.