Flexibility in action: UK allows one country to apply for visa without passport

This story has significance for readers across Kenya and beyond.

- The UK government published official guidance confirming Ukrainian nationals can use alternative documents when applying for certain UK visa schemes

- Accepted alternatives include recently expired passports, Ukrainian national identity cards, and emergency certificates issued since March 2022

- The guidance also set out biometric appointment rules, including a fingerprint exemption for children under five years old

The United Kingdom has confirmed that Ukrainian nationals are the only group in the world currently allowed to apply for certain UK visa schemes without holding a valid international passport.

What Documents Ukrainian Applicants Can Use

Official guidance published by the UK government, as part of support schemes for Ukrainian nationals and family members of British nationals in Ukraine, details precisely which documents applicants must present at a visa application centre during their biometric appointment.

For virtually every other nationality, a valid international passport is the only acceptable form of identification when applying for a UK visa.

Ukrainians, however, have been granted a wider set of alternatives that reflects the disruption caused by the ongoing conflict in their country following Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Under the guidance, which has been in effect since February 17, 2022, Ukrainian applicants may present a recently expired international passport rather than a current one.

A valid or recently expired Ukrainian national identity card is also accepted, as is an emergency certificate issued by a Ukrainian authority from March 2022 onwards.

For applicants who cannot produce any of those documents, there is still another path available.

A photo driving licence combined with a birth certificate may be submitted together, provided the two documents collectively confirm the individual's full name, date of birth, nationality, and gender.

This combination arrangement is not available to nationals of any other country under the scheme.

Biometric Appointments Remain Mandatory

Whichever documents a Ukrainian applicant presents, attendance at a visa application centre for biometric enrolment cannot be skipped. Every applicant must provide a photograph and fingerprints at the appointment.

The only exception applies to young children. Those under five years of age are exempt from the fingerprint requirement and are only required to provide a photograph.

The flexibility built into the scheme acknowledges the very real administrative difficulties Ukrainians face in renewing or obtaining travel documents while the conflict continues to disrupt normal government services across the country.

UK Lists Nationalities Exempt from English Test

TUKO.co.ke previously reported that the UK government published a full list of nationalities exempt from proving English language proficiency when applying for settlement or citizenship.

That list covers 19 countries and territories spanning the Caribbean, North America, the Pacific, and parts of Europe.

Source: TUKO.co.ke

Reporting originally appeared via TUKO. Read the full source for additional context.