UK Immigration and Citizenship launch biometric identity verification app to speed up applications

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UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI) has been working with UK Visa and Citizenship Application Services (UKVCAS) to develop a new biometric identify verification (IDV) application that allows users to register facial images and travel documents.

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“In some cases, UKVI is allowing biometrics (fingerprints and photographs) to be reused, if they have already been recorded in a previous application. UKVI and UKVCAS have been working together to create a way of submitting facial images using a new Identity Verification (IDV) app,” the legal practice Herrington Carmichael notes.

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The initiative comes as response to COVID-19, as the institutions hope to optimize and speed up application processing by reusing biometrics. As a result, in-person biometrics appointments would no longer be necessary. Before COVID-19, an appointment would cost roughly £110 (US$146).

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“The IDV app lets customers that are eligible for UKVI’s biometric reuse policy (fingerprints and photographs that have been recorded in a previous application) to submit their application information to UKVI without having to book an appointment at UKVCAS,” UKVCAS announced.

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The app was approved mid-August 2020 and deployment started on August 17. The institution is contacting users by email, who can use the app in two stages, depending on registration date. The goal is to process some 4,000 applications on a daily basis.

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Canada extends $2,000/month aid to international students, temporary foreign workers

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The Government of Canada is waiving the condition requiring international students and temporary foreign workers to provide proof of a valid study or work permit or renewal of an expiring permit before receiving the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB).

The new measure was announced in the form of a directive sent to Employment and Social Development Canada officials who are tasked with reviewing and approving CERB applications. Government agents will no longer have to get proof of a valid study or work permits by email, verbal confirmation from claimants will now be sufficient.

This change shows that the federal government is prepared to accommodate immigrants and provide as much support as possible to foreign workers and international students during this difficult time to encourage them to stay in Canada.

With this new measure, the application process for benefits will be simplified and accelerated so that immigrants who find themselves in difficult financial circumstances due to the COVID-10 pandemic can receive the help they need
In recent months, the government of Canada has made a multitude of funding announcements to help Canadians deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

 

Temporary residents, such as international students and temporary workers, have been included in the provisions put in place. The CERB offers $2,000 per month for up to 4 months to eligible temporary foreign workers and international students.