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Administrative review of a UK visa refusal

Administrative review is a Home Office check of whether a refusal was caused by a caseworking error. It costs £80 and must be requested online within 14 days if you were in the UK, 28 days if you applied from outside, or 7 days if detained. It only covers routes listed in Appendix AR, usually ignores new evidence, and GOV.UK says results can take 12 months or more.

Administrative review replaced most appeal rights for work and study routes. It is cheaper than an appeal and needs no hearing, but it is narrower than many people expect: a different Home Office caseworker checks whether the original caseworker applied the Immigration Rules and guidance correctly to the application you made. It is not a second chance to add documents.

This guide takes the rules from Immigration Rules Appendix Administrative Review (updated 8 October 2026) and GOV.UK's administrative review pages, both read on 9 October 2026.

What administrative review checks

Appendix AR describes it as "the review of an eligible decision, the purpose of which is to decide whether the decision was wrong due to a case working error". Under AR 3.1, the reviewer decides whether the original decision maker:

(a) failed to apply, or incorrectly applied, the relevant Immigration Rules; or (b) failed to apply, or incorrectly applied, published guidance.

Under AR 3.2 the reviewer considers only whether you were entitled to permission on the basis of your original application, and not on any other basis. So if you applied as a Skilled Worker, the review cannot grant you a different visa.

Which decisions are eligible

AR 2.1 covers a refusal of entry clearance, a refusal of permission to enter, a refusal of permission to stay, and a cancellation of permission on arrival in the UK for a change of circumstances or false representations. AR 2.6(e) also allows a review of the length or conditions of a grant.

The decision must be on a route listed in AR 1.1. As at 8 October 2026 that list includes:

  • Study: Student, Short-term Student (English Language), Child Student, Parent of a Child Student, Graduate.
  • Work: Skilled Worker, Global Business Mobility routes, T2 Minister of Religion, Representative of an Overseas Business, Global Talent, High Potential Individual, Scale-up, Start-up, Innovator, International Sportsperson, the Temporary Work routes (Seasonal, Creative, Religious, Charity, International Agreement, Government Authorised Exchange), Youth Mobility Scheme, and the domestic worker routes.
  • Other: UK Ancestry, Hong Kong BN(O), Bereaved Partner, Victim of Domestic Abuse, Returning Resident, Statelessness, ECAA, some HM Armed Forces and Gurkha cases, and Tier 1 under Part 6A.

Appendix FM (partner and family) and Appendix Visitor are not on the list. Whether a family refusal carries an appeal instead depends on whether it was a refusal of a human rights claim under section 82 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002; the decision letter says which remedy, if any, applies.

Frontier Workers have a separate process, and EU Settlement Scheme reviews follow their own rules.

Deadlines (AR 2.6)

  • Refused entry clearance (applied outside the UK): 28 calendar days from receiving the decision. You must be outside the UK to apply (AR 2.9).
  • Refused permission to stay (applied in the UK), not detained: 14 calendar days.
  • Detained on the date of the decision: 7 calendar days.
  • Cancellation of permission, not detained: 14 calendar days. GOV.UK gives 28 days for cancellations at the juxtaposed controls in Paris, Brussels, Dunkirk, Coquelles, Calais and Lille.
  • Review of the length or conditions of a grant: 14 calendar days from receiving the grant.

The application counts as made on the day you submit it online (AR 2.7). A late application can be accepted only if the decision maker is satisfied it would be "unjust not to waive the time limit" and you applied "as soon as reasonably practicable" (AR 2.14). If you applied in the UK, you cannot ask for the review from outside the UK (AR 2.15).

Fee and how to apply

The fee is £80. You apply online on GOV.UK's administrative review service (AR 2.4 says online is the only method). The fee must be paid for the application to be valid (AR 2.5). Partners and children can be included if they were dependants on the refused application (AR 2.11).

You can only have one review of a decision, unless the first review kept the refusal in place for different or additional reasons, in which case you can ask for a review of the maintained decision (AR 2.8). If you signed an administrative review waiver form, you cannot apply (AR 2.12).

New evidence: usually not considered

This is where many reviews fail. Under AR 3.3, evidence that was not before the original caseworker is only considered where the decision was:

  • a refusal or cancellation on grounds of false representations or deception;
  • a refusal of entry clearance for a previous breach of immigration laws;
  • a decision not to request specified documents under paragraph 245AA; or
  • a failure to follow the published evidential flexibility policy.

Outside those cases, the review looks at the evidence you originally sent. If the refusal was because a document was missing, sending it now generally does not help, and a new application may be the route people take instead. Where new evidence is admissible, the reviewer may ask you for more information and set a deadline (AR 3.4).

How long it takes and what you can do meanwhile

GOV.UK currently says it "can take 12 months or more to receive the result" for in-country and overseas reviews. If you have no decision within 6 months, the Home Office will contact you with an update. Reviews of cancellations at the border "usually" take 28 days or more.

In the UK: if you applied before your permission expired, section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971 extends your leave on the same conditions while a review could be sought or is pending. AR 4.1 says you will not be removed while an in-country review is pending. Section 3C leave lapses if you leave the UK.

What withdraws a review (AR 4.3, 4.4): making any new immigration application (treated as withdrawn the day before), asking for your passport back to travel, leaving the UK, or signing a waiver. You can withdraw by email; the fee is not refunded.

Possible outcomes (AR 5.1)

  • Succeeds: the refusal is withdrawn and the application is reconsidered. It is not an automatic grant.
  • Does not succeed: the refusal stands for all the original reasons.
  • Does not succeed, but some reasons are withdrawn.
  • Does not succeed, with different or additional reasons. In that case you may ask for a second review of the maintained decision (AR 2.8).

If the review fails, the remaining options are usually a new application or, where the decision was unlawful, judicial review in the Upper Tribunal (apply no later than 3 months after the decision; £179 to apply).

Writing the grounds, and when people get help

The online form asks why you think the decision is wrong. Because the test is caseworking error, effective grounds usually tie each refusal reason to a specific Rule or guidance paragraph and the evidence that was already submitted. Arguments about fairness or hardship, without a caseworking error, fall outside what the reviewer looks at.

On GOV.UK, getting a decision reviewed is listed as Level 2 work for IAA-registered advisers, so a Level 1 adviser cannot take it on. Solicitors can also do it. A typical engagement is a review of the refusal letter and the original application, a view on whether review, appeal or reapplying fits the refusal reasons, and drafting of the grounds within the deadline, all set out in a client care letter with the fee.

The Migratio directory lists IAA-registered advisers (with their level) and SRA-regulated solicitors, each with their regulator and registration number. Migratio is not regulated by the IAA or the SRA and does not give immigration advice. This page explains how the rules work; it does not tell you what to do in your case.

Questions people ask

How much does an administrative review cost?

£80, paid online when you apply. If you withdraw the request, the fee is not refunded.

How long does a UK administrative review take?

GOV.UK currently says it can take 12 months or more. If you have not had a decision within 6 months, the Home Office will contact you with an update. Reviews of visas cancelled at the border usually take 28 days or more.

Can I submit new documents with an administrative review?

Usually not. Under Appendix AR 3.3, new evidence is only considered in limited cases, such as refusals for deception or a previous breach of immigration laws, or where the caseworker failed to follow the evidential flexibility policy.

Can I ask for an administrative review of a spouse or visitor visa refusal?

Appendix FM (partner and family) and Appendix Visitor are not on the list of eligible routes in Appendix AR 1.1. A family refusal may carry a right of appeal instead if it refused a human rights claim. Your decision letter says which, if any, applies.

What happens if I make a new visa application during an administrative review?

The administrative review is treated as withdrawn the day before the new application was made (Appendix AR 4.4). GOV.UK also says an in-country review is withdrawn if you ask for your passport back to travel or leave the UK.

Can I work while waiting for an administrative review?

If you applied in the UK before your permission expired, section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971 extends your existing leave on the same conditions while the review could be sought or is pending, so the conditions of your previous permission continue to apply.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-09.

Related guides

  • UK visa refused: appeal, administrative review or reapply? — Your refusal letter says whether you can ask for an administrative review (£80; 14 days in the UK, 28 days outside, 7 if detained) or appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (£82 or £144; 14 or 28 days). Appeals are only for refused protection or human rights claims and a few other decision types. Making a new application withdraws a pending administrative review.
  • Section 3C leave: your status while a decision is pending — If you apply to extend or change your UK leave before it expires, section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971 extends that leave on the same conditions until the application is decided, and while an appeal or administrative review is possible or pending. It does not apply to late or invalid applications, and it ends if you leave the UK.
  • Skilled Worker visa refused: options and deadlines — A refused Skilled Worker application can be challenged by administrative review (£80; 14 days if you applied in the UK, 28 days if you applied from abroad) because Appendix Skilled Worker is on the eligible list. A certificate of sponsorship that has been used in a refused application cannot be used again (SW 5.1(d)), so a fresh application needs a new certificate and a new visa fee.
  • UK Student visa refused: review or reapply — A refused Student visa can be challenged by administrative review because Appendix Student is on the list: £80, 28 days if you applied from outside the UK, 14 days if you applied in the UK. A Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies that was used in a refused application cannot be used again (ST 7.2), so applying again needs a new CAS from the university. Nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan are barred from applying for entry clearance as a Student.
  • Immigration appeal to the First-tier Tribunal — You can only appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) if the decision carries a right of appeal, mainly a refused protection claim, a refused human rights claim, or a revoked protection status. The fee is £82 without a hearing or £144 with one, and the notice of appeal must reach the tribunal within 14 days if you are in the UK or 28 days if you are outside it.
  • IAA adviser levels 1, 2 and 3: what each can do — The IAA registers immigration advisers at three levels. Level 1 covers straightforward applications, Level 2 adds casework such as complex applications and administrative review, and Level 3 adds representation at immigration tribunal appeals. Advisers must not work above their authorised level.