Police registration for foreign nationals
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Police registration for foreign nationals
This scheme has been abolished as of 4 August 2022 and you are no longer required to register with the police when entering the UK.
Some individuals need to register with the police after arriving in the UK with their new visa, or after getting permission to stay for longer in the UK.
If you are required to register, you must go to the police within 7 days of:
- Arriving in the UK after applying for a visa from outside the UK
- Getting your biometric residence permit (BRP) if you are extending your stay from inside the UK
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Who usually needs to register?
The citizens of the following nationalities usually need to register:
- Afghanistan
- Algeria
- Argentina
- Armenia
- Azerbaijan
- Bahrain
- Belarus
- Bolivia
- Brazil
- China
- Colombia
- Cuba
- Egypt
- Georgia
- Iran
- Iraq
- Israel
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan
- Kuwait
- Kyrgyzstan
- Lebanon
- Libya
- Moldova
- Morocco
- North Korea
- Oman
- Palestine
- Peru
- Qatar
- Russia
- Saudi Arabia
- Sudan
- Syria
- Tajikistan
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Turkmenistan
- United Arab Emirates
- Ukraine
- Uzbekistan
- Yemen
Please note if you have dual nationality with one of the countries’ that is not on the list, you will not need to register.
Other circumstances in which you may be requested to register include:
- You’re stateless
- You hold a non-national travel document
However, you would not need to register with the police if you are under 16 years old or your visa is for less than 6 months.
Applying outside the UK
Check your visa vignette in your passport. If it states ‘Police registration’ or ‘Register with police in 7 days of entry’ on it – you must register with the police.
Applying inside the UK
Check the letter you received from the Home Office when your application was approved – it will say if you must register.
When can I be exempt from registering with the police?
Usually, you wouldn’t need to register with the police if you have permission to live permanently in the UK or are a family member of an EEA citizen.
In addition, if you have one of the following permissions to stay in the UK, you would not need to register:
- A seasonal agricultural worker
- A private servant in a diplomatic household
- A minister of religion, missionary or member of a religious order
- The partner (spouse, fiancé(e), civil or unmarried partner) of a person settled in the UK
- A person with access rights to a child resident in the UK
- The parent of a child at school
- Someone who’s been given asylum
How do I register with the police?
You need to take your documents (summarised in the next section) to the police station in your area. It would cost £34 to register and you must pay this sum at the police station.
Documents and information you need:
- 2 recent passport size colour photographs
- Your passport
- Your visa vignette (if you have one)
- The letter you received from the Home office when your application was approved (if you applied inside the UK)
- Your BRP (if you have one)
What information the police will record about you:
- Your full name
- Your gender
- If you’re married or have a partner
- Your date and country of birth
- Your nationality
- Any past nationalities and dates when your nationality changed
- Your address in the UK
- The address of the last place you lived outside the UK
- The date and place you arrived in the UK, and how
- Your passport or identity card details
- What you can and cannot do with your visa, including how long you can stay
- Your education provider’s name and address if you’re a student (make sure that you have the address of your university at hand before the appointment)
- Your employer’s name and address if you’re working (as above)
- Your business details and address if you’re self-employed (as above)
Although it’s uncommon, the police can ask you for more information. You may also need to fill in an application form before you register. Contact the police to find out and contact us if you have any queries about this.
Where do I register?
You need to contact your local police station to find out where you need to go.
However, if you live in London, you should register at the Overseas Visitors Records Office (OVRO). If you’re moving to London for the first time after having registered with another police force in the UK, you would need to register with OVRO (or register again if you are moving back). However, if you live in the City of London, which is a historic financial district within London, you need to contact your local police station.
What do I do after I register with the police?
You will receive a Police registration certificate (PRC) upon registering with the police. You should keep the police registration certificate for as long as you visa lasts to use to:
- Prove you are registered with the police
- Return to the UK if you travel
- Apply to stay for longer in the UK
What if my details change?
You are required to tell the police if any of your information has changed. The following information must be reported:
- Change of residential address
- Change of work address
- Change of study address/course
- Change of occupation
- Change of name
- Change of Nationality
- Change of passport or travel documentation
- Change of marital status
- New or extended visa
- If your Police Registration Certificate is full
- Returning to the UK after more than 12 months away
How to report the change in your details depends on where you are located. For example, if you are in London, change of address, name, nationality, marital status, new or extended visa, PRC is full, returning to the UK after more than 12 months away – all require you to book an appointment to report the change.
Contact your police station to enquire about how to report the change.
What if I don’t register with the police?
If you don’t register with the police when you are required to do so your permission to stay might be shortened and you might have to leave the UK. You can also be stopped from getting or extending a UK visa in future. Thus, we strongly encourage that you register with the police when required.
What if I lose my police registration certificate?
You’ll need to register again. Check with the police station for your local area.
If you have any further question about this, please do get in touch.
Last updated on August 8, 2022
Last updated on August 8, 2022
