The sole reason was that it was impossible to switch from a visitor visa to a family visa. “A key angle of our story is that the Home Office are charging excessive sums for applications that greatly exceed the cost of processing the applications,” said Henderson. “Most people will have no choice but to submit further applications at additional expense, and the Home Office profit. Profits made by the Home Office increased in April when settlement and indefinite leave to remain application fees increased by 22.5%. The fee was introduced after the Home Office contracted out its customer enquiries service for visa applications to a private outsourcing firm, Sitel UK, a subsidiary of the French-owned Acticall Sitel Group.

Source: The Guardian September 01, 2017 12:11 UTC