This accessibility statement applies to all visa and immigration journeys completed through the domain https://apply-to-visit-or-stay-in-the-uk.homeoffice.gov.uk. This includes journeys such as applying:
- to visit the UK
- to study in the UK
- to work in the UK
- for indefinite leave to remain to stay in the UK
This website is run by the Home Office. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:
- change colours, contrast levels and fonts
- zoom in up to 400% without the text spilling off the screen
- navigate most of the website using just a keyboard or speech recognition software
- listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)
We have also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.
AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.
How accessible this website is
We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible. You can see a full list of any issues we currently know about in the non-accessible content section of this statement.
Feedback and contact information
Tell us if you need information in a different format.
In your message, include:
- the web address (URL) of the content
- your email address and name
- the format you need - for example, plain text, braille, BSL, large print or audio CD
You can request a PDF in an accessible format from its page. Click 'Request an accessible format' to contact the organisation that published the document.
You can also view the organisation's accessible document policy to report any problems or request documents in an alternative format.
Enforcement procedure
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you are not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).
If you are in Northern Ireland and are not happy with how we respond to your complaint you can contact the Equalities Commission for Northern Ireland who are responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’) in Northern Ireland.
Technical information about this website’s accessibility
The Home Office is committed to making its website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.
Non-accessible content
The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.
Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations
- Some lists do not display correctly. They may look like normal text or a different type of heading. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.1b (Info and Relationships).
- Some forms fields don’t have an associated visible label. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.1d (Info and Relationships).
- Some pages do not completely reflow at 400% magnification. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.10 (Reflow)
- Some images include text with poor colour contrast to its background. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.3 (Contrast (Minimum)).
- Some images include elements with poor colour contrast to the background. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.4.11 (Non-text Contrast).
- If a table is too wide to fit on the screen, the hidden information cannot be reached with a keyboard. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.1.1 (Keyboard).
- Some pages have duplicate titles. This may make it difficult for users to orient themselves and find the right content. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.2 (Page Titled).
- The link text on some pages don’t make sense out of the context, is not clear what the link is or where this is taking the user to. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.4 (Link purpose in context).
- Some pages lose their visible focus when using the Tab and arrow keys to reach all actionable components. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.7 (Focus Visible).
- Some headings don’t accurately describe the content underneath. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.6 (Headings and Labels).
- The text on some buttons doesn’t accurately describe what the button does. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.6 (Headings and Labels).
- On some pages the back to top link at the bottom of the page can hide focussed elements. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.11 (Focus Not Obscured (Minimum)).
- Some images of text that are used as links have image descriptions that don’t include all of the text. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.5.3 (Label in Name).
- Some pages have inconsistently-placed language navigation. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.2.3 (Consistent Navigation).
- Across our services, it is not possible for the user to define the length of the timeout, turn it off, delay it or extend the length of time. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.2.1 (Timing adjustable).
- Translation Navigation is inconsistently named. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.2.4 (Consistent Identification).
- Some pages don’t display clear instructions on how to enter data in a specific format. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.3.2 (Labels or instructions).
- For some pages, when an error is detected, there are no clear suggestions for correcting the issue. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.3.3 (Error Suggestions).
- Some links that reveal more content can cause some screen reader users to lose their position on the page. This fails WCAG 2.2 success criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value).
Disproportionate burden
Some of the content used to apply for some types of licence is non-accessible. The non-accessible content is published through platforms which we are transitioning to new arrangements. We believe that fixing the problems causing content to be non-accessible on the old platforms would be disproportionate.
Content that's not within the scope of the accessibility regulations
At this time, we have not identified any content that is not within scope of the accessibility regulations.
Preparation of this accessibility statement
This statement was prepared on 23 September 2019. It was last reviewed on 12 June 2024.
This website was last tested in May 2024 against the WCAG 2.2 AA standard. This test of a representative sample of pages was carried out by the Digital Accessibility Centre (DAC).
We also used findings from our own testing when preparing this accessibility statement.
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