If your visa application was created on or after 21 September 2026, the Borderless app guides you through adding Borderless as a helper on your UKVI account first, then your ID check. If it was created before that date, a member of our team calls you to complete the helper step.
Which ID check route applies to you
Before you download the app, check which of these applies.
You have a biometric passport from an EU country, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland. You can complete the ID check in the UK Immigration: ID Check app by scanning your passport.
You do not have a chipped passport but hold a BRP. You may still be able to scan your BRP in the app for a limited period after its expiry date. Check with your caseworker before you start.
Neither applies. You will need a biometric appointment instead. Use the Attend an in-person Biometrics appointment option in the Borderless app and your caseworker will guide you.
Government guidance: Using the UK Immigration: ID Check app
📱 Step 1: Check Your Email
You will receive:
An email with instructions
A notification in the Borderless platform
This will confirm whether you need to:
Use the UKVI app, or
Book a biometric appointment
✅ Before Your ID Check: add Borderless as a helper
After your payment is confirmed, the app walks you through adding Borderless as your authorised helper on your UKVI account and shows you the codes UKVI asks for. We use this helper access to confirm your identity check is complete, so it comes before the ID check. See Adding Borderless as an Authorised Helper on Your UKVI Account.
If you get stuck on the helper step, the app offers you a call with a Borderless caseworker.
🖥 Step 2: Using the UKVI App (Most Common)
If you are eligible to use the UKVI app, follow the guided steps in Borderless: get the app, get your connection code, sign in to UKVI, connect the app, complete the check.
Download the UK Immigration: ID Check app.
Log in using your UKVI account details.
Scan your passport.
Scan your face using the app instructions.
Complete any remaining steps in the app.
Once finished:
Return to Borderless.
Click Confirm ID Check Completed. We then check your UKVI account to confirm the identity check shows as complete, which takes a minute or two. If Borderless has not been added as a helper, the app sends you back to that step.
⚠️ Do NOT continue past the ID check stage and fill in the visa form a or enter any sponsor/CoS number. Doing this may delay or cancel your application. Our immigration team will fill in these details for you.
❗Common Issues with ID Checks and How to Fix Them
Passport Not Scanning 📸
Remove phone case.
Ensure good lighting.
Hold passport flat.
Try a different device if available.
Face Scan Fails ❌
Remove glasses.
Stand in neutral lighting.
Hold phone steady.
Cannot Log In 🔐
Reset your UKVI password.
Ensure you are using the same email linked to your visa application.
BRP chip will not scan 💳
Try a different device. iPhones generally scan more reliably than Android phones.
Hold the BRP flat against the back of the phone, lined up with the NFC reader (top half of most phones).
Remove any phone case, especially metallic or wallet-style cases.
If the chip still will not read after several attempts, report this to your case worker. You may need to use your passport instead or book a biometric appointment.
Home Office says you missed your biometrics appointment but you attended 📅
Locate proof of attendance: the original booking confirmation, the entry-stamp slip from the appointment centre, and any photos or receipts from the visit.
Email this evidence to your Borderless case worker straight away. We will write to the Home Office on your behalf to dispute the missed-appointment record.
Do not book a new appointment until your case worker confirms it is needed.
You are asked to complete the ID check again after you have already done it 🔁
This is usually because a detail on your UKVI account, most often your passport number, no longer matches the document you used. If the app shows you the date of birth, document type and document number it tried to sign in with, check they match what you use to sign in to UKVI and correct them in the app. After three failed attempts the app offers you a call with our team.
On applications created before 21 September 2026, update it on your UKVI account and tell your case worker, and we will confirm the step on your case.
You clicked Confirm ID Check Completed before doing the check ↩️
On applications created on or after 21 September 2026, the app checks UKVI when you press confirm and tells you if the check is not complete. Finish it in the UK Immigration: ID Check app and press confirm again.
On older applications this does not need to be undone and it does not affect your application. Open the UK Immigration: ID Check app and complete the check as normal, as soon as you can, then tell your case worker once it is done so we can confirm the step on your case.
If the app or your UKVI account will not let you start the check, contact support instead of clicking the button again.
You receive a UKVI email saying your application has not been completed 📧
This is an automated reminder generated by the part completed form in your UKVI account, not by the application we submitted for you. Do not sign in and complete it yourself. See You received a UKVI email saying your application has not been completed.
⚙️ When a Biometric Appointment Is Required
If you cannot use the UKVI app:
A biometric appointment must be booked.
Appointments may be at least 3 weeks away.
Some centres charge additional fees.
Your immigration team will guide you through booking if needed.
If your identity check was accepted in the UKVI app, you do not also need to attend a biometric appointment. Requirements differ from case to case, so what a friend or colleague was asked to do is not a guide to what you need.
✅ After Your ID Check
Once UKVI confirms your identity check is complete, your case moves on to Borderless. You do not need to fill in any further sections of the UKVI visa form yourself. Our immigration team submits the application on your behalf.
Government guidance: How to sign in to continue your visa application
Adding Borderless as a helper
For applications created on or after 21 September 2026, the app shows you the email address and phone number to enter in UKVI and the codes UKVI sends. Press Get the code, enter it in UKVI, and use Check for a newer code if it does not work (up to three times). For applications created before that date, a member of our team calls you and reads you the code.
Logging in with your passport, confirming with your BRP
If you created your UKVI account with your passport, keep logging in with your passport number and date of birth. When you select "Confirm your identity" on your application, scan the chip in your BRP. If the app will not accept your BRP, for example because your name is shown differently, tell us and we will arrange a biometrics appointment instead.
Biometrics appointments are booked for you
If you need a biometrics appointment, our team books it for you. It is included in the Borderless fee, so you do not need to book or pay for it yourself. Tell us which TLS centre is closest to you, and we will send you the appointment details.
You only see "Start application" on UKVI
This is expected while your case is at the ID check stage. Do not start a new application on the UKVI website. Go to your application on Borderless, click Start under Awaiting ID check, and follow the steps in order.
If "Continue application" still does not appear after you have added Borderless as a helper, contact support. Our team will send you a direct link to your Skilled Worker form. Open it, complete only the Confirm your identity step, then stop. Do not fill in any other part of the form. Tell us once the check is done and we will confirm it on your case.
Which document the ID Check app accepts
The app only accepts a biometric passport from an EU country, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, or a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP), including an expired one where the application route allows. A passport from any other country will not work in the app, even if it has a chip.
If you hold a non-EU passport and have a BRP, log in to UKVI with the document you set your account up with and scan your BRP when asked to confirm your identity. If you have neither, you will need a biometrics appointment, which we book for you.
Government guidance: Using the UK Immigration: ID Check app
Where to enter your connection code
Get your connection code in the UK Immigration: ID Check app.
Sign in to your UKVI account on a computer or another device.
Open the application that has already been started and select "Continue application".
Select "Confirm your identity" and keep going until you see the option to continue on the app.
Enter the connection code from the app, then follow the steps in the app.
If UKVI says "Your application has not been started"
Do not select "Start application". Starting a new application loses the information we have already filled in for you. Contact support and we will send you a direct link to your Skilled Worker form. Open it, complete only "Confirm your identity", then stop. Your immigration adviser completes the rest of the form.
Using an expired BRP
GOV.UK says you can use an expired Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) in the app "if your application route allows", and "for 18 months after the expiry date printed on the card". If your BRP expired more than 18 months ago, tell us and we will arrange a biometrics appointment instead.
Government guidance: Using the UK Immigration: ID Check app
Switching between the ID check and a biometrics appointment
If you cannot complete the ID check in the app, select "Attend an in-person biometrics appointment instead" on Borderless and your application will move forward. Our team books the appointment for you after your application has been submitted to the Home Office.
If you chose biometrics and now want to use the app instead, contact support before your CoS is assigned. Once your CoS has been assigned, the route cannot be changed and you will need to attend the appointment.
What to bring to your biometrics appointment
Bring your passport and the booking confirmation we sent you. If you have more than one passport, bring both.