Two founders of the same project were granted startup visas, one of them together with his family. The family application went in on 24 September 2024, and the approvals came on 7 November, 44 days later. Between filing and decision there was a document request, and ten days before approval all of the applicant’s passports were stolen. Without a valid international passport, fingerprints cannot be given.
- 44 days
- from filing to approval
- application on 24 September, decisions on 7 November 2024
- 3 people
- in one family application
- the applicant, his wife and child; a separate decision comes for each
- 4 days
- to the fingerprint appointment
- approval on 7 November, appointment on 11 November
- 2 founders
- filed separately
- decisions came on 3 October and 7 November 2024
What they came with
The project was run by two founders, and they filed separately. One filed earlier and alone; the other filed with his wife and child, so his application carried the whole family with it. The first founder was approved on 3 October; the family file took its own course until 7 November.
The difficulty lay not in the project but in the order of steps. The applications go to two authorities, and there is no single decision for a family: each person has their own file, their own decision and their own fingerprint appointment.
How the timeline ran
-
01
A document list for each person
The list is drawn up in advance: passports with an entry stamp, criminal record certificates, documents proving family ties, insurance. Some documents are only valid for a limited time, so the order in which you obtain them matters more than speed.
-
02
Registration in the agency’s system and business plan upload
The company is registered separately from the immigration filing, and the business plan goes there. It is a second procedure within the same case, and without it there is no visa decision.
-
03
Family application filed, 24 September
The applications were filed on 24 September 2024. The fee is paid for each applicant.
-
04
First founder approved, 3 October
He had filed earlier and separately, so his decision came first. It had no effect on the family file: the queues are independent.
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05
Document request and answer
The document request was answered on time. It is a routine part of the procedure: it does not mean refusal, but if the deadline is missed the application may be treated as withdrawn.
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06
Approvals for the whole family, 7 November
A decision came for each family member separately, each with its own file number. The fingerprint appointment was booked for 11 November, four days after approval.
What did not go to plan
What actually delayed or complicated the process, and what we did about it.
Passports stolen ten days before approval
Ten days before approval, all of the applicant’s passports were stolen. The immediate question was whether the file would be frozen until the documents were replaced. Theft has no effect on the review, but a valid international passport is needed to give fingerprints. Here it worked out: the police found the belongings the next day. A plan for losing documents before the fingerprint appointment is best thought through in advance.
A separate decision for each person
There is no single decision for a family. Each person has their own file number, their own notification and their own fingerprint appointment. This regularly comes as a surprise.
Two founders, two independent queues
Approval for one founder does not speed up the review for the other, even when the project is the same. Here more than a month passed between the two decisions.
What the costs were made of
| Item | Amount | Paid to |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | at the current rate | paid to the state for each applicant |
State fee rates are revised, so we quote the amount as of the filing date rather than print it in the case. State fees and third-party services cost the same whoever you work with.
What we did
- Drew up a document list for each family member and each founder
- Registered the company in the agency’s system and uploaded the business plan
- Filed the applications and ran both files in parallel
- Answered the document request on time
- Supported the applicant after the passport theft without missing any deadlines on the file
What the service did not cover
Company registration and registering the founders as self-employed were not part of this case. They are separate procedures and took their own course.
We do not promise a decision, and we do not promise the timings of state authorities. Here 44 days passed from filing to the family’s approval, but that is not a standard: the other founder of the same project received his decision on a different date and in his own file. We are responsible for a complete package and for answering the document request on time.
Sources
The laws and official documents we relied on. Links go to the primary sources, so you can check them yourself.