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Paying the NHS surcharge - what a palava!

Discussion in 'UK Visa and Immigration Help' started by Maharg, Oct 10, 2015.

  1. Maharg
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    Maharg Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    I thought I'd try and py the NHS surcharge this morning, as we're due to pply for FLR next month.

    I think it's bet to give plenty of time for this judging by this mornings effort.

    Frst my card was declined on security grounds - presumably because I'm paying immigration stuff. So I phoned Barclaycard. They said it would now be ok.

    It wasn't.

    So I had to phone them again, and this time got tranferred to fraud, and they cleared it.

    So, after about 30 minutes I was able to pay online, the payment went through, and I was taken to a page on the government website that said thus:

    Error
    Sorry, we are experiencing technical problems.

    Sign in to your application and try again.

    [Contact UKVI] if you'd like help with this.

    I mean, FOR GOD'S SAKE!!!!

    Anyone else felt like tearing their hair out trying to pay this?
  2. Maharg
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    Maharg Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    Well, I just logged in and it says:

    IHS reference number Created Name Action
    IHSXXXXXXXXX 10/10/2015 08:40:41
    Mrs Maharg Request Refund
    So I guess I've paid then!
  3. Dave_E
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    Dave_E Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    Paid them Once, or Twice?
    :lol:
  4. Timmers
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    Timmers Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    From the above I too guess you have paid as they have given you a IHS reference number. When I paid for the settlement visa and had similar problems paying I came away with the same feeling, "have I paid or have I not?"

    I know only last week that other members of the forum were having trouble paying the surcharge online too.

    I am assuming you are going for the FLR(M) postal service is that correct?

    The reason I say the above is because I thought if you are applying for the premium service then you pay the surcharge as part of the online booking process, I might be wrong.
    Last edited: Oct 10, 2015
  5. Timmers
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    Timmers Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    Oh, and by the way, please post a list of documents you submitted regarding your self employment stuff, it will help myself and others applying under the same category
    :)
  6. Maharg
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    Maharg Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    I'm sending the kitchen sink!

    I'm doing 2 years of accounts because my accounts run from July to July, so sending 2 years ensures at least one period from April to April is covered.

    Tax Returns for 2013-2014 and 2014-2015.
    SA302s for 3 years (I had them anyway for a mortgage so I'll send them all)
    3 years Tax Year Overviews (these validate the SA302s. The mortgage company required them so I thought it might be worth sending them)
    2 years worth of HMRC statements (the tax invoices they send)
    National Insurance Record since I went self employed in 1993.
    Invoices/Spreadsheets for 2 financial years plus the same from July 2015 to end of October 2015.
    Letter from accountant stating my last 2 years of earnings, plus an estimate of earnings for 2015-2016 based on invoices from July to October. Plus accountant's statements of my earning for the last 2 years which he sends me each year.
    Letter from the company I do work for stating that I do regular work for them and a print out from them of all my invoices and payment.
    Business Bank Accounts since April 2014 (to ensure a whole April to April period is covered).
    • Like Like x 1
  7. Maharg
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    Maharg Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    Pretty sure it's just once. So far anyway! And they charged me 501.23. Maybe because I used a credit card?
    • Optimistic Optimistic x 1
  8. Maharg
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    Maharg Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    I actually got an IHS reference number, even after the first payment was declined, so it's by no means guaranteed that it's ok with a ref no.

    Yeah. We're doing a postal application this time. I don't see we have much to gain by paying an extra 400 quid (more actually because I'd lose a day's pay too being self employed) on this particular occasion.
  9. Timmers
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    Timmers Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    Looks like you have all angles covered, I have taken note :like:
  10. Timmers
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    Timmers Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    Funnily enough I just booked a hotel for next week, as I got to the very end of the online process it said the booking was unsuccessful please try again which I did. When I then checked my email inbox I had two room confirmations from the hotel, I rang the hotel to confirm I only wanted one room, they thought I had booked two.

    In future I'm going to ring the hotels I intend to stop at and book directly with them, less hassle.

    Its probably true to say that we do a lot of online transactions online that we could do just by picking the telephone up to get the same result.
  11. shaunilvs
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    shaunilvs Member

    i had same troubles with the IHS when i was doing my wife visa kept saying same its was so annoying from gov.uk u would thought they have up to date software ...it also happen when i try pay for my daughter passport ,,, never been best for payments and using /confusing and annoying
  12. Howerd
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    Howerd Well-Known Member Trusted Member Lifetime Member

    Have you checked@Maharg Have you checked the difference betweeb your actual and available balances on yoyr credit card? That should tell you whether your card issuer authorised payment or not.
  13. Maharg
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    Maharg Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    I already checked the balance and paid it. First thing I did after finding out I'd apparently paid.

    Barclaycard is good like that. It shows the transactions yet to appear.
  14. Dave_E
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    Dave_E Well-Known Member Trusted Member

    I can never understand that, either transactions are there, or they are not.

    Citibank is the same, it shows my transactions as pending for a couple of days or more before actually charging them to my account.

    Problem is that the exchange rate always seems to move against me, I booked Januarys flights and hotels in Indonesia a few days ago.

    The pending charges were lower than the actual charge made to my account made a few days later.

    Over the week the GBP fell from over 22,000 IDR to under 21,000 IDR and I got the lower rate rather than the exchange rate in force at the time of the purchase (and used for the pending charge). I have noticed this happening before and cannot ever remember it working in my favour.

    [​IMG]
    (Chart grabbed from XE.com)

    Guess that is another .xls I need to start, see whether the currency fluctuations ever work in my favour in relation to the charged amount.
    Last edited: Oct 10, 2015

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