Home · Guides
Guide · Updated October 2026
UK Partner Visa Priority Service: why we paid for it and how to book it
We paid for the Priority Service and our decision arrived 18 working days after biometrics. Here's why we paid for it, what it cost, where you pay it, and the mistake that nearly left us on the standard service.
By Sara & Lee · Not legal advice
Short answer
The Priority Service cost us €605 and promises a decision within 30 working days. You pay it on the VFS Global website, at the same time as you pay for your biometrics appointment. Ours took 18 working days.
Why we paid for it
I didn't want to wait the three months or so that a standard partner visa usually takes. We'd already spent almost four years apart, and with the Priority Service the decision comes within 30 working days.
What it costs and where you pay
- Priority Service: €605. It's optional and you pay it on the VFS Global website, when you're paying for your biometrics appointment.
- Standard biometrics appointment: €93. The appointment itself also costs money. VFS also offers earlier appointments, at certain times of day and with extra perks, but they cost more.
These are on top of the visa fee and the health surcharge. You can see everything we paid on the home page: €7,146.26 in total.
The mistake we made when booking
Because of a misunderstanding, I couldn't book my appointment as priority, and it went through as a standard visa. At the biometrics appointment I explained that I wanted the priority service, and the staff showed me how to book the Priority Service so the visa would be ready within about 30 working days.
So if it happens to you, don't panic: ask at your appointment. But it's much easier to check carefully that you've selected and paid for Priority before you finish booking.
How long ours took
- 14 August: we submitted the application.
- 20 August: biometrics appointment.
- 24 August: email saying an Entry Clearance Officer (ECO) at the Home Office was reviewing the case.
- 15 September: approved. 18 working days after biometrics.
If you want to know what the biometrics appointment is like, we explain it step by step in our biometrics guide.
Make sure the bundle is ready first.
The Priority Service speeds up the decision, not the paperwork. Our templates give you the structure, letters and order of an application approved without cohabitation, for €52.32.
We're not solicitors and this guide isn't legal advice. Prices and processing times are the ones we had in 2026 and can change, so always check GOV.UK and VFS Global.