Pre-dispatch handover checklist for adviser firms

A timed request needs a clear handover. The practical question is whether the operator has one approved package, permission to use it, and an agreed response plan.

This is general administrative information, not individual immigration advice or a promise of acceptance.

Use the current Home Office priority guidance for official requirements. The checklist below is a proposed administrative method.

Establish the request and its owner

In the approved secure case system, record the sponsor organisation, responsible business contact and a non-personal internal allocation-request ID. Worker or visa details are not a default handover requirement. Name the person who can approve changes and the person covering their absence.

Ask the sponsor or adviser to confirm eligibility: an A-rated, fully active licensed sponsor, with the relevant SMS request already submitted and not in progress or allocated to a caseworker. The administrative operator does not decide individual immigration questions. An unanswered eligibility question blocks the handover.

Freeze the approved package

Identify the exact message and form version, official recipient, required subject fields and attachment inventory. Check references against the source record. A second person should be able to identify the approved version without searching several email chains.

A fictional record could read: “Northbank Advisers / NB-204 / allocation request submitted / package version 2 approved.” A file hash may help detect a later change, but it cannot prove the content is accurate or appropriate. Keep approval and integrity checks separate.

Do not put passwords, sponsor documents or inbox exports in a shared marketing folder. Use only the secure route agreed for the operational case.

Agree dispatch and stop conditions

Record the intended dispatch time in Europe/London time and the final review deadline. Confirm that no other person or system is sending the same request concurrently. If the package changes after approval, pause and obtain a fresh approval.

Agree one request for up to ten working days. Stop on official acceptance, cancellation, a relevant change or the agreed limit. An uncertain provider response needs reconciliation before any retry; an error message alone does not establish that nothing was sent.

Assign response ownership

Name who monitors replies, checks matching payment instructions and alerts the responsible customer contact. Include cover for urgent messages. Government instructions must be passed on promptly, without waiting for payment of our invoice.

The official guidance says to assume an unanswered request was unsuccessful. Record no acceptance evidenced and check the latest status before any further authorised attempt. Do not interpret silence as a place in a queue.

Close the handover

Read back the recipient, subject, package version, timing, authority and escalation contact. Record ready, blocked or clarification required, with a reason. Keep this record distinct from later dispatch, provider and official-response evidence.

Check pilot availability, or explore the fictional demo. The demo sends no request and collects no information.

For the proposed preparation and handover scope, see our undefined CoS priority request support.