How long will it take for an ATAS decision?
ATAS aim to respond to all applications within 20 working days from the date an application has been successfully completed and submitted. However, during peak months, prior to the beginning of the academic year, processing times will be longer. Don’t apply for a Student Route visa until you have had a response from ATAS. There is no fast-track service.
If you haven't heard anything after 4 weeks, please check your inbox is not full (and therefore rejecting our message). Also check your 'Spam' or 'Junk' folder to make sure that our message has not been filtered out. You can also contact the ATAS team at ATAS@fcdo.gov.uk if you think you’ve missed our response.
If your application takes longer than 20 working days
The ATAS team's aim is to turn an application around within 20 working days of the application being successfully submitted. The team will not start processing an application until they are satisfied it has been completed correctly. If they have to request more information from you, your application can take more than 20 working days to process.
If you have not had a response from ATAS after 20 working days (or after a further 20 working days following submission of additional information) please contact them. They will not respond to emails sent before 20 working days (4 weeks) have passed or if it is less than 20 working days from you submitting additional information.