FIVE MONTHS of worry came to an end as the Press spoke to the Home Office on an Inverkeithing couple's behalf.

In the space of just ONE day, the UK Government granted a spouse visa extension after the Press got involved.

Lesley Saeed and partner Sajid, from Pakistan, had been waiting since December 23 – a total of 21 WEEKS – for a decision on his application.

He arrived in Scotland in February 2018 on a fiancé visa, before a spouse visa in July of that year was granted.

He submitted his renewal form on December 23, 2020, and carried out the biometric requirements in January.

Despite the Home Office website advising that applications can take up to eight weeks to be processed, he still had not heard back by the time he looked to have the application escalated in April.

Although Sajid received an escalation number, he was then told it was under review but no timescale on a decision could be provided.

While the 37-year-old was able to continue working as a chef during the wait as he had submitted the renewal before deadline, the lingering worry over whether the extension decision would be favourable or not was still hanging over both his and his partner's head.

It was for that reason that Sajid contacted the Press a fortnight ago to ask whether the paper could put pressure on the Home Office.

The Press contacted the Home Office at 12.35pm on Thursday, May 20 and by 4.07pm the following day, Friday 21, a decision had been made.

However, the wait to find out the good news rolled on due to an unexpected problem.

Lesley explained: "We were on the train at the time of the email arriving and as we opened it, we were just about to go through the tunnel before North Queensferry where you lose signal!

"The email said a decision had been made but we couldn't open the attachment!

"It was only until we got onto the bridge that we could open it and see the good news.

"We were delighted and relieved!

"It gives us two-and-a-half years to prepare for the next one and if we have any delays with that one, we'll certainly know who to contact!"

The Home Office said that the "small delays" in processing applications had been caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

A spokesperson said: "Mr Saeed’s application has now been granted. Because of the extraordinary impact of the pandemic, there have been some small delays and we are working to resolve cases as quickly as possible."