A 2022 applicant (September intake, deferred from January) applied through an agent on 8 June, got the biometric letter the next day, and gave biometrics on 13 June — but hit two worries: a name-order error discovered at the VAC, and a portal status stuck on "we have not received your fingerprints". The useful guidance from the thread:
- The biometrics status message lags — don't panic. A member with the same experience reported that the biometric number and expiry date appeared in the top-right of the portal the day after submission, while the status line still claimed fingerprints hadn't been received; it updated later on its own. The two indicators are not synchronized.
- Check the biometric number/expiry, not the status text. If those details are visible on your portal, your biometrics were captured and linked.
- If the decision doesn't arrive before your intake, defer rather than abandon. The other substantive advice: ask the college to defer your intake and keep waiting for a positive decision instead of letting the application lapse.
- Verify your name order early. The applicant only discovered the first-name/surname ordering error at the VAC counter. Cross-check the application against the passport's machine-readable zone before booking biometrics — fixing it at the VAC stage adds stress and potential delay.
Historical note: this thread is from the 2022 backlog period when many applicants missed intakes waiting on decisions; deferral-to-next-intake was the standard fallback.