Visa Company Witholding Passport - Legal Rights?

WhiteHorse

DVardysShadow wrote: »

She really needs to separate her personal capacity as passport owner from her business capacity as contract contact for the visa deal. And she needs to make this clear to the visa company. They have no right to hold her passport, they have no dispute with her personally.

This is correct. If she acted in a non-personal capacity for her company, then the other company has no right to retain her passport.

It requires a very stiff letter from her solicitor.

gamma

I've been in a situation like this before. Went to the police, told it was a civil matter, went to the passport office, they wouldn't replace the passport as I knew where it was. So lesson learnt ( eventually got the passport back by paying up )

Your best bet is to say you've lost the passport and you don't know where it is. Say that to the police and get a reference, go to the passport office and say you don't know where it is. Give reference from the police and get a new passport. Cheaper less hassle and a white lie.
Done.

Equaliser123

gamma wrote: »

I've been in a situation like this before. Went to the police, told it was a civil matter, went to the passport office, they wouldn't replace the passport as I knew where it was. So lesson learnt ( eventually got the passport back by paying up )

Your best bet is to say you've lost the passport and you don't know where it is. Say that to the police and get a reference, go to the passport office and say you don't know where it is. Give reference from the police and get a new passport. Cheaper less hassle and a white lie.
Done.

Absolute carp advice.

Police saying it is a civil matter does not make it a civil matter.

Why say that the passport is lost and don't know where it is? Where does that take OP? Having to fork out for a new one.

gamma

Regardless what you say Equaliser123 the police WILL say it's a civil matter.

Good luck to the op going round the houses with the police and passport office contradicting each other.

If time is money and the OP needs a new passport then my advice isn't crap, however if the op has lots of time to spend on the phone to croydon passport office and the local police station and get lawyers involved etc then go with that.

Equaliser123

gamma wrote: »

Regardless what you say Equaliser123 the police WILL say it's a civil matter.

If time is money and the OP needs a new passport then my advice isn't crap, however if the op has lots of time to spend on the phone to croydon passport office and the local police station and get lawyers involved etc then go with that.

Then it will need to be escalated to a police officer that has a bit more sense about them.

Saying that the passport is lost and don't know where it is would be lying.