An updated transparency notice published on 23 April confirms that Simon Bond has been formally installed as Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for the £3.8 billion Future Border and Immigration System (FBIS) programme. Bond has unofficially steered the project since January but the appointment letter—now on GOV.UK—sets out accountability lines and performance metrics through to 2029. FBIS underpins the UK’s transition to fully digital status records, automated carrier checks and the nationwide rollout of the Electronic Travel Authorisation.
![Home Office Names New Lead for ‘Digital-First’ Future Border and Immigration System]()
For organisations looking to stay ahead of these sweeping changes, VisaHQ can provide hands-on assistance—from Electronic Travel Authorisation pre-registration to automated right-to-work validation—via its dedicated UK platform (https://www.visahq.com/united-kingdom/). The service integrates with corporate HR and travel systems, giving mobility teams real-time alerts as FBIS milestones are implemented.
The SRO brief lists milestones including the retirement of physical biometric residence permits by the end of 2027 and the integration of Entry/Exit data feeds with HMRC and DWP for compliance analytics. For employers, a key deliverable is the expansion of e-Visa ‘share codes’ to cover all sponsored categories, simplifying right-to-work audits and reducing the need for in-person document checks. Airlines can expect a graduated move to ‘board/no-board’ instructions delivered via the Advance Passenger Information system, replacing manual visa checks by 2028. Bond’s letter emphasises personal accountability to parliamentary select committees—a sign ministers want tighter governance after cost overruns hit earlier border-IT projects. Mobility heads should note that FBIS is now classified as a Government Major Project Portfolio Tier-1 initiative, raising the likelihood of quarterly progress updates. Companies relying on high-volume assignee traffic should monitor the programme’s public dashboards; phased go-lives could temporarily slow processing while legacy databases are migrated.
For organisations looking to stay ahead of these sweeping changes, VisaHQ can provide hands-on assistance—from Electronic Travel Authorisation pre-registration to automated right-to-work validation—via its dedicated UK platform (https://www.visahq.com/united-kingdom/). The service integrates with corporate HR and travel systems, giving mobility teams real-time alerts as FBIS milestones are implemented.
The SRO brief lists milestones including the retirement of physical biometric residence permits by the end of 2027 and the integration of Entry/Exit data feeds with HMRC and DWP for compliance analytics. For employers, a key deliverable is the expansion of e-Visa ‘share codes’ to cover all sponsored categories, simplifying right-to-work audits and reducing the need for in-person document checks. Airlines can expect a graduated move to ‘board/no-board’ instructions delivered via the Advance Passenger Information system, replacing manual visa checks by 2028. Bond’s letter emphasises personal accountability to parliamentary select committees—a sign ministers want tighter governance after cost overruns hit earlier border-IT projects. Mobility heads should note that FBIS is now classified as a Government Major Project Portfolio Tier-1 initiative, raising the likelihood of quarterly progress updates. Companies relying on high-volume assignee traffic should monitor the programme’s public dashboards; phased go-lives could temporarily slow processing while legacy databases are migrated.
