I received a non straightforward email regarding my UK Visa application

Question

Last year I applied for a PLAB 1 visa and got a refusal, this time I improved all my circumstances in regards to Reasons For Refusal mentioned in the refusal letter of last year and about 6 days ago I applied for a standard visitor visa only to visit my brother,

I paid for a passport passback service because I have an urgent travel to another country during the processing period of my application. Today, I received two emails at the same time from the UK Visas and immigration,

First email:

Your UK visa application has been received and is under consideration. we aim to process non settlement applications within 15 working days from the date of your biometric submission appointment.

Unfortunately, the processing of your application has not been straightforward and we have been unable to make a decision on your application within our customer service targets. we will continue to progress your application and make a decision as soon as possible.

PLEASE NOTE - IF YOU HAVE PAID FOR THE PASSPORT PASSBACK SERVICE READ BELOW

If you have paid for the passport passback service, we will contact you when a decision has been made and we need your passport to complete the final process. If you have already been contacted with request for your passport you must submit this to us now. You can ignore this latest e-mail.

Second email:

Please note that your application is now ready for processing. Please submit your passport to the Visa Application Centre where you made your application within 28 working days from the date of this email. You should submit your passport between 8:30am and 3pm.

Once the process has been completed, the passport will be returned accordingly.

Please be aware that the processing time for our submission without passport service is 5 working days from the date you submit the passport to the Visa application centre.

I have few questions regarding those emails: First of all what does "the processing of your application has not been straightforward" mean?

On average, How long will this take? I have an urgent flight to another country next week, If I submitted my passport will the process of my application be done before that? or do you recommend travelling next week and send my passport via DHL to be handed over and picked up by someone I legally authorized?

The first email reads, "If you have already been contacted with request for your passport you must submit this to us now." but the second email instructs within 28 days of receiving the email.

English is not my first language so please be patient with me, does the phrase "You can ignore this latest email" mean first or second email?

Answer 1

What does "the processing of your application has not been straightforward" mean?

This means that they have had problems to assess if your application should be approved or not. Most likely because you have previously been refused a visa and therefore they wanted to do extra checks on you.

How long will this take? I have an urgent flight to another country next week

Their 2nd email says that you must submit your passport within 28 days of that date of that email. And that once submitted it will take approx. 5 days to process it (plus postage time if you send it via post/courier).

I would suggest that if you have a flight next week, that you submit your passport after you return (I assume from your text that you are only gone for a few days/1 week). Otherwise you will not get it back in time.

The 1st email contains some text which is not relevant to you. It contains standard text which is sent to most/all applicants. So you need to find only the parts which are relevant to you. Which I have done here.