INZ do not ask for extra information to be helpful

While it is true that sometimes INZ ask for extra information on a visa application, they generally only ask for information when the are ready to decline and are giving the applicant a chance to respond first. It is very unusual for them to ask for more infromation when they think you don't meet the criteria, but want to prompt you to provide certain documents which would show that you actually meet the criteria.

In our experience helpful suggestions from a case officer on what tpe of docuements could be useful are less than 1 in 80 to 1 in 100 cases. It does happen, but INZ are not obligated to ask for more information so it doesn't happen often. Every application must be assessed by the documents that are included in the application. This means that when an application is submitted, it should include all the documents required to prove that the specfic criteria are met.

In certain situations (onshore applications usually) INZ are obligated to give applicants a chance to explain information that may lead to the decline of the application. This is called potentially prejudicial information (PPI). This is a legal requirement, but if in the application the applicant hasn't included evidence of something they should have done, or even normally would have done, then there is no legal requirement for INZ to ask for it.

Even if it is a really simple thing that would have really helped the application, INZ can happily ignore this and decline the application with the feeling of a job well done. Even if INZ actually have the information or document from a previous application they still do not have to include it in the assessment.

Information or documents previously provided in other applications will be looked at by the assessing officer, but to assess whether these previous documents give thme a reason to decline the current one. These documents will not be used for the current application's benefit, and it is mistaken to believe that since INZ already have this information then you don't need to provide it again..

We have also heard clients state that INZ can try to prove me wrong then, when they don't have or don't want to provide information. A visa application is not a fair trial type process, and INZ do not need to prove you wrong, they just assume that you are and if you cannot prove that you are right, then they decide that you are wrong. 

The message is that if you want an application to succeed, all necessary information must be included from the very start and you cannot rely on kind immigration officers asking you to provide things that you have forgotten or not understood were necessary for the application.,