Reference numbers and the register
Every request received by the Support Service, whether through the form or by email, is entered in the register of the Service and given a reference number before anything else is done with it. The register is the Service's only record of its work. It is the means by which a request is found when you write again, the means by which a referred office is told what was asked, and the source of every figure the Service publishes about its performance.
The reference number is issued in the form SR-2026-000417: the prefix SR, the year of receipt and a six-digit sequence number. It appears in the subject line of the acknowledgement and should be quoted in the subject line of any further message. A message that quotes a reference number is added to the existing entry and reaches the officer handling it; a message that does not is registered as a new request. The number is never reused and carries no information about the request itself.
What the register records. The table below lists every field of a register entry, what it contains and who may see it. The Service records nothing about a request that is not listed here.
| Field | Content | Visible to |
|---|---|---|
| Reference number | Issued on receipt; never reused | You, the Service and any office the request is referred to |
| Date and time received | Recorded automatically; determines the start of the clock | You and the Service |
| Category | Access, Connectivity, Standards or Other, as chosen on the form or assigned by the Service to an email | You and the Service |
| Email address | The address the acknowledgement and any reply are sent to | The Service, and the referred office |
| Subject and details | The request as you wrote it, unaltered | The Service, and the referred office |
| Category questions | The answers to the questions the form asked for the category | The Service, and the referred office |
| Interim reference | For requests received before 6 September 2026, the reference given by the interim help desk | You and the Service |
| Status and status history | Each status the request has held and the date it was set | You, on request, and the Service |
| Office answering | The Support Service, or the office the request was referred to and the date of referral | You and the Service |
| Dates of acknowledgement, first reply and closure | Used to measure performance against the service standards | The Service; published only as aggregate figures |
| Officer handling | The member of the Service's staff responsible for the request | The Service only |
The status of a request
A request holds one status at a time, and the register keeps the history of every status it has held. You may ask the Service for the current status of any request you have made by quoting the reference number. The statuses, what each means and what happens next are set out below.
| Status | Meaning | What happens next |
|---|---|---|
| Received | The request has been entered in the register and given a reference number | Acknowledgement within 2 working days |
| Acknowledged | The acknowledgement carrying the reference number has been sent | Examination by the Service |
| Under examination | The Service is deciding whether it can answer the request or must refer it | A reply, a referral or a request for information |
| Awaiting information | The Service has asked you for something it needs; the clock is paused | Your reply, or closure after 20 working days without one |
| Referred | The request has been passed to another office, which has been named to you | A reply from that office; the Service's clock stops |
| Answered | The Service has sent a substantive reply | Closure after 5 working days unless you write again |
| Closed | The request is complete or has been referred, or you have not replied to a request for information | Nothing, unless you ask for it to be reopened |
| Reopened | You have quoted the reference number and said that the answer did not resolve the matter | Acknowledgement within 2 working days; examination as a new request under the same reference |
Two statuses stop the clock that measures the Service's own performance. A request that is awaiting information from you is paused until you reply, and is closed if no reply is received within twenty working days. A request that has been referred is complete as far as the Service's standards are concerned; the time the referred office takes is that office's to account for. The rules are set out in full under Service standards.
Following up a request
You may write about a request at any time after the acknowledgement. The four steps below make sure the message reaches the right place.
Step 1: Find the reference number
It is in the subject line and the first paragraph of the acknowledgement, in the form SR-2026-000417. If you have lost the acknowledgement, write from the same email address and the Service will find the entry from the address and date.
Step 2: Write to the Service with the reference number in the subject line
A message whose subject line carries a reference number is added to that entry in the register rather than opening a new one, and reaches the officer handling the request. A message without it is treated as a new request.
Step 3: Say what you need
Whether the matter is urgent, whether something has changed since you wrote, or whether the answer you were given did not resolve it. If the request was referred, the Service will ask the office concerned for a progress report and pass on what it is told.
Step 4: Ask for the request to be reopened if it is closed
A closed request is reopened on request, without argument, and acknowledged within two working days. It keeps its reference number and its history, and is examined again as though new.
Questions about the register
Other questions about the register may be sent to contact@support.gov.vin. For the procedure a request follows, see How we work; for the figures the register produces, see Contact Us and Service standards.