I've had my application in for a month so far (online portal) The UKCAA have always been a nightmare ,I have gone to Luxembourg for my EASA a breath of fresh air cheaper licence and fees and a human response to emails and calls with a usual 24 hour response time.
The UK have to ask for verification in case you have added or renewed anything ,why they just cant issue our licence as it was when SOLI'd out and then deal with renewals and the like I don't know it would be much simpler, the UK admin fees are disgusting aswell the same price as a new licence application. I would not bother applying but my present company requested to make it easier for LPC's ect . If I get a Licence issued by the end of the summer I would class that as expediated by UK CAA standards.
I'm still waiting for a refund after another licence issue let down from 12 months ago.