Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossein Jaberi Ansari announced that the visa section of the British Embassy in Tehran was to resume its operation from Wednesday, more than four years after the relations between the two countries soured.
"According to an announcement by the British administration, and in line with the implementation of previous agreements between the two countries, the visa section of the British embassy will resume its operation on Wednesday," Ansari was quoted as saying by Tasnim News Agency on Tuesday.
British Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Philip Hammond also announced in a post on his Twitter account that "UK Visas and Immigration today resumed visa service in Iran, as promised six months after reopening the embassy."
An announcement on the British administration's website said, "You can apply for a UK visa in Iran, at the UK Visas and Immigration Visa Application Center in Tehran."
Earlier this month, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his British counterpart Hammond held a meeting in London, during which the two sides declared the visa sections of the two countries' embassies would be reopened later in the month.
Iran-Britain ties soured in 2011. On November 27, 2011, a majority of Iranian lawmakers voted to downgrade diplomatic ties with Britain, following Britain's decision to impose sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran.
Later, angry Iranian protesters stormed the British Embassy in Tehran and pulled down the European country's flag.
Following the incident, Britain withdrew its diplomatic staff from Tehran on November 30 and asked Iran's diplomatic delegation in London to leave within 48 hours.
The two countries made diplomatic efforts afterwards to mend ties. In August 2015, the British Embassy reopened after a four-year closure.
Hammond attended a ceremony in Tehran to mark the reopening on August 23. It was the first visit by a British foreign secretary to Iran since 2003.
Simultaneously, Iran's Embassy in London also reopened.
