BRP- Spouse visa - 180 Days

I hope someone can advise as I am totally confused.

A friend has been given spouse visa. She and UK husband work in Dubai and they were hoping to move to UK in July. Her BRP card has start date 5 Jan 2017 and she flew to London for 1 day to pick it up.
My questions are
We have heard they cannot be out of country for more than 180 days in any year
So does this start from 5 Jam i.e must they they relocate within 180 days from Jan 5 ?

Sorry to ask dumb question but they asked me to clarify and I thought it would be straightforward to find out but UK consulate wont give advice and cannot find clear official doc.
Any authoritative guidance would be so appreciated

For a spouse of a settled person visa, her British husband would have needed to prove that he is earning more than £18,600 abroad (as he is abroad) AND that he has a job offer of at least £18,600 starting within 3 months. So, I would presume that the British husband at the very least is relocating back to the UK.

I could be wrong, but as I understand it, the 180 days limit does not apply to spouses of people settled in the UK. Stand by for others to advise further on this specific point.

Stumped wrote:I hope someone can advise as I am totally confused.

A friend has been given spouse visa. She and UK husband work in Dubai and they were hoping to move to UK in July. Her BRP card has start date 5 Jan 2017 and she flew to London for 1 day to pick it up.
My questions are
We have heard they cannot be out of country for more than 180 days in any year
So does this start from 5 Jam i.e must they they relocate within 180 days from Jan 5 ?

Sorry to ask dumb question but they asked me to clarify and I thought it would be straightforward to find out but UK consulate wont give advice and cannot find clear official doc.
Any authoritative guidance would be so appreciated

Where did you hear that?

That's for PBS and similar visas.

But be careful about your date of entry into UK (especially if delaying more than 3 months from start of visa) or you may find an extra FLR is needed to complete the 5 years it takes to get ILR.

You can dig into such vital questions here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration ... ly-members

Thanks so much for people who've taken time to reply.
I know they have to get proper legal advice but this is so helpful.

What I have understood from your 2 posts is that 180 days rule may not apply to this visa category ( spouse).
That's helpful to know.

To clarify - date on BRP is 5 Jan. Because they are both teachers they cannot finish in UAE until July 5 without a lot of trouble breaking contract. They definitely plan to go to UK then and live and work.

It seems this could be problem later on ( 2.5 years) when she applies to extend visa for another 2.5 years. Hope I've got that clear

They normally ask you to mention the time spend outside uk when its 6 month or more at the time of applying for ILR but remember when you applied for spouse settlement visa then you did show the intent to live together permanently with your partner in UK. You are allowed to spend limited time outside UK but read these specific rule

" In applications for further limited leave to remain or for indefinite leave to remain in the
UK as a partner, where there have been limited periods of time spent outside the UK, this must
be for good reasons and the reasons must be consistent with the intention to live together
permanently in the UK. Good reasons could include time spent in connection with the
applicant’s or their partner’s employment, holidays, training or study.

If the couple have spent the majority of the period overseas, there may be reason to doubt that
all the requirements of the Rules have been met, e.g. that the couple intend to live together
permanently in the UK. Each case must be judged on its merits, taking into account reasons for
travel, length of absence and whether the applicant and sponsor travelled and lived together
during the time spent outside the UK. These factors will need to be considered against the
requirements of the Rules. "

So if she has start date 5 Jan on her BRP--- she entered UK for 1 day in mid JAN to collect card BUT they don't relocate to UK as a couple until mid July ......will they face trouble when it comes to extending spouse visa ?