Dependant Visa - 2 years together

Regarding the rules for a dependant visa (ie: for a Tier 2 visa holder), consider an umarried couple that have been together for several years - do they need to have spent the 2 years immediately preceding the dependant visa application together, or can there be a gap?

ie:

together 2005 - April 2009
April 2009 one leaves UK as current visa expires
November 2010 other one gains tier 2 visa
November 2010 can the first one now apply as a dependant?

Thanks

[edit] changed 2009 to 2010 for last date

Your dates don't stack up. The two years has to be the preceding two years but gaps of upto six months can be considered, though all these partner visas are subject to fierce scrutiny do to the percieved lack of commitment.

Thanks, that is what I needed to know.

Those were just example dates to clarify what I was saying.