ILR 10 year route - absence gap

Hello everyone, I am looking to apply for ILR via 10 year legal residence route. All my visas have been continuous, I started living in UK since 2011 on a T4 student visa, then transitioned into T2 general visa with no gaps in my legal status whatsoever.

However, I was absent from UK for a single period over 180 days in 2017. The reason was due to my Ph.D. programme where I left UK and stayed in Canada for 224 days on a Canadian student visa. During which time, I was writing my Ph.D. thesis and came back to UK once the thesis was submitted.

Would anyone be kind enough to give me advice as in am I eligible to apply for ILR via 10 year route? Can this absence period be considered as an exemption?

Many thanks.

No you are not eligible as you do not meet the continuous leave requirement. There are no exemptions except when a long absence was totally out of your control and you were physically unable to travel.