She needs to live in the UK 10 years (5 years for stateless minors) prior to her application to register as a citizen.

I don't believe they are going to increase the qualifying period. The way forward for them is to make it more difficult (skills, earning, language skills and fees) to qualify.

In my view "loophole" means illegitimately (though not illegally) exploiting a fault in the law to achieve a favourable legal treatment in a manner not intended by the legislator.

This is not a loophole it is an established and legitimate way to naturalise.

Of the items you mentioned, only childcare coupons and pension contributions can be effectively tax free. if you earn more than £8,500 p.a, petrol coupons / retail vouchers are fully subject to UK income tax (40% in your case) and national insurance (in your case 12.8% for your employer). You only s...

I don't understand the operation of the loophole - how can anyone naturalise overseas without being resident in the UK for at least three years (for a UK citizen spouse)?

I think the reason behind these dubious removal notices is to enable the Home Office to beautify the statistics without the need to actually remove anyone. In our day and age everything is about statistics.

Some guys don't need to pass many tests to stay in the UK

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jh ... fur103.xml

Reminds me of Germany in the 1930's-1940's when jews were blamed to carry all sorts of diseases.

The current (clear) trend is to minimise settlement rights for non-EU migrants so I doubt if 2 year ILR would be implemented.

This is just a piece of cake compared to the new changes that will apply to settlement. As I wrote in this forum eight months ago many migrants currently on WP / HSMP would not qualify for settlement.

RobinLondon,

I don't think the Home Office bothers to much about social cohesion etc. They just see legal immigrants as lucrative cash cows always available to be milked.

My sources indicated to me that ILR would cost £1,000 under the new charging regime.

That's quite a pretty old staff .

Yes, failed asylum seekers are usually administratively removed from the UK. Deportation order are more complicated to handle that admin removals.

You can legitimately ask your employer to address the letter to a financial institution. Later when you send the letter to the Home Office note to them that this is because you don't want your employer to suspect that you intend to resign.

Yes provided your combined 10 year stay was continuous.

Why is that question? Do you intend to falsify your tax return?

John,

This will not affect nurses already in UK jobs. Like any other tier 2 WP applications there is no need to conduct resident labour search when moving between similar jobs.

As far as I can remember Charles Clarke was sacked sometime ago.

You have no right to appeal a rejection of a tourist visa. The only way to amend this is to start an expensive judicial review process or to get out of the UK and seek a new entry clearance. If your relatioship with your GF is solid you may consider marriage of fiance visas.

These illegals already get all the welfare they want. Don't forget that whilst legal migrants have to pay a small fortune just to extend their stay, the illegals can invest the money they save towards buying EU passports and then just pose as EU citizens. That is why there are no more asylum seekers...

Granting 5 year WPs has been a standard practice since 2001 as long as your employer had requested that and he was established enough.

The idea was to allow some more time for WP applicants to make arrangments for travel and visa.

As a leading immigration lawyer told me, it is not by accident that the 4-5 year change is coincided with the new point based system. The aim is to reduce the number of economic migrants qualifying for settlement so as to pick and choose only the ones who will bring substantial contribution to the UK.

IMHV "Resident" means someone who has made the UK his home even if that was only for a short and temporary period (like short time students). I don't really think that a tourist can be considered as having resided in the UK. At the end of the day residence is required to satisfy the rules. In practi...