I am new here and have a question if I may

[PaulineA]

Okay I am not even sure if I am in the right area..

My Partner and I (Same Sex) are legally married, (Canada 2004) I am British and my partner US Citizen. My partner has ILR, Unmarried partners as it was granted after much fighting with UK Immigration and through the courts and Civil Partnerships were not made into law..

Now this is the problem we are worried about..

My Partner and I returned from the Netherlands in 2007 after her gaining the ILR.. We lived for a year in the UK until for her September 2008. My partner worked for the latter part of 2007 and early part of 2008 when I was diagnosed with Meniere's Disease, and serious bouts of vertigo, to the point of whilst she was at work I fell over breaking my arm.. She had to give up her job to take care of me, as I am totally disabled when the vertigo occurs..

Okay so in September 2008 she received a telephone call from her mother in the US, Her mother had just been diagnosed with Adenocarcinoma Stage 3b Lung Cancer, terminal.. So her immediate thought was to fly over which is understandable... she was due to return three weeks later, when her son was diagnosed with testicular cancer, (he is okay now thank goodness caught early) prior to this I was on Income Support/Incapacity Benefits, with HB and CT... The Income support was in my name but I was claiming for her as well. The HB and CT were in both our names. Which I do believe she was entitled to claim being on ILR.

I joined my partner in October 2008, I was still getting my Income support and the jobcentre knew my partner had to make an emergency visit to the USA... so they continued paying the married amount for three months... hers was then stopped as was mine after three months of leaving the country..

We were due to return back to the UK last mid August when on 3rd August my partners brother was critically injured in a car accident, he spent over a month in a coma and four months in hospital, he is getting better by the day, my partner stayed by her brothers side for four months whilst I took care of her mother, with chemotherapy and radiation therapy..

Okay so now the end part... We are returning home again to the UK in July. However, having read the information for returning residents, which she is but is not.. as it will only be 22 months since she left the UK.. this is what it states at UKBA

you were settled in the UK when you last left; and
you have been away for two years or less; and
you are returning to live here permanently; and
you were not given public funds to pay the costs of leaving the UK.

Now the first three parts we fulfill easily however, the part that is worrying us is the public funds business... The money for her flight was given to us by close friends £400 and another friend gave her £200 for expenses... I continued paying our bills for the whole month of September and October... can you please advise if the last sentence is applicable..

My partner has an NI card, but her wage slips are all in the UK in storage with our furniture and such like... she also has documentation re her mother and her brother and stuff from the UK

Any advise would be gratefully received

[Plum70]

Were you given public finds (by the state) to leave the UK?

If not then you have nothing to worry about except returning to the UK before your partner's absence exceeds 2 years and she loses her ILR.

[tonytee]

From your submission, no public funds was involved, so you have no problems.

Tony