Proof of Living in UK - small gap between jobs

[AnotherEuropean]

Hi all,

I am applying for British Citizenship, and as part of that process one of the requirements is to provide letters of employment as evidence. However, I switched jobs in my three year residence period with a gap of approximately one month between the old job and the new one. What documents may be provided as evidence for this period?


The form specifically states that evidence should come from employers, educational establishments or government departments. The only thing I have which I think may be appropriate is a list of my entries and exits from the UK Visas and Immigration Department, as it shows when I was in the country. Would this do?

Thanks,
AnotherEuropean

[alterhase58]

I don't think there's any need to document one month's break in employment, however you could always attach a note explaining.
You are referring to requesting an SAR from UKVI about UK exits/entry? That could add potentially a few weeks/months to an already lengthy process. And it doesn't guarantee they have all data available. There have been reports that for some people this came back without any data, despite having travelled frequently .....

[contorted_svy]

Hi all,

I am applying for British Citizenship, and as part of that process one of the requirements is to provide letters of employment as evidence. However, I switched jobs in my three year residence period with a gap of approximately one month between the old job and the new one. What documents may be provided as evidence for this period?


The form specifically states that evidence should come from employers, educational establishments or government departments. The only thing I have which I think may be appropriate is a list of my entries and exits from the UK Visas and Immigration Department, as it shows when I was in the country. Would this do?

Thanks,
AnotherEuropean

Hi,
I also am facing the same situation and I will use a council tax bill that covers that period (I initially was very worried, but after @alterhase pointed out to me that CT would be fine, I realised it is actually a government document!). You can also enclose the SAR from UKVI, it wouldn't hurt I imagine.

[AnotherEuropean]

Thanks you for the replies.

Yes - I am referring to the subject access request. I already have it, as I travel a fair bit and it helped me with listing my dates in and our of the UK. It is the only document I could think of that is government issued which might help, as unfortunately I'm not the one that pays council tax in our household - which would have been a great suggestion otherwise!

[contorted_svy]

Shame about council tax. Do you have any other letters from the government dated in that month? (eg DVLA, HMRC, DWP, electoral register)

In case you don't, it's useful to read the following:

From https://assets.publishing.service.gov.u ... retion.pdf page 15:

You must check the available evidence to see whether an applicant meets the residence requirements.
The following can be used as evidence of residence:
• passports or travel documents which have been stamped to show arrival in the UK and entry and departure from other countries: these should be checked against the list of absences that applicants are asked to provide on the application form
• Home Office records
• if the applicant does not have passports to cover the qualifying period, other
evidence such as employers’ letters or tax and National Insurance letters:
o in such cases you should assess whether there is sufficient evidence to
show that that applicant has been resident in the UK during the qualifying period, giving them the benefit of any doubt where claimed absences are within the limits we would normally allow and there are no grounds to doubt the accuracy of the claim
You must not normally accept doctors' letters on their own as proof of residence. However, if nothing else is available and the doctors can confirm that they have seen the applicant on a regular basis during the period concerned these may be accepted.
If there are gaps in a person’s evidence of residence and it is clear from the information available that they could not have travelled, you must accept this. Examples of this might include a refugee who has no means of travel or where immigration records confirm continuous residence.

Therefore UKVI records should be fine as they fall under Home Office. Should this period of unemployment have happened during lockdown, the above would also be enough to justify you were in the country as you couldn't have travelled.

[AnotherEuropean]

Hi,

Thank you for sharing this, that is really helpful. After a chat with my wife, I realised that my name is on the council tax form even though I'm not the one paying it, so that does also work. Thanks everybody for the advice!

[contorted_svy]

All that matters is that your name appears on the bill you get in the post, either way you should be sorted. Good luck!