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Hi ,

I am on ILR (with Indian Passport) , due to apply for British citizenship Jan / Feb next year 2014.

I have been offered a contract role in a Multinational company in Dubai which is a 1 year contract.

If i leave my current permanent job in UK and take up this role in Dubai for next 1 year - can any of you please let me know how will it impact my Citizenship application?

I checked on the UKBA website and it stated -
To satisfy the residence requirement you should not have been absent for more than 90 days in the last 12 months. And the total number of days absence for the whole 5 year period should not exceed 450.


The two scenarios which I can think is -

Scenario 1 - If i pick up this role directly with XXX Dubai, since I will be away for 365 days next year + 60/70 days out of UK (in the last 5 years) which i spent out of UK on vacations etc - I will be treading quite close to the limit of 450 days. Is my understanding correct here ?

Scenario 2 - I have been told that the only way i can join this role is if XXX UK hires me and does a small term transfer (of 1 year) to their sister concern XXX Dubai ? I will then be treated as an EXPAT and hence wont fall under the "number of days outside UK" limit. Is it the case?

Would really appreciate if any of you could shed some light / suggestions on my situation please.

Is there any work around which i can look at to persue this opportunity ?

Any help is much appreciated .

Regards, Y

Whether you do an internal transfer or not has no affect on your days out of the UK. It doesn't matter what is the reason for the absence.

If you go away for 1 year and come back, you would still keep your ILR status and would probably be able to apply after about 9 months from your return (so you have less than 90 days in the year before the application and less than 450 days in the 5 years before the application).

Jambo wrote:Whether you do an internal transfer or not has no affect on your days out of the UK. It doesn't matter what is the reason for the absence.

If you go away for 1 year and come back, you would still keep your ILR status and would probably be able to apply after about 9 months from your return (so you have less than 90 days in the year before the application and less than 450 days in the 5 years before the application).

Thanks Jambo .

So just to confirm if i go now and come back after an year - i obviously cant apply for citizenship next year May as i would have spent more than 90 days out of country in the last year. So i will have to wait till i can come out of "90 days outside country" criteria ?

If the contract extends to 2 years - that will mean that I would spend 730 days out of UK and again wont be able to apply for citizenhsip in the year i come back.
But will i still keep my ILR status when i come back after 2 years or will it get cancelled ?
If my ILR wouldnt get cancelled then i guess I will have to stick to my ILR status till i qualify for "450 days in 5 years and 90 days in last year" criteria before i can apply for citizenship?

Is there any criteria which you are aware of when the ILR gets cancelled or revoked ?

Please clarify.

Appreciate your help here.

Regards, Y

Singhy wrote:

Jambo wrote:Whether you do an internal transfer or not has no affect on your days out of the UK. It doesn't matter what is the reason for the absence.

If you go away for 1 year and come back, you would still keep your ILR status and would probably be able to apply after about 9 months from your return (so you have less than 90 days in the year before the application and less than 450 days in the 5 years before the application).

Thanks Jambo .

So just to confirm if i go now and come back after an year - i obviously cant apply for citizenship next year May as i would have spent more than 90 days out of country in the last year. So i will have to wait till i can come out of "90 days outside country" criteria ?

If the contract extends to 2 years - that will mean that I would spend 730 days out of UK and again wont be able to apply for citizenhsip in the year i come back.
But will i still keep my ILR status when i come back after 2 years or will it get cancelled ?
If my ILR wouldnt get cancelled then i guess I will have to stick to my ILR status till i qualify for "450 days in 5 years and 90 days in last year" criteria before i can apply for citizenship?

Is there any criteria which you are aware of when the ILR gets cancelled or revoked ?

Please clarify.

Appreciate your help here.

Regards, Y

I wouldnt stay out of the country on ILR for more than one year to ensure hassle free re-entry and keep an eye on the rules as they are changing all the time.