Immigrationboards.com

Hi everyone

Question: can I use a Subject Access Request to find a record of being granted ILR 19 years ago? If so, which box should I tick on the application for? Would it be:

"Home Office Files (including port/NASS)" ..or
"Printouts from our computerised casework database"

.. Or should I just tick both to cover all bases?

Context: I've lived in the UK since 1982. My family and I were granted ILR in 1988 (I was 9 years old and the ILR stamp went into a 10 year passport I held till I was 19.) My country of origin (Finland) subsequently joined the EU so I/my family never needed to renew the ILR stamps as from 1995 we simply came and went as EU citizens with freedom of movement.

Post-brexit I want to have proof of the ILR. I haven't found the old passport with the ILR stamp, although I am still hopeful I might find it.

Many thanks in advance!

You can certainly try!

By the way - you are older than you think. 2017 - 1988 = 29 years!

If they do not have the records (and I doubt they do) do you still have the passport with the ILR sticker? Have you been out of the UK for more than 2 years at any point?

It might be worth checking out what you would need to do to apply for a PR card under EU rules in case they come back with nothing...

Hahaha!! Thanks for pointing that out. I am older than I think, and also worse at maths than I thought Or maybe the first has to do with the second..

I also doubt that they have records from 30 years ago... but I guess it's worth a shot.

I can't currently apply for PR under EU route as I've had too many recent absences :/

The ILR would actually also be invalid due to ^^ absences but at least I would have a shot of applying from abroad as a returning resident in a worst case scenario.

My roots and family are in the UK, I've spent 30 of my 37 years of life in this country, paid tax/NI since I was 16, all my education and most of my working life have been here, my son was born here.. there's no other country I call home. And I'm about to be kicked out! It's like something out of kafka.

Are you in the UK now?? How long is your latest stint? Have you been away for 6 months (or more) each year of the last 5?

Returning residents' visas are only sparingly granted. I've only heard of two in my 4+ years of following visas like a hawk. I wouldn't rely on it.

Get yourself back to the UK and apply for an EU RC as a minimum. Stay here for 5 years and apply for PR. A much safer route than relying on returning resident...

Really, in your situation you should have naturalised/ registered way back when for BC!!!

I am in the UK - I returned last July specifically because of the referendum result and not wanting to lose the right to live here, and have been working here since then.

I actually have an EU RC issued in 2009 (I applied because my my husband was applying for an EU family permit), but I've had absences of a total of 20 months since that was issued :/

...Yeah I should have naturalised - hindsight is a wonderful thing! But who would have predicted brexit?

I have a huge number of European friends & family members who have been here for similar lengths of time and not a single one has naturalised, except when there was a very specific need for it (eg joining the army/foreign service or sponsoring a spouse). Why would anyone pay over £1200 to sit a difficult test, go through an excruciating immigration process, send their passport to the Home Office for months on end, etc etc... for a British passport that they never thought they'd need?!

physicskate wrote: Have you been away for 6 months (or more) each year of the last 5?

No I haven't but I thought the upper limit was 450 days? I have definitely exceeded 450 days.

serenita wrote:

physicskate wrote: Have you been away for 6 months (or more) each year of the last 5?

No I haven't but I thought the upper limit was 450 days? I have definitely exceeded 450 days.

So, just to confirm, you were absent from the UK for a whole two years between 1989 - present?

The application for EU PR suggests absences of more than 6 months in a 12 month period...

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... _03-16.pdf

Try applying for PR if you have been absent for more than two whole years since you acquired ILR. It's only £65. but there is quite a backlog of applications because of brexit so the result might take a bit...

Have you been a qualified person for the whole of the last 5 years?

Firstly thanks so much for taking the time to advise me!

==So, just to confirm, you were absent from the UK for a whole two years between 1989 - present? ==

No, I've had much longer total absences since 1989. Off the top of my head, something like this:

1989 - 2006 UK resident 17 years with only short absences, holidays, never longer than 1.5 months
Jan 2006 - Aug 2008 - Long absence (31 months)
Aug 2008 - Sept 2014 - Normally resident (working + mat leave) but with absences:
2009: two work trips (employed by UK company), total 4 months
2010: several work trips (employed by UK company), total 5 months
2011: short trips, total maybe 6 weeks
2012 - sept 2014: very short absences, total maybe 4 weeks
sept 2014 - mar 2015: long absence 6 months
mar 2015 - jun 2015: in UK not working
jun 2015 - jul 2016: long absence 13 months
jul 2016 - date: in UK, working full time.

So I think I probably don't qualify for PR via the normal route!

since being a EU citizen, they dont stamp your passport.
If you have not been flying in/out, they may not have a proof that you have not been in the UK?
Maybe i am wrong.