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5 year ILR route (switching from student visa to skilled worker visa)

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2025 8:50 pm
by lanalai
Hi all,

I came to the UK in Dec 2015 as an international student - completed my PhD in Feb 2020 and was given a skilled worker visa in Feb 2020. I am applying for the 5 year ILR route. There is a question on the ILR form about "Date you first entered the UK" (defined as the date you entered the UK when the period of stay you are basing this application on started) - am I right to assume that the date I should be entering here in Feb 2020 instead of Dec 2015?

The other question I have is related to the question "have you previously lived in a country outside the UK including your country of birth". Should I enter the UK here for the duration that I was a student (i.e Dec 2015 to Feb 2020)?

Thanks!

Re: 5 year ILR route (switching from student visa to skilled worker visa)

Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2025 1:53 am
by zimba
The date you put on the form has no effect on your ILR, so it does not matter what you put on the form.
The second question literally asks you about time spent OUTSIDE the UK and now you are asking whether you need to include your time in the UK ?? :?

Re: 5 year ILR route (switching from student visa to skilled worker visa)

Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2025 10:31 am
by lanalai
Thanks! I guess I just wasn't sure whether the purpose of that section was to check the timeline of where you have been living in recent years, and if that's the case, there will be a 4.5 year missing gap of no records, but I do agree that if you take that statement literally then there is no need to list UK. Thanks again!

Re: 5 year ILR route (switching from student visa to skilled worker visa)

Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2025 5:11 pm
by zimba
ILR qualifying period is calculated as per the rules, not the date you put on the application