Immigrationboards.com

Hi folks,

I am currently preparing my ILR application based on Long Residence.

I have been in the UK for more than 10 years, am I required to enter all my absences since I came to the UK or just the past 10 years ?

No. You actually cannot rely on historical 10 years at all and that period will not matter

Read: Lawful and continuous residence changes to Long Residence route from 11 April 2024

zimba wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 08, 2025 4:26 pm

No. You actually cannot rely on historical 10 years at all and that period will not matter

Read: Lawful and continuous residence changes to Long Residence route from 11 April 2024

Thanks Zimba. Yes we both share the same understanding that the decision will be based on the most recent 10 years absences but here is why I am asking my question.

1) In the application form, it asks “When did you first enter the UK? . This is the date you entered the UK when the period of stay you are basing this application on started.” So for this question I can put a date prior to the most recent 10 years.

2) But then it asks "How long have you lived in the UK?". My understanding is that they are asking how long I have lived in the UK including the period before the 10 years.

3) Then they ask "Since you started living in the UK have you spent time outside the UK?". This question seems more related to the 2nd question so it looks like they are asking for my absences since I started living in the UK not just the past 10 years. Actually, there is another question in the application form: "Have you spent any part of your 10-year continuous period with leave to enter or remain in the Crown Dependencies?". If they only require my absences outside the UK during the most recent 10 years only they would have probably asked the question this way "Have you spent any part of your 10-year continuous period outside the UK?" rather than asking "Since you started living in the UK have you spent time outside the UK?".

Hope you got my point.

1. That question is asked on all ILR applications., The date you enter on the form has no bearing on the calculation of the 10 years. Your ILR qualification period is calculated according to the immigration rules.

2. Sure. But again this has no connection to how the 10 years are considered

3. The rules only care about the immediate 10 years, as I showed you. All you need to do is to declare the absences in your qualifying period. Entering anything extra has no effect and will be redundant. This has always been the case. The form should not be treated as full disclosure and the questions should be viewed as contextual. Do not overthink this