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Hi all,

My husband is on probation with his employer and the signs are that he will not be made permanent at his review meeting. The real reason for this is that the company has overrecruited and is now shedding staff - but the reason given to him is poor performance (his targets are double the highest achieved by his predecessor in 4 years).

My husband is now on sick leave due to an accident at work (employer's negligence) but he expects to be given notice soon after he goes back to work.

He entered UK on 14th July 2005 so he can submit his ILR application on 17th June. That being the case, what is the earliest he can get a letter from his employer that won't raise eyebrows at the Home Office?

He is thinking of emailing HR to ask for the letter for 'mortgage purposes' but I think a letter dated now will be too early. What do you think? When should he ask for the letter? Any tips on how to get the letter out from a reluctant employer? I'm pretty sure they won't sign a letter with the words 'will remain employed for the foreseeable future' so am thinking of saying 'has been employed since X date and employment is continuing'.

Any ideas would be much appreciated.

Is it really necessary/mandatory to have 'will remain employed for the foreseeable future' in the reference letter. I need to ask my employer soon, but I doubt such a phrase is mandatory.

Just tell the HR you are applying ILR. I can't see any objection to give you a reference letter. Last month I asked my previous employer for a reference, and the HR even asked me to give the address of the organization so she can address to. So perhaps it's not a good idea to lie about this.

Unfortunately it is essential for the employer letter to indicate in some way that the employee will continue to be employed there even after ILR - even if it is only for one day.

We have spoken to a solicitor and he confirmed this. As for lying - this employer has been very difficult to deal with and their standard response to any request is 'no'. They will give him a reference saying he is currently employed but they will probably refuse to give anything implying that he will be kept on after ILR.

I asked the same question and was told on this forum that the standard practice is that such a letter should not be dated more than 1 month prior to the application date.
By the way, how can he be on probation after 5 years? Or is it a new employer?

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Thank you. I suspected as much. We'll just have to see what the situation is a month before his application.

And yes he's changed employers several times in order to get better jobs. He joined this one in January.

FYI - during the first 12 months of your employment, the employer can terminate your employment without stating a reason.