illegal immigrant needs advise

[thedarknightrises]

Okay, so I've been in the UK for 8 months and I'm American.

As I understand it, we can stay for up to 6 months at a time in the UK without a visa, etc.

I wasn't too worried about this, because they never seem to check much or care when I drive from UK to France.

But now there's all this stuff in the news about mandatory exit checks when leaving the UK.

So I guess I'm wondering if I try to head to France in a month, if they will somehow stop me, check my passport, know that I overstayed, and deport me? (and ban me from reentry.)

Or, do they just collect this exit data and pass it to the government? (which is what I thought they do)

I don't really have any desire to live in the UK or get a visa, etc, I'm just on an extended vacation.

But my plan was to drive around mainland Europe all summer and then go back to the States, so I kind of don't want to get stopped and deported when I cross from UK to France, so am not sure what to think about these new mandatory exit checks and if they're actually catching illegals when they exit, or just recording data for later use?

[secret.simon]

Okay, so I've been in the UK for 8 months and I'm American.

As I understand it, we can stay for up to 6 months at a time in the UK without a visa, etc.

I wasn't too worried about this, because they never seem to check much or care when I drive from UK to France.

The sentence is bold is what I find hard to believe. The UK is not a part of the Schengen Zone and so your passport would have been stamped by the French PAF (Police aux Frontieres) with an entry into the Schengen Zone on driving into France.

My conjecture is when you reentered the UK, the UKV&I would see that and stamp you back in with a new visa for six months.

If you have spent eight straight months in the UK as a visitor, my suggestion to you would be to take a ferry to Belfast (no border checks), take the train or drive down to Dublin (should be no border checks either) and then fly out from there.

I kind of don't want to get stopped and deported when I cross from UK to France, so am not sure what to think about these new mandatory exit checks and if they're actually catching illegals when they exit, or just recording data for later use?

If the UKV&I find out that you have spent more than six months at a stretch in the UK, you are likely to get a 10 year entry ban.

[tity]

Okay, so I've been in the UK for 8 months and I'm American.

As I understand it, we can stay for up to 6 months at a time in the UK without a visa, etc.

I wasn't too worried about this, because they never seem to check much or care when I drive from UK to France.

The sentence is bold is what I find hard to believe. The UK is not a part of the Schengen Zone and so your passport would have been stamped by the French PAF (Police aux Frontieres) with an entry into the Schengen Zone on driving into France.

My conjecture is when you reentered the UK, the UKV&I would see that and stamp you back in with a new visa for six months.

If you have spent eight straight months in the UK as a visitor, my suggestion to you would be to take a ferry to Belfast (no border checks), take the train or drive down to Dublin (should be no border checks either) and then fly out from there.

I kind of don't want to get stopped and deported when I cross from UK to France, so am not sure what to think about these new mandatory exit checks and if they're actually catching illegals when they exit, or just recording data for later use?

If the UKV&I find out that you have spent more than six months at a stretch in the UK, you are likely to get a 10 year entry ban.

is there any exit passport check in dublin airport now?

[Wanderer]

Okay, so I've been in the UK for 8 months and I'm American.

As I understand it, we can stay for up to 6 months at a time in the UK without a visa, etc.

I wasn't too worried about this, because they never seem to check much or care when I drive from UK to France.

The sentence is bold is what I find hard to believe. The UK is not a part of the Schengen Zone and so your passport would have been stamped by the French PAF (Police aux Frontieres) with an entry into the Schengen Zone on driving into France.

My conjecture is when you reentered the UK, the UKV&I would see that and stamp you back in with a new visa for six months.

If you have spent eight straight months in the UK as a visitor, my suggestion to you would be to take a ferry to Belfast (no border checks), take the train or drive down to Dublin (should be no border checks either) and then fly out from there.

I kind of don't want to get stopped and deported when I cross from UK to France, so am not sure what to think about these new mandatory exit checks and if they're actually catching illegals when they exit, or just recording data for later use?

If the UKV&I find out that you have spent more than six months at a stretch in the UK, you are likely to get a 10 year entry ban.

is there any exit passport check in dublin airport now?

As a BC I was checked at DUB every week from Leeds for 12 months, both ways, so yes.