My Wife is currently on a student visa and is now applying for her first spouse visa. We are unsure how to answer the question 'Time lived in the UK'. She has not been to the UK before her Student Visa started.
Her Student Visa started Dec 2018, and she arrived in the UK on Jan 2019. Based on this date alone I would calculate Time lived in the UK: 4 years 8 Months.
However she was absent from the UK from Mar 2020 to Nov 2021 due to the pandemic. Based on approval from her University and UKVI Guidance I understand that this absence was perfectly permitted on her Student Visa.
However as she was absent from the UK for an extended window of time (more than 1 year) did that break her continuous residency in the UK. In this case I would calculate Time lived in the UK: 1 year 9 Months from the date she returned to the UK.
A third option is that it is the sum of the time She has lived in the UK. In this case I would calculate Time lived in the UK: 3 years (= 1 year 3 months + 1 year 9 months). Based on the next question on the from Have you been out of the UK since you started living here? I believe this option is likely not what they are looking for.
Please could I ask for advice on what UKVI are actually looking for, and if any of these options is an appropriate calculation. With many many thanks
Thank you to everyone on the boards, reading through many previous posts have been incredibly helpful