28 Days Before Qualifying Period Confusion - Clarification

[jack232]

Dear all,

I have come across some discussions regarding applying 28 days before the qualifying period ends, and I noticed several responses from Zimba highlighting the importance of the decision date (I read almost all of them, but I am still unsure).

However, I have some concerns regarding my situation and would appreciate any clarification.

My GT visa is set to expire on June 1, 2025. I completed my application on May 3, 2025, after checking two websites. However, I later found other sources stating that the earliest date I could apply was May 4, which makes me anxious as it means I may have submitted my application one day early.

I completed my biometrics on May 6 and opted for the standard service, but I have not yet received a decision.

From what I understood from Zimba’s response, as long as the "date of decision" falls within the 28 days of the qualifying period, everything should be fine, even if I submitted my application earlier than that 28-day window.

Nonetheless, I’m still unsure about my situation and would greatly appreciate any feedback or comments, possibly from Zimba. Shall I follow up on it with HO, or would that be fine?

Some info: Start date of GT VISA: 1st June 2022 - BRP issue date: 20th May 2022 , Visa Approval Date: 17th May 2022 - Arrial to the UK: 10th June 2022.

Thank you so much!

[zimba]

I do not understand how many times this has to be repeated, to be honest. There is no rule or requirement that says you are required to submit your application within 28 days at all or such a date will strictly will be used. UKVI can NOT and will NOT refuse someone who accumulated enough qualifying residence on the date they are being granted ILR.

I have regularly shared the post that explains in great detail the logic behind how this works as per the rules:

Applicants can benefit from the date of the ILR decision

The whole 'apply within 28 days of becoming eligible' is due to historical reasons and most applications do not understand the context of it at all. In the past, applicants could apply for a same-day decision (in the old UKVI premium visa centres), so the date of application and the date of the decision were effectively the same. In those circumstances, if such a person applied earlier than the date above, they would not be eligible for ILR on that date, hence their application could be refused. So if you are not eligible on the date of the ILR decision, then this could be problematic.

This is no longer an issue as you are required to apply online now and your application is NOT decided until after your biometrics is enrolled. So the date of application and the date of the decision are no longer on the same day. Given that your lawful residence is calculated on the date of ILR decision, the date of application is no longer that critical anymore and most applicants could continue to accumulate lawful residence until the day UKVI is about to make a decision on their ILR. The date of the ILR decision is therefore the most important date and this date almost always will be AFTER the date of application and the biometrics.

With the above in mind, applying early is not that alarming.

[jack232]

Thanks so much zimba. I do appreciate it.