ILR and overstay in the past

[Sm1a]

Hi everyone,

I would like to know if i can apply for my ILR now that i have lived in the UK for 10 years post my overstaying period.
Below is my immigration history:-

January-2010: entered uk with entry clearance as tier 4 student valid from 25/12/2009 to 31/05/2013.
may-2013: i applied leave to remain as tier 4 student.
27/june/2013:the above application was refused with right to appeal.
09/july/2013:i lodged an appeal.
18/02/2014: my appeal was dismissed.(after that i appealed to first tier tribunal.
01/may/2014: i was refused permission to appeal to first tier tribunal.(after that I decided to appeal to upper tier tribunal.
03/june/2014: i was refused permission to appeal the upper tier tribunal.
03/june/2014: i became appeal rights exhausted.
04/july/2014-i submitted a further leave to remain as tier 4 student.
15/august/2014: i send email to homeoffice to provide me some sort of authorisation letter to be able to get CAS from colleges.
16/0ct/2014: the above application was refused.
18/12/2014:following a telephone call from capita,i agreed to leave uk voluntarily and received a letter stating the same.the letter stated not to make any travel arrangement as some one from departure team will contact me to confirm that they have retrieved my passport.i thought they will contact me but they never got back to me.

03/05/15: i wrote to the home office and made a human rights appeal for limited leave to remain in the uk on the basis of my family and private life.however it was rejected.

Waited a while someone from departure team to contact me nobody did so. Until on 12th july 2015, i contacted to volunatry departure myself and made travel arrangements.after that they advised me to send my e ticket which i did via email.

10-August 2015:I went back to my country voluntarily.


After that i applied as a tier 2 spouse visa on september 2015 which was granted.

I Entered the UK on the 3rd of November 2015.

2018- extended my tier 2 spouse visa valid till 21-08-2021

(My partner was granted ilr on feb 2021)

15-08-2021 -i applied for flr(m) granted till 28-march 2024.

26-03-2024- Applied for flrm extension. Granted till 11-Nov-2026.

I have a few questions if i may:-

As i have completed my 10 year legal status on 03/11/2025.
a) can i apply for my ILR under 10 year route?
B) will my past overstay affect my ILR application?
C) The part suitability changes from 11/11/2025. Will this affect me even if i have overstayed 10 years ago and left the country voluntarily?
D) is it wise to apply for ilr under 10 year route or wait till next year to apply next november under 5 year spousal visa route?

Any Feedback on this is much appreciated.

[zimba]

I do not see why you cannot apply now. It seems you have been eligible for a while. The overstaying which happened more than 10 years ago should have no effect on your ILR.

Make sure to read: Changes to the Long Residence settlement route from 11 April 2024

[Sm1a]

Thank you very much zimba. Much Appreciated. I have been eligible from 03/11/2025 i believe.I will apply it now. Do i need to obtain SAR(my immigration history from the home office to apply ILR)? Thank you very much indeed.

[Sm1a]

I would really appreciate your input on this Cr001 and other moderators.

[zimba]

Thank you very much zimba. Much Appreciated. I have been eligible from 03/11/2025 i believe.I will apply it now. Do i need to obtain SAR(my immigration history from the home office to apply ILR)? Thank you very much indeed.

No you do not SAR if you have a clear immigration history

[Sm1a]

Thank u again Zimba. I presume this clear immigration history is for 10 years not the past ones?

[zimba]

Thank u again Zimba. I presume this clear immigration history is for 10 years not the past ones?

Clear here means you know the dates, not overstaying etc

[Sm1a]

Thank you. Its just the Home office updated part suitability on 11th of november yesterday has been doing my heading and i wanted to make sure this does not affect my ILR application having overstayed in the past but now have a continuous legal residence of 10 years from 3rd of november 2015.

[zimba]

Thank you. Its just the Home office updated part suitability on 11th of november yesterday has been doing my heading and i wanted to make sure this does not affect my ILR application having overstayed in the past but now have a continuous legal residence of 10 years from 3rd of november 2015.

Immigration Rules Part Suitability has nothing to do with your concerns

[Sm1a]

Zimba thank you very much again. Much appreciated

[Sm1a]

Hi,
The Long residence for has the following question.

How long have you lived in the UK? Do i mention jan 2010 or 3rd of November 2015 from where i have continuous residence?

When did you first entered the UK? This is the date you entered the UK when the period of stay you are basing this application on started?
I assume this is 03/11/2015.

Please advise!

[zimba]

It does not matter what you answer. Putting the date in 2010 is fine. This question does not have any effect on calculation of continuous residence

[Sm1a]

Hi Zimba, thank you for your reply. I have completed my application and upon reviewing the document checklist they haven’t asked for my B1 english test certificate. I do have to provide this right? This is the same Certificate that I had provided to my previous 2 application on a family route.Please advise!

[zimba]

Yes.

[Sm1a]

Hi Zimba,
Following the recent changes for the ILR, will this affect me if i apply now?

[zimba]

Hi Zimba,
Following the recent changes for the ILR, will this affect me if i apply now?

Which recent changes to ILR ?

[Sm1a]

Hi Zimba,i think the above doesn’t apply till April 2026. One last question, Do i need to state other reason to live in the UK? I have listed my family and friends, job etc. Please advise!

Thank you.

[zimba]

Hi Zimba,i think the above doesn’t apply till April 2026. One last question, Do i need to state other reason to live in the UK? I have listed my family and friends, job etc. Please advise!

Thank you.

You do not need to list other reasons to stay in the UK at all

[Sm1a]

Thank you Zimba again. I have submitted the application. In terms of the supporting document,Do i need to submit the 6mth payslip and bank statement? This is not requested in the list of supporting evidence.

[zimba]

No as there is no financial requirement under the long residence

[Sm1a]

Thank you zimba. Do you have a list of documents required for set LR?

[zimba]

Thank you zimba. Do you have a list of documents required for set LR?

Passports covering the last 10 years, proof of English, LIUK pass