This is my first post, any guidance would be greatly appreciated!
I am an Australian who has been working in the UK since 2005. My visa history is as follows (Visa type, Validity dates):
Working Holiday, 12/07/05 - 12/07/07
HSMP, 11/04/07 - 11/04/09
Residence Permit (Tier 1)- 11/4/09 - 11/4/12
Question 1 - ILR Eligability
While my HSMP visa was valid from 11/04/2007, I did not enter the UK on this visa until the 24/04/2007 (a discrepancy of 13 days). Given that I need to apply for ILR 28 days before my current visa expires - would I still be regarded as having 5 years continuous residence in the UK?
Question 2 - Absences from the UK
Over the past 5 years I have been outside of the UK for a total of 258 days. 87 of these were short absences with paid leave. While I no longer have payslips for that period, I can get a letter from the HMR&C to show tax & NI contributions for these dates. Most of the other absences were also short stays, however I was working as a contractor at the time and as such did not receive paid leave.
The longest absence from the UK was 87 days, during which time I was in New York to take some work-related courses (however I quit my job to do so.) During this time I exclusively used my UK bank account, but did not pay rent in the UK.
As no absence was over 90 days, and disregarding paid annual leave (bringing the total from 258 to 171 days)- would I still be eligible for a straightforward ILR application?
As I said, any guidance would be hugely appreciated!
