Tier 1 to EEA2

[iamholmes]

All

* My wife is from an EEA state. I'm on a Tier 1 visa.
* I should get my ILR in June 2012, but I spent more than 3 months away from the UK last year. I was away on work (still being paid in the UK and paying tax etc), and have a letter from my employer. From what I have have read 3 months away effectively resets the 5-year clock so I would just have to apply for an extension in June 2012
* I am not interested British citizenship or Permanent residency as long as I can continue to work in the UK
* I am thinking of getting an EEA residence card instead - apply in the next 2 weeks and hopefully get it back before June when the Tier 1 expires. I'm assuming I can continue working till June based on the fact that I have a Tier 1. I'm aware that an EEA residence card application can take up to 6 months.

Is there any reason why I shouldn't go down the EEA2 (EEA residence card) route ?