I have been a follower of this website for ages however became a member about a month back. I want to share my experience of ILR which I applied for about a week back.
Went into the Cardiff Home Office branch at 8.50AM as my appointment was at 9.10, they asked me to come back in 10 mins as I was too early...it's not good especially when it's drizzling outside and you have walked over couple of miles as there is no parking nearby. Waited in the near by bus stop for 10 minutes before I went in and they did my security check.
Documents I carried
1. 12 months bank statement
2. 12 months payslip
3. Letter from the employer, however this letter did not have exact working as mentioned in the guideline. The format I carried as below
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am happy to confirm employment for the above person who is employed by "company name" on the following Terms and Conditions.
Date Employment Commenced
Contract Type Permanent
Job Title
Salary
National Insurance Number
Nationality
Date of Birth
We are unable to complete any detailed reference forms that are submitted.
This reference is given to the addressee in confidence and only for the purposes for which it was requested. It is given in good faith, but neither the writer nor "Company name "accepts any responsibility or liability for any loss or damage caused to the addressee or any third party as a result of any reliance being placed on it.
If you require any further information please do not hesitate to contact me on the above number.
Yours sincerely,
I was so much worried on this format, hence I attached my CoS sheet and my contract agreement along.
4. Self attested letter for all the travel including proof of why I travelled in the last 5 years as my ex-employer did not give me the letter (I had moved from one sponsor to another during my 5 year period)
5. 1 year p60
6. Rental agreement
7. Council tax bill schedule for 1 year
8. Passport
9. Bio-metric card
I was the first to arrive and gave me a token, made me sit for 30 minutes before going for the bio-metric. After 30 minutes I was called and was told that they have do some verification (external) which could take upto 24 hours and asked me to go. The case worker was polite and friendly and didn't any info on the status, told me that I would get a call either later of the day or the next day.
I went home, had coffee, watched movies but my mind was always on the phone as when it would ring with the display of "Private Number"
I got a call around 16.45pm from someone in cardiff home office that all verification have been done and my ILR has been successful and they asked me to collect all the document the next day along with the approval letter as it was already late.
Went back the next day with a happy face, new attitude and thankful heart to God and got all my papers. My bio-metric card was delivered after 3 days.
This is my experience and thought it could help someone.
Give me a shout if anyone have any questions or the format of annual leave letter or employer letter or what has to be done from ILR perspective.
All the best for all who are applying for ILR.
Regards
Bernie