Why can my husband apply for his ILR?

[Pearly Sunshine]

Hi everyone,

Apologies if this is not meant to come on here, however, I can't find an open forum for what my question is going to be. First of all I am so thankful to this forum for the help and support I have gotten at every point in my immigration journey and I know a lot of people are as thankful as I am.

I was on a Tier 2 visa before getting my ILR last year and currently just submitted my citizenship application. My husband applied for Tier 2 dependent visa on the 9th of February 2020 and got his 30 days vignette (just before the first COVID lockdown in March, 2020). When there was a brief lift off of the lock down, he submitted his passport and got a new vignette in September and ultimately came into the country September 9, 2020; (he did not have to apply for a new visa or even vignette; due to the COVID issues at the time, he just got a new vignette as he already had a successful application. He is still on a Tier 2 dependent visa with his current one expiring on the 9th of February 2025. If we go by the first time he got his visa granted which is 9th of February 2020, the 9th of February 2025 makes it exactly 5 years, however, if we go by the first time he entered the country (because of the COVID 19 lockdown which was unavoidable), he would be 4 years and 5 months by February 2025.

My questions are;

When will he be eligible for ILR exactly?

We have all the evidence to support everything I have written above including flight tickets we had bought for him to come to England in March 2020 before the COVID lockdown was announced. Can we apply for his ILR in January/February rather than August/September 2025?

I am no longer on a Tier 2 visa, which will muddle the water up if he does need to reapply for a Tier 2 dependent visa extension - I know we can sort this but I would rather avoid it by getting his ILR instead.

If indeed he is eligible for ILR in February of 2025, can he apply for his British citizenship immediately as he would ultimately be a British Spouse partner by then and would have spent 5 years in the country albeit on a Tier 2 dependent visa.


I look forward to hearing from you guys and I am more than happy to provide further information if needed

Many thanks

[zimba]

The qualifying period counts from the first visa issue date so the date of entry is irrelevant. The fact that you are no longer a skilled worker is also irrelevant, he can apply for an extension or ILR under the skilled worker dependent route without any issues. When he gets ILR, he can immediately apply for citizenship as you are British

[Pearly Sunshine]

Thank you Zimba.