ILR application with 359 days absence

[AlperKoc]

Hi everyone!

This week, I'm becoming eligible to submit my ILR application through the 5-year Skilled Worker visa route and would like to seek your advice on a minor issue regarding my application.

I moved to the UK on 23rd July 2019. Over the past five years, I have taken holidays ensuring that I did not exceed 180 days in any 12-month period. However, there was a time when I approached this limit.
- The maximum time I spent outside the UK in any 12-month period was 131 days.
- Additionally, over the five-year period, I have spent a total of 359 days outside the UK.

I have traveled outside the UK a total of six times during these five years, each being a single, long holiday with the following durations:
1. Absence 1: 15 days
2. Absence 2: 48 days
3. Absence 3: 131 days
4. Absence 4: 58 days
5. Absence 5: 66 days
6. Absence 6: 41 days
Total: 359 days

I am a software engineer and working remotely, I don't have any requirements to go to the office. I continued to work uninterruptedly during my time outside the UK, paid my income tax, and have maintained my payslips for the last 60 months (5 years) without any breaks. This is my second employment as a Skilled Worker Visa holder, and have been working with my current employer for the last 3.5 years.

This week, I will request a letter from my company for my ILR application. The letter will confirm my position, salary, their satisfaction with my performance, and that I will continue to work for them.

My primary questions are:
• Is there a possibility that the mentioned absences would have a negative impact on my application even though I have not exceeded 180 days in any 12-month period?
• Would it be beneficial to include a few sentences about this in the letter I will get from my company to clarify this issue and avoid any potential problems, or should I not mention it at all?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this matter!

[zimba]

Total absences are irrelevant under the skilled worker route. You should be ok as long as you do not fail the 180-day requirement.

However, your sponsor also has duties they need to comply with. Working with little or no requirement to attend work premises or a client site may suggest it is not a role that needs to have an overseas worker in the UK and the sponsor may be questioned on this. If your sponsor has not reported your working arrangements via SMS, their licence might be at risk.

Note that the official 'Sponsor duties and compliance' document says the following:

You must, however, tell us, via your SMS account, if any sponsored worker
is, or will be, working entirely remotely, with little or no requirement to attend
your premises or a client site (a contractual home worker). In these cases,
we reserve the right to ask you to explain why you need to sponsor the
worker to come to the UK if (for example) they could work remotely from
their home country.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.u ... 4_v1.0.pdf

[zxyzhgp]

when I got my employment letter from my sponosr, he mentioned that my absence leave is a little bit above 30 days and usually he should report it.

Do not get it wrong. As long as you do not exceed the limit , you should be fine

Just want to tell you that the sponsors do have duty to report any unusual leaves

[zimba]

when I got my employment letter from my sponosr, he mentioned that my absence leave is a little bit above 30 days and usually he should report it.

Do not get it wrong. As long as you do not exceed the limit , you should be fine

Just want to tell you that the sponsors do have duty to report any unusual leaves

The document above covers when and what the sponsors should report. The OP may face issues not because of the absences but due to his working arrangements. If an employee can work mostly remotely, then that might suggest there was no good justification for them to be brought to the UK. They can work overseas for the firm without the need to be here.