When to apply ?

I will be completing 4 yrs and 11 months on Dec 20 '11. In this period I have been on combination of work permit and Tier 1. My Tier 1 is valid until 10 April '12.

I was out of UK for total of 198 days (I have excluded days of travel) in these 5 years. Out of these, 124 days are official travel to my base country. These 124 days are at a stretch. During this time I did have valid Tier 1 visa but I was not paid in UK due to company policy. I have one more business travel of 7 days outside UK. Rest are all paid annual leaves. My company has agreed to provide me a letter for all of 198 days -including 124 days out.

I qualify for extenion of Tier 1. However, I want to apply for ILR. I know my chances are bleak but I do want to apply and try. If I dont get ILR I need to apply for Tier 1 extension twice until I complete 5 yrs again !

Assuming that rules do not change between Dec '11 and April '12 - When should I apply for ILR- december 2011 or somewhere near beginning of April 2012. I am asking because between december and april two things will happen:

a) My stay in UK will increase by 3+ months- this may cover the 124 day gap to some extent.I have read in the forum that in some cases PEO keeps the passport until you cover the gap.

b) My Tier 1 will expire on 10 April 2012. I have read in this forum that chances of ILR being denied reduce if you are nearing the expiry of your existing leave to remain.

Also , please advise if I should apply by post or in person

I would really appreciate seniors views on the above. Thanks in advance

could you please provide exact dates of your absences from UK .. specially for 124 days one ...

Dates are as follow:

1. First entry to UK -> Jan 15, 2007
2. Switch to Tier 1 -> 11 April, 2009
3. 124 days start on 16-Aug-09 and end on 19-Dec-09

thanks

is there any reasonf or this absence ? medical ? business ?

yes as stated earlier- this was official travel

can any senior please help me

kim1605 wrote:I will be completing 4 yrs and 11 months on Dec 20 '11. In this period I have been on combination of work permit and Tier 1. My Tier 1 is valid until 10 April '12.

Out of these, 124 days are official travel to my base country. These 124 days are at a stretch. During this time I did have valid Tier 1 visa but I was not paid in UK due to company policy. I have one more business travel of 7 days outside UK. Rest are all paid annual leaves. My company has agreed to provide me a letter for all of 198 days -including 124 days out.

I think the link/quote below would apply.

Ch. 6A, Sect.1, Annex B wrote:2.1 Calculation of the five year period for settlement
When assessing if an applicant has met the criteria for 5 years continuous residence in the
UK, short absences abroad, for example for holidays (consistent with annual paid leave) or
business trips (consistent with maintaining employment or self-employment in the UK), may
be disregarded, provided the applicant has clearly continued to be based here.

kim1605 wrote:Assuming that rules do not change between Dec '11 and April '12 - When should I apply for ILR- december 2011 or somewhere near beginning of April 2012. I am asking because between december and april two things will happen:

a) My stay in UK will increase by 3+ months- this may cover the 124 day gap to some extent.I have read in the forum that in some cases PEO keeps the passport until you cover the gap.

b) My Tier 1 will expire on 10 April 2012. I have read in this forum that chances of ILR being denied reduce if you are nearing the expiry of your existing leave to remain.

Based on the two points you've made, I think you should apply near the beginning of April 2012. But if Ch. 6A, Sect.1, Annex B 2.1 works in your favour, I say apply anytime from 20 December 2011.

kim1605 wrote:Also , please advise if I should apply by post or in person

I suggest applying by post. I believe it's less of a hassle, as long as one ensures that they've submitted all the relevant correct documents.

I want to confirm if my understanding of benefit from delay in my application will really be there or not . can anyone please help. will delaying application help ?

Only if you defer the application until such time that the single absence of 90+ days falls out of the 5 year qualifying residential period preceding the application. And that will happen only after Dec. '14.

Under given circumstances, decision is based on caseworker discretion. Whether such discretion will be in your favor or not cannot be said for sure by anyone on the forum .. but will depend on the documentary evidence(s) you submit to support your claims that "continuous residence in the UK has not been broken".

In your case, you have exceeded the limit (90 days) and you were not paid in the UK during this absence (indicating no economic ties). It is up to you to prove that yours was not the case of "was sent back home for good but was lucky to come back because the company grabbed a new UK project" .. or something similar!