Breaking News: ILR is going Biometric on 29th February 2012!

From 29th February 2012 the UK Border Agency will be including ILR visas in the new Biometric system which means that all clients will now have to have their digital fingerprints and photograph taken by UKBA officials before they will grant the visa.  Please also note that the new visas will be in the form of an ID card and no paper visa will be issued in the passport.  

Clients that wish to apply for their ILR visa after this date should also be warned that due to the massive increase in the number of people that will need their Biometrics taken, the number of Premium appointments at the Public Enquiry Office (PEO) will be drastically reduced.  We are advising everyone that is currently eligible to apply for ILR and would want a Premium appointment to apply before the end of February 2012!  After this date, the UK Border Agency is clearly wanting clients to apply by post rather than through the fast track service.  As we only have a very limited number of appointments left before the deadline, we recommend that you call us ASAP on 0203 178 2048.

 

Changes to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) rules on 6th April 2011...

From 6^th April 2011, the UK Border Agency has changed the immigration rules for anyone applying for an Indefinite Leave to Remain visa (aka Permanent Residency).  There have been two types of changes:

• Changes that affect all applicants that are applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain;
• Changes that affect only those on a Tier 1, Tier 2 or Work Permit applying for ILR

Changes affecting all applicants

The following two changes affect everyone:

1. Criminal Convictions – You can no longer apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain if you have been convicted of a crime and not enough time has passed for the conviction to become “spent”.     “Spent” is a legal term that means the conviction can no longer be held against you in line with the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.  Most convictions become spent after 5 - 7 years from the date of conviction in court.  For an example, this would mean that if you were convicted of a crime once you have spent four years in the UK on a Tier 1 (General) visa, you would have to stay on your Tier 1 visa for another 5 year period before applying for ILR whilst you wait for the conviction to become spent!  Please also note that this includes traffic offences such as drink driving or driving without insurance etc.  Do not panic if you have any penalty charge notices, parking tickets or fines as these are not criminal convictions
2. Your wife or husband must have spent 2 years living in the UK with you before they now qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain – before the changes we just had to declare any dependents and they would be granted ILR with the main applicant regardless of their length of time in the UK.  We now have to prove that your husband or wife (dependent) has been living at the same address as you (the main applicant) for no less than 2 years before they can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain.  This rule can be quite complicated and confusing so feel free to give us a call and we can explain what you would need to do if your spouse has been here for less than 2 years before you apply for ILR – 0203 178 2048.

 

Changes affecting clients applying for ILR who are currently on a Tier 1, Tier 2 or Work Permit visa

From 6th April 2011, the UK Border Agency has also specifically changed the process for any Tier 1, Tier 2 or Work Permit visa holder’s applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR). 

Changes affecting Tier 1 visa holders:

As an overview, any Tier 1 (General) clients applying for ILR will now have to satisfy the same points requirement they needed to qualify for their Tier 1 extension (i.e. 75 points if you got your first HSMP/Tier 1 visa before 6^th April 2010 or 80 points if after).  Effectively, they have combined your Tier 1 extension (yes, another one!) with the ILR process so you MUST make sure that your earnings are high enough in the last 12 months to now qualify for ILR!

The following link will open our Tier 1 (General) page so you can work out how high your earnings will need to be and if you are not sure, why not call us on 0203 178 2048:

http://firstmigration.com/visas/uk/tier-1-general-inside-uk

Changes affecting Tier 2/Work Permit visa holders:

Tier 2 visa holders now have to show that their earnings are as high as the minimum salary requirement under the UK Border Agency's "Codes of Practice for Tier 2 Sponsored Workers" (which can be found on their website).  For example, this means that if you are working as a Marketing Manager and the minimum salary according to the UKBA is £40,000 per annum, your earnings will have to be £40,000 per annum for you to qualify for ILR. 

You must check whether your gross earnings are high enough according to the UKBA's list.  If they are not, you will not qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain.  

If you currently hold a Tier 1 General, Tier 2 or Work Permit visa and would like more information, please call us on 0203 178 2048 

 

Overview of Indefinite Leave to Remain (Permanent Residency)

What is Indefinite Leave to Remain?

Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) is also known as "Permanent Residence" and almost all migrants in the UK aim for this visa status. With every type of visa, you are given a limited amount of time that you can lawfully remain in the UK. When your visa expires you will need to either extend your existing visa, switch to another visa or return to your home country. ILR allows a person after a set period of time (depending on the visa they are on – see table below) to make an application to remain in the UK indefinitely. The main benefits of ILR apart from ensuring that a person does not have to return home when their visa expires are as follows:

• No more immigration related restrictions on the business or work that you may do within the UK
• No time limits on the length of your stay in your UK
• You will not have to apply for anymore visa extensions

 

Eligibility

To qualify for ILR (also known as Permanent Residence), you will need to remain in the UK on your specific visa for a set amount of time. The number of years needed on a visa to qualify varies between the different visa categories as follows*: 

Type of visa	Time needed to gain Permanent Residency
Marriage/Spouse Visa	2 Years
Unmarried Partner Visa	2 Years
Tier 1 General	5 Years
Tier 1 Entrepreneur	5 years
Tier 1 Investor	5 years
Work Permit	5 Years
Ancestry Visa	5 Years
Writers, Composers and Artist Visa	5 Years
Lawful Stay on any Visa	10 Years
Unlawful stay or a combination of lawful and unlawful stay	14 Years

*Please note that you can technically apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after 4 years and 11 months if you are on a Work Permit, a Tier 1 Visa (excluding Tier 1 Post Study Work Visa) or an Ancestry Visa.  Likewise, if you are on a Marriage (Spouse) or Unmarried Partner Visa, you can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after 1 year and 11 months.  For those clients applying under the 10 Year Long Residence Rule, you can apply up to 28 days before you have stayed in the UK continuously for 10 years. This is possible as you have the right under the immigration rules to apply up to 28 days before your visa expires.  

As well as having spent sufficient time in the UK, applicants will also need to have:

• Passed the life in the UK test (you are exempt if you qualify under the HSMP judicial review)
• Be able to prove that you have sufficient funds to support yourself and any dependents 
• Have suitable accommodation for yourself and any dependents
• Have a job that brings you in suitable regular income

 

In addition to the above requirements, applicants should also consider:

• You are entitled to take holidays and travel on business trips. You should try to not leave the UK for longer than one month a year (this amount of time excludes business trips where you have a letter from your employer) and not more than 3 months in one single trip.
• Please note that the Home Office case worker can offer discretion and not include any business trips you have taken as time spent outside the UK (as long as this point is argued properly in our cover letter attached to your ILR application). We recommend that you keep documentation proving that your trip was solely for business reasons.

 

How much time can you spend outside the UK and still ensure that you qualify for Permanent Residence? Our advice…

This is the most common question that our clients ask and the answer depends on which visa you are switching from when applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain?  The rules are follows:

Applying after 2 years on a Spouse/Civil Partner visa:

Theoretically you should not leave for more than 36 days a year but due the nature of a Spouse/Civil Partner there is a degree of flexibility.  Please call one of our consultants and they will be able to discuss this matter with you in greater detail - 0203 178 2048.

Applying after 5 years on an Ancestry/Tier 1/Tier 2/Work Permit visa:

We can confirm that the main applicant must not leave the UK for more than 180 days in total during the five years and not for more than 90 days in one trip.  You will not find this fact stated anywhere on the UK Border Agency website but we assure you that this is the case.  We have only received ILR approvals since 2007 on this basis.

Applying after 10 years Long Residence:

You are allowed to be outside the UK for up to 540 days (18 Months) in the 10 years and must not have left the UK for more than 6 months (180 days) in one trip.

The UK Border Agency changed their policy in December 2009 and removed any mention of the time you are allowed outside from their website. Their intention when they changed the "time spent outside the UK" policy was to get you to simply state all the trips you have taken and how many days you have spent outside the UK. The Home Office caseworker would then decide whether the time you have spent outside the UK is reasonable or you have spent too much time away and they will refuse your ILR application. This was a worrying development as such a vague policy would lead to some client's being refused for very little travel and others approved when being outside for far longer periods.

However, we will not allow our clients to fall into this trap and therefore recommend the following to everyone:

• You are allowed to spend a reasonable amount of time outside of the UK every year.  We would recommend that you try not to spend more than 4 weeks of holiday/vacation time out side of the UK every year.  We can successfully argue this as a reasonable amount of time when making an application on behalf of an applicant.
• You are allowed to travel on business and the caseworker has the right to not include time spent outside the UK on business trips.  We strongly recommend that should you have to travel for business that you always obtain a letter from your employer confirming that they require you to travel on behalf of their business.  The letter should be on letter headed paper, contain the dates of travel and the period you are required to be outside the UK and the reason for the business trip.  Keep the letters in a safe place so they may be submitted with your ILR application and we can effectively argue your case.
• We also recommend that you start to keep a diary of all the trips you take abroad as it may be difficult for you to remember all the times you have travelled over a five year period. You will need this information when making your ILR application.

 

Please note that the above recommendations are only our guidelines as there are no clearly defined rules which state maximum days or time periods and should be treated solely as a guide.

 

Contact Us

If you would like one of our OISC registered ILR Experts to check your eligibility or you would like to proceed with an application, please send an e-mail to info@firstmigration.com or why not call us on +44 (0) 203 178 2048.  Click on the e-mail address to send an e-mail and we look forward to hopefully working with you to secure your Indefinite Leave to Remain visa.

Additional Information

Restrictions and Conditions

Should you successfully apply and be granted ILR then you must be aware of the following conditions:

• You should not spend any more than 2 years at any one time outside of the UK.
• You should consider the UK as your home and certainly maintain close ties.
• Should you only spend short periods of time in the UK over a number of years then you could have your status on Indefinite Leave to Remain revoked by the UK Government.
• Should you wish to spend more time away from the UK then perhaps you should consider Naturalisation and acquiring a British Passport. You must remain on ILR for a period of no less than 12 months before you are entitled to apply for Naturalisation.
• To qualify for Naturalisation, you must not spend more than 90 days outside the UK in the 12 months before applying and for no more than 450 days in the 5 years before the application is submitted.

The Life in the UK Test

Any application for ILR needs to be supported by a life in the UK test result. The test requires applicants to have a basic knowledge of UK history, society and culture. If applicants are not fluent in English then they will need to attend English language (ESOL) and citizenship classes, which will help applicants to improve their English language skills and knowledge of life in the UK. You can register for the life in the UK test on the following link:

www.lifeintheuktest.gov.uk

 

Have you been on more than one visa?

In our experience, many clients have been on more than one visa during their time in the UK. As a result, we are frequently asked whether you can put different visas together to obtain the number of years of lawful stay necessary to qualify for Permanent Residency.

There are circumstances where you can put more than one visa type together and some of the more common situations clients find themselves in are as follows:

• Work Permit/HSMP/Tier1 General – You can apply after 4 years and 11 months if you switched in country
• HSMP/Work Permit or Tier 1 General/Tier 2- Your journey to ILR began again when you switched to your Work Permit/Tier 2 visa
• 2 or more Work Permits or Tier 2 visas with different employers
• Student visa (Tier 4 visa)/HSMP or Tier 1 General – Under 10 year rule or 5 years on HSMP/Tier 1 General
• Student visa/IGS/HSMP/Tier 1 General – Under 10 year rule or 5 years on HSMP/Tier 1 General

 

First Migration and your ILR visa approval 

Gaining ILR is an important step on the route to citizenship and is a substantial application. The rules and regulations governing the application are increasingly stringent, making it increasingly hard to obtain. First Migration can help you obtain ILR through our vast experience and OISC registered team. So what can you expect from us?

• A dedicated caseworker who will advise you on the exact documentation needed for your application.
• We offer sample letters and documents to ensure you get the right documents
• Feedback on all of your documents eligibility
• We complete the application form
• We write a covering letter both presenting and arguing why your case should be approved
• We represent your case to the Home Office and deal with all correspondence

In addition to this we also ensure:

• We offer no win, no fee on all applications
• Regular updates
  
• Your application is covered by our service guarantee

 

Overwhelmed by all the information and detail you need to be aware of?  Why not call one of our expert consultants now and let them take all the stress and worry away from you!  This is what we do on a daily basis hence why we have been so successful in ensuring every client gets their Indefinite Leave to Remain visa approved.  Call us on 0203 178 2048.