Hi, My partner will be able to apply for ILR from next year based on 5 years on a work permit. He was already in the country on a student visa (he completed university in the UK), and applied for change of status to work permit, which was approved in July 2005. He then applied for FLR which was appr...

Hi star2 You seem to be knowledgeable about these promises - do you work for the HO or are an immigration lawyer? Anyway - neither of the two documents my partner received appear to mention any promise although he was an in-country applicant: The initial work permit approval sent to employer (July 0...

Hi Star 2, I have just checked my Partner's WP. He got it in July 2005 after a student visa so applied for it and got it in the UK. There is no mention of a 4 year promise though (although it was before the change to 5 years for ILR). Do you know when the HO stopped making the 4 year promise of ILR ...

I can only assume the only reason is to severely cut the number of people on ILR. Most people will not go through that stage to get to citizenship, and it will be more difficult to get that citizenship. I can only guess that is because ILR gives benefits but no responsibilities - and people can stil...

As I read it, this is more of a rebranding. ILR no longer exists in the same form. Instead we have Probationary citizenship (PC). We still have 5 years Tier 1/2 to get PC (like ILR), or 2 years as family. The difference is PC may last between 1 and 3 years before citizenship - rather than 1 year for...

http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/siteco ... tizenship/

Here seems to be the paper

For the current familty route one can apply immediately on obtaining ILR (assuming 3 years residence). Will that stay the same - or will a year of probationary citizenship now be needed? I'd marry my boyfriend, but he's already been here 2.5 years, and if the 1 year probationary is still needed, it ...

As far as I can tell from the Telegraph it sounds like "probationary citizenship" is a replacement for ILR. "The Daily Telegraph has learnt that for the first time there will be three "bands" of citizenship to control the unrestricted immigration of recent years. Those hopin...

Thanks for the responses. It's good to get the process cleared up in my mind.

My boyfriend and I are planning to get a civil partnership in November this year. I am a British citizen, and he is a Serbian national. He has a work permit and visa valid for another 4 years, and a job which is permanent (Teacher). He has been here one year on a work permit, and for 4 years previou...