Citizenship and the 450 days limit

[mel1639]

Hello,

I have been working in the UK with 3 years ICT (which is disregarded as it was approved after April 2010) and now 4 years Tier 2. I will be eligible to apply ILR in April 2019.

My work includes travel going in and out UK for 1-2 weeks. I counted my day off as follow :

2014 : 44 Days
2015 : 50 Days
2016 : 81 Days
2017 : 62 Days
Total 412 Days for the past 4 years.

Assume I am eligible for ILR as the rule is no more than 180 days in rolling 12 months. However I just heard this 450 days rule for citizenship. Also in between 1 year gap ILR to Citizenship, I can't be out more than 90 days.

Q: If my travel is for work, wouldn't it be forgiven? Or is it still going to be an issue? How can I proof it's for work or holiday?

Q: Should I be careful and not going out more than the remaining days - 38 days for the next 2 years? Seems impossible though as how can I work?

Q: I count those days manually. Will they actually check with their records too? As I might missed 1 or 2 days, give or take. Gosh this is stressful!

Thank you for any help.

[CR001]

I suggest you focus on getting ILR as the first point.

Q: If my travel is for work, wouldn't it be forgiven? Or is it still going to be an issue? How can I proof it's for work or holiday?

All absence is the same. Citizenship is a different set of rules/laws to the immigration rules for ILR.

Q: Should I be careful and not going out more than the remaining days - 38 days for the next 2 years? Seems impossible though as how can I work?

You should try yes. Alternatively it might just take you a bit longer before you can apply for citizenship.

Q: I count those days manually. Will they actually check with their records too? As I might missed 1 or 2 days, give or take. Gosh this is stressful!

Yes, they do check your travel history. Date of departure from UK and date of arriving back is NOT counted as an absence day.