Post
by Joseph » Tue Mar 16, 2004 10:57 pm
NMSheikh
You are not technically eligible to stay, but since you were not formally asked to leave, you are not illegally staying. [Does that make sense??]
In other words, your employer was supposed to notify the HO about your job ending and the HO was supposed to send you a letter saying you have 28 days to leave the country. This generally does not happen and therefore there are many in your situation. You're not supposed to be here, but since nobody formally asked you to leave, you can stay.
However, if you have ever left the UK during your last year of unemployment, upon your return the IO will ask you if you are still working. If you tell them the truth and say no, they will not let you reenter the UK on your WP visa. If you lie and say yes, they will let you in but you will have violated the law (and can easily be caught if and when they look more closely--such as when you apply for an extension of your stay with a new WP or HSMP).
The problem you have, I think, is that if you want to get a WP or HSMP now, the fact that you were here unemployed on an invalid WP will become obvious when they consider you for further Leave to Remain. If it is a relatively short period of a few months, it shouldn't be a problem, but if it closer to a year, it could be a big problem. In that case, even if you qualify for HSMP or WP (starting next month it's called the IED or Immigration Employment Document stage), they could reject you at the LTR or passport stamping stage.
You definitely need the help of a skilled immigration lawyer to avoid getting into a stickier mess.
Joseph