To identify the start of the qualifying period you use the day after the application date minus the length of the qualifying period. For example in an application under section
6(
1) made on 1 March 2016, the applicant must have been legally in the UK on 2 March 2011.
Where the applicant fails to meet the requirement to be in the UK at the start of the qualifying period by 2 months or less, either side of the application date, you must consider using discretion to allow them to re-declare their application. Where discretion is being exercised you must request that the applicant re-declares their application, by using Doc Gen letter 4746.
Where they fail to meet the requirement by more than 2 months, you must normally refuse the application. In these cases it will not be appropriate for a refund to be issued. The exception to this is where the applicant meets all other statutory requirements but misses the requirement by a month or less, and cannot meet the requirement by re-declaring. In these cases a refund, less the non-returnable part will be appropriate. Any refund must be authorised by the finance section.
Where an application is re-declared, the original application date is superseded by the date on which the re-declaration is received by the Home Office. You must ensure that applicants are aware that they need to ensure that the new application date does not fall on a date that they would still not meet the qualifying period. If there has been a fee change between the original application date and the date that they submit their re-declaration they must pay the fee in force at the time of the re- declaration.
There may be cases where it is appropriate to invite an applicant to redeclare their application on an exceptional basis. This might be where a person did not meet the unwaivable requirement at the date of application, but it was significantly delayed due to departmental error, and they would now do so.
