UK Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) Dependent Visa Extension Query

[helios3]

Hi Admins et Al,

Please help me with the below query:

• My Spouse came to the UK as Tier-1 Entrepreneur dependent in March 2019.

• I then applied for ILR in July 2019 and received my ILR in January 2020 and British Citizenship in April 2021.

• With my ILR, I applied for my spouse Tier-1 Entrepreneur dependent visa extension and my spouse received 3x years Tier-1 Entrepreneur dependent visa until Jan 2023.

• Then my spouse was out of the UK from March 2020 to July 2020. (5 months).

• Then again my spouse was out of the UK from March 2021 until May 2022. (14 months). My spouse went back home because our 1 year old son needed a surgery which NHS delayed due to Covid-19 and we had to get it done ASAP so we got it done back home privately in April 2021.

• At that time, my spouse was due for our 2nd baby who was born overseas in May 2021.

• In July 2021, we applied for our new born baby's British Passport because I am British, Anyway HMPO did ask for a lot of paperwork and finally issued British Passport in April 2022.

• Due to our child British Passport application delay, my spouse could not return to the UK and had to stay overseas with the new born child. That is why my spouse had to stay overseas for 4 months.

Now my QUESTION is that:

• My spouse Tier-1 Entrepreneur dependent visa extension is due in January 2023, is it worth applying for extension given the fact that they were out of the UK for 14 months?

OR

• Should we apply for T-1 ENT Spouse Visa extension and complete 5 years excluding the 14 months my spouse was out of the UK but include 2 years inside the UK 2019-2020?

OR

• Since my spouse was out of the UK for more than 6 months, the continuity is broken and they have to start 5 years again?

OR

• Should we move to different visa category now as 'spouse of a British National' and complete 5 years again? And where there is no outside the UK stay requirement?

Can we not save my spouse time in the UK 2019-2020 and claim that my spouse had to stay outside the UK - A) due to son's operation which NHS delayed? (we have paperwork from NHS doctor which says we can go back home and get the surgery done) and - B) our 2nd child was born outside the UK and HMPO took 10 months to issue child's 1st British Passport instead of their 12 week time-line?

On basis of these 2 points, should we apply for T-1 Ent dependent extension and complete 5 years including previous time inside the UK and apply for ILR then?

Sorry for the long message but need help regarding this. Thanks

[marcnath]

If your spouse is not going to be out again for 180 days or more, it doesn't matter which route you choose. Staying as PBS Dependent will get her to the 5 years a little earlier, may be about 6 months.

The older guidance document had these paragraphs:

153. If any of your absences are due to a serious or compelling reason, you must provide a personal
letter which includes full details of the reason(s) for the absences and all relevant supporting
documents in relation to those reasons - e.g. medical certificates, birth/death certificates, other
information about the reasons which led to the absence from the United Kingdom.
154. Whatever the reason for absences from the United Kingdom, they will still be counted towards the
maximum 180 days (see information about delayed entry to the UK below) unless they fall under a
specific exemption. This includes any absences for work reasons, or serious and compelling
reasons.

I can't see this in the latest guidance so not sure if it is still applicable.

If you don't mind risking the loss of application fees and your spouse is still on dependant visa, you can try to ask for an exception due to "serious or compelling reasons".

No guarantee it will come through, but the only thing you will lose is the application fees.

[helios3]

If your spouse is not going to be out again for 180 days or more, it doesn't matter which route you choose. Staying as PBS Dependent will get her to the 5 years a little earlier, may be about 6 months.

The older guidance document had these paragraphs:

153. If any of your absences are due to a serious or compelling reason, you must provide a personal
letter which includes full details of the reason(s) for the absences and all relevant supporting
documents in relation to those reasons - e.g. medical certificates, birth/death certificates, other
information about the reasons which led to the absence from the United Kingdom.
154. Whatever the reason for absences from the United Kingdom, they will still be counted towards the
maximum 180 days (see information about delayed entry to the UK below) unless they fall under a
specific exemption. This includes any absences for work reasons, or serious and compelling
reasons.

I can't see this in the latest guidance so not sure if it is still applicable.

If you don't mind risking the loss of application fees and your spouse is still on dependant visa, you can try to ask for an exception due to "serious or compelling reasons".

No guarantee it will come through, but the only thing you will lose is the application fees.

Thanks for your reply Marcnarth. I have few more points to ask please.

If your spouse is not going to be out again for 180 days or more, it doesn't matter which route you choose. Staying as PBS Dependent will get her to the 5 years a little earlier, may be about 6 months. You mean her continuity is broken and she cannot use her 2 years stay in the UK between March 2019 to March 2021? And if yes then can she stay on 5 years more as PBS dependent?

If you don't mind risking the loss of application fees and your spouse is still on dependant visa, you can try to ask for an exception due to "serious or compelling reasons". Yes her current dependent visa is valid until Jan 2023, so if she applies for dependent visa extension, can HO refuse and say your continuity is broken so you have to start again or change to spouse of British National Visa?


And the reason of thinking to apply for Spouse of British National Visa is that then there is no outside the UK stay requirement, you only have to complete 5 years. Correct?
And do we have to pay IHS on Spouse of British National Visa?

Pls advise. Thanks

[marcnath]

Thanks for your reply Marcnarth. I have few more points to ask please.

If your spouse is not going to be out again for 180 days or more, it doesn't matter which route you choose. Staying as PBS Dependent will get her to the 5 years a little earlier, may be about 6 months. You mean her continuity is broken and she cannot use her 2 years stay in the UK between March 2019 to March 2021? And if yes then can she stay on 5 years more as PBS dependent?

Correct. She needs to have 5 years of continuous residence. And continuous residence is broken by a 180 day absence in any 12 months. She can stay on as PBS dependent as long as it is required.
If she stays on as a PBS dependant, she should qualify for ILR around Dec 2026, assuming there are no long departures now.

If you don't mind risking the loss of application fees and your spouse is still on dependant visa, you can try to ask for an exception due to "serious or compelling reasons". Yes her current dependent visa is valid until Jan 2023, so if she applies for dependent visa extension, can HO refuse and say your continuity is broken so you have to start again or change to spouse of British National Visa?

No. Continuity is only applicable for ILR, not for extension. You need two more extensions

And the reason of thinking to apply for Spouse of British National Visa is that then there is no outside the UK stay requirement, you only have to complete 5 years. Correct?

Yes, as far as I can make out.

And do we have to pay IHS on Spouse of British National Visa?

Pls advise. Thanks

Yes, still need to pay IHS.

[helios3]

Hi Admin,

My Spouse is on Tier-1 Ent Dependent Visa. When I got ILR in 2020, they received 3 years extension of Tier-1 dependent visa. Now we need another extension before we apply for spouse ILR.

So please advise if the below link is the correct link to apply for the Tier-1 Ent dependent Extension?

https://visas-immigration.service.gov.u ... nt-partner

Also please advise what main documents are required other than Passport/Biometric?

And how much time does it take to get the outcome of the application? One of my friend recently applied for their spouse and they received a reply within a week with positive outcome.

Please advise. Thanks

[helios3]

ADMINS

Please reply

[marcnath]

Yes. That appears to be the correct link.
Dependant applications should be straightforward and relatively fast.