Letter from Employer confirming you have earned money in your expert field"

[soraya2000]

Hi,

I am applying for ILR, but I've had multiple BRPs:
I first entered the UK in 2017 on a Tier-4 student Visa.
Then, changed to a Tier-2 work visa on 23 November 2020. (=date on BRP)
and later on to a Global Talent visa on 10 September 2022. (eligible for 3-year ILR route)

I have a few questions about dates:

1. Based on the home office guidelines, I assume that the time on my Tier-2 visa counts towards the completion of the Tier-3. Correct?

2. The guideline says "The earliest you can apply is 28 days before you’ve met the requirements" I cannot exactly calculate how the (X days later) is calculated in legal terms (whether issue date and application dates are inclusive or exclusive).
so:
The Tier-2 BRP was issued on 23 Nov 2020. When do I qualify? 22 Nov or 23 Nov or 24 Nov?
And what is 28 days before that? I certainly don't want to apply too early and get a rejection.




3. In the ILR application form, I need to answer this question:

Date you first entered the UK
When did you first enter the UK? (Required)
This is the date you entered the UK when the period of stay you are basing this application on started.

I don't understand what it actually means. Should I put my very first entry date in 2017 (when I entered as a student)? Or the last flight before my Tier-2 visa started (which was early 2020)?


4. I don't have council tax/tenancy documents, so I am going to provide bank statements as evidence of address and continuous residence. I did not find specific guidelines on what documents are accepted for ILR from Tier-1/2 route, but I assume the acceptable evidence docs are the same as in the EU settlement scheme, for which there is an official list of acceptable documents.
My bank (Santander) does not issue annual bank statement, so I need to provide 36 bank statements to cover 3 years, as stated in the guideline:

A dated bank statement showing payments received or spending in the UK. This will be treated as evidence of residence for the period covered by the bank statement.

My question is: what is a "dated bank statement"? The bank customer service said the only document I get is the online PDFs I can download from my account: they have the period of the statement printed on them (e.g. "10 Jan 2020 to 09 Feb 2020), but it does not have a "date" of issue. Is that going to be acceptable? Also, are online prints of bank statements valid for the purpose of proof of address / continuous residence?

Thank you so much!

[marcnath]

1. Yes
2. Really? Does a day or two or even a week make a difference to you? But yes, 22nd Nov is the qualifying date, making 26th Oct the earliest day. But seriously is it hoping to be such a disaster if you apply say kn Nov 1st?
3. Start if Tier 2
4. Period the statement refers to is fine. And you don't need 36 statements. One every 3 or even 6 months is fine. It just needs to cover the 3 year period

[soraya2000]

Thanks. Just a few clarifications:

2. Really? Does a day or two or even a week make a difference to you? But yes, 22nd Nov is the qualifying date, making 26th Oct the earliest day. But seriously is it hoping to be such a disaster if you apply say kn Nov 1st?

It just matters because I'm changing my employer soon and I'm under pressure to give notice to my existing employer, but at the same time I don't want complications on my ILR. So I need to know the exact date I can apply without risking a refusal.
So if I understood you correctly, if the ILR started on 16th Nov, then 3 years later = 15th (not 16th)?
and you just subtracted 28 days (without counting the 15th itself) and got the 22nd of October, right?

3. Start if Tier 2

Just to clarify: I had been in the UK for months before I switched to Tier 2. So it's the last FLIGHT before Tier 2 started, right?

4. Period the statement refers to is fine. And you don't need 36 statements. One every 3 or even 6 months is fine. It just needs to cover the 3 year period

Ok then, Thanks. My issue is that most bank statements are monthly and the bank refuses to give me 3-monthly or 6-monthly or annual statements. Would that make the case-worker mad and affect the results? Also, does it matter if the statement is a PDF I got online? (it has address, but no stamps, etc)

[soraya2000]

Another weird issue about dates is my visa end date.

The ILR application form asks for visa end date:

What is the end date of your most recent visa, leave to enter or remain or other permission to be in the UK?

When I got my latest visa (Global Talent), in the confirmation email they wrote:

You have been granted permission to stay in the UK under the Global Talent route until 09 Sep 2025.

However, the expiry date on my BRP card is 31 Dec 2024. I think this is because BRPs will be abolished from Jan 2025.

I'm confused which date should I put in the form? The date on the BRP (31 Dec 2024) or the expiry date that was on my previous visa approval email (09 Sep 2025)?

[zimba]

The actual visa expiry date 09 Sep 2025, ignore the BRP

[soraya2000]

In my ILR application from the Global Talent route (TechNation), I need to answer this question:

How is your employment or self-employment in the UK related to your specialist field or the prize you have won?

Also, my employer needs to provide a letter, confirming that:

Letter from employer or institution on official headed paper confirming you have earned money in your expert field

Now, I am confused about what my "specialist field" or "expert field" is.

When I was applying for the GT visa, I put "Digital Technology" as my expert field in both Stage 1 and Stage 2 application forms.

However, in the TechNation form, in the "Career Summary" section, I had to be more specific, so I put:
Q: Please indicate your sector: HealthTech
Q: Please indicate your specialist skill: Research

Obviously, the HO caseworkers are not experts, so my employer needs to know which of the above wordings should be in the letter. But I don't know which one to choose: Digital Technology, HealthTech, or Research?

What shall I do? How can I make sure about it?

[marcnath]

Thanks. Just a few clarifications:

So if I understood you correctly, if the ILR started on 16th Nov, then 3 years later = 15th (not 16th)?
and you just subtracted 28 days (without counting the 15th itself) and got the 22nd of October, right?

Not sure what ILR start is and where 16 Nov came.
Your Tier 2 started on 23rd Nov 2020, so qualifying date is 22nd Nov 2023. 28 days before would be 26th October. These calculations are not in the rules so if I were in your place I would apply a couple of days later to be very safe.

3. Start if Tier 2

Just to clarify: I had been in the UK for months before I switched to Tier 2. So it's the last FLIGHT before Tier 2 started, right?

No. It is the date of Tier 2 Start if you were in the UK on that date. Your travel under student visa is irrelevant as that is not the basis for your ILR

4. Period the statement refers to is fine. And you don't need 36 statements. One every 3 or even 6 months is fine. It just needs to cover the 3 year period

Ok then, Thanks. My issue is that most bank statements are monthly and the bank refuses to give me 3-monthly or 6-monthly or annual statements. Would that make the case-worker mad and affect the results? Also, does it matter if the statement is a PDF I got online? (it has address, but no stamps, etc)

It shouldn't matter. Even if you had received annual statements that would not be useful. It would not show that you lived there the whole period. What you want is different issue dates during the period

[soraya2000]

In my ILR application from the Global Talent route (TechNation), I need to answer this question:

How is your employment or self-employment in the UK related to your specialist field or the prize you have won?

Also, my employer needs to provide a letter, confirming that:

Letter from employer or institution on official headed paper confirming you have earned money in your expert field

Now, I am confused about what my "specialist field" or "expert field" is.

When I was applying for the GT visa, I put "Digital Technology" as my expert field in both Stage 1 and Stage 2 application forms.

However, in the TechNation form, in the "Career Summary" section, I had to be more specific, so I put:
Q: Please indicate your sector: HealthTech
Q: Please indicate your specialist skill: Research

Obviously, the HO caseworkers are not experts, so my employer needs to know which of the above wordings should be in the letter. But I don't know which one to choose: Digital Technology, HealthTech, or Research?

What shall I do? How can I make sure about it?

I think merging the two topics put my second question in the middle of the haystack. Does anyone have ideas or experience about what is the "field of talent"?

[zimba]

You seem to be overthinking every single question on the form. This is now how things work. If you work in Digital Technology then that is your expert field. Digital Technology is a broad term and does not determine which sector it is.

Also, read the requirements under the rules: There is no specific earning requirement for ILR under Global Talent Visa route

[lolo2]

Was your endorsement from TechNation granted as exceptional promise or talent?

- The answer to the question "When did you first enter the UK?" can be either the one when you arrived on a student visa or the date when you switched to Tier 2/SWV. This date really doesn't matter.

- The monthly bank statements downloaded from the Santander's website are the appropriate for this application. Download and merge them in to a one single file. No need for a date of issue, just the most recent statements are required.

- You don't need any council tax details or tenancy agreement for this application.

- The expert field requirement is fulfilled using an employment letter showing your job is (or was) related to your expert field, and of course you earned money in the field you were endorsed for.

- The 28-days rules apply backwards your anniversary of your eligible period. For example, you can apply today and then book biometrics on 26th October (23 Nov - 28 days) and you'll be eligible when a decision is made.

[soraya2000]

Was your endorsement from TechNation granted as exceptional promise or talent?

It was Global Talent (3-year one).

Just two tiny question:

I have this document in the checklist:

Evidence of your immigration status in the UK

I assume that I need to upload both:

• Global Talent BRP,
• and the previous Tier-2 work visa BRP (as I am combining their times),

but I do NOT need to upload:

• the previous Tier-4 student visa BRP
• and/or the first visa stamp on my passport, using which I came to the UK

Is that correct? Would it do any harm to include all the BRPs and visa?

Also, I am putting them all in a single word document and making it a PDF, is that acceptable? or should it be separate files?

Another question is: In almost all my documents in my application (such as Bank statement, etc) use the title "Mr ...", but the letter from my employer uses "Dr ..." for me. Would it be any problem?
Which title shall I use as my title in the ILR application? (Mr or Dr?).
Note that I am uploading my PhD certificate as proof of English.

[zimba]

You just need your current BRP. UKVI does not need you to tell them about a visa you held before, they issued these to you in the first place. They have access to all your immigration history. Documents better be in separate files to avoid confusion. Your title on the documents does not matter at all.

[soraya2000]

Wodnerful, thanks.

Is there any requirement regarding the recency of documents for the "Global Talent --> ILR" route?

My last salary payment and bank statement will be both issued one day before I apply. So I have the option to include them, but my latest Employer letter was issued a week ago and confirmed the total salary up until last month.

I can't ask my employer to issue yet another letter. Also, I have taken all my bank statement to the bank and stamped them, but it's too much effort to get back to that branch and convince someone again to stamp the very last statement. Should I include the very last payslip and bank statement, or does it not matter with or without that?

(I am already uploading the bank statement and payslips for the past 36 months, the question is whether the payslip of the very last month that was issued one day before application submission is really necessary".

[zimba]

No. None of those are matters of concern for your route. Just stick to the rules. I already showed you that the rules DO NOT require specific work related documents under this route.

[soraya2000]

Thanks. Final question: Would it have any negative impact if I include my CV and a cover letter to the ILR application?

I have heard from friends that CVs and cover letters can prevent the unfortunate scenario of the caseworker misinterpreting or not paying attention to all materials. Not sure if that's a safe assumption.

[marcnath]

Thanks. Final question: Would it have any negative impact if I include my CV and a cover letter to the ILR application?

I have heard from friends that CVs and cover letters can prevent the unfortunate scenario of the caseworker misinterpreting or not paying attention to all materials. Not sure if that's a safe assumption.

Additional documents should not have a negative effect.

Of course, the case worker is obliged to look at any document you submit so that may have some impact of the time they need.

[lolo2]

I am already uploading the bank statement and payslips for the past 36 months, the question is whether the payslip of the very last month that was issued one day before application submission is really necessary".

You can submit only the last 3 months payslips & bank statements, 36 months is excessive IMO. Bank stamps are not required for this. The statements downloaded from the website are enough.

A CV and a cover letter are absolutely not required, I don't see any room for misinterpretation for something that is unnecessary. I applied for ILR following exactly the same route (Tier 2/Skilled worker + Global Talent) and those documents are not required anywhere in the guidance. I even used the bank statements from the same bank!

Sometimes we need to think as we were the caseworker, they likely will be more comfortable assessing a tidy and well presented application in correspondence with what's required in the guidance. Submitting more documents will not make any difference. Making their life easier I believe can do!

[soraya2000]

Thanks everyone.
I also have a post-submission question:

Once I get the acceptance email, it can take between 1 to 7 days for the card to arrive at my address. My understanding is that it needs my signature, so if I am at work and not at home, it won't be delivered. What happens in that scenario? Would the car be sent back the the Home office?

I am thinking of getting annual leave from the day I receive the decision email until I receive the card, but I just have few annual leaves left. Is it really necessary?

[AmazonianX]

Thanks everyone.
I also have a post-submission question:

Once I get the acceptance email, it can take between 1 to 7 days for the card to arrive at my address. It most times takes longer than that. My understanding is that it needs my signature, so if I am at work and not at home, it won't be delivered. What happens in that scenario? Would the car be sent back the the Home office? No, a miss you card or some other form of it will be dropped. You will be able to rearrange delivery for when you are available. Some receive email from courier notifying them of when it will be delivered.

I am thinking of getting annual leave from the day I receive the decision email until I receive the card, but I just have few annual leaves left. Is it really necessary? No, not worth it