ILR after ELR

[Dyncan]

I applied for ILR after completing 4 years of exceptional leave to remain more than a year ago and still haven’t received any replies. I called HO today and was told that my case still awaiting consideration due to the administrative delays. I was wondering if anybody knows how long it usually takes to decide this type of the application and if there are any ways to speed up the process. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

[tw30]

hi, i know two families that had to wait almost a year to receive their ILR having applied for it after completing 4 years ELR. as soon as they received their ILR they only had to wait a month before applying for their british naturalisation. also one of the families applied for ILR travel documents but this request was turned down, although the cheque sent in payment of the processing fee was cashed. They were told to apply for a passport through their home country embassy in London and then have the ILR visa put into this passport if they were desperate to travel.

[enquirer]

I am very much doubtful about the aforementioned families being eligible to apply for naturalisation after one month after being granted ILR.
To apply for the naturalisation the last 12
months of the stay should not be a subject to any time limit. The applicants' for ILR residentship in the UK is subject to a time limit,i.e. nobody have given them the right to be in the UK indefinately.
So this does not count.

Could anybod confirm/dismiss this statement?

E

[John]

Enquirer, that 12 month period you mention, it is possible to file an application for naturalisation before that 12 month period has expired. At the discretion of IND they can allow the application to proceed.

One of the grounds for asking for that discretion to be exercised is excessive delay, through no fault of the applicant, in the ILR visa being granted.

Personally I am just incensed that an application should take more than 12 months to process. OK, it is unreasonable to expect a "by return of post" service, but why on earth does it ever take more than 12 months.

[enquirer]

John,

Thanks for your explanation. I like good news. In the letter from the HO granting ELR it says that the 4 year ELR is given and upon its
expiration the person's status in the UK will be considered again and one should not assume that any further extension/status change
will be granted automatically. Smth alone those lines (the meaning is retained).

Please correct me if I am wrong, would an application for naturalisation before receipt of ILR (due to the delay) be exactly "making an assumption
that ILR is issued automatically"?
Or somewhere the procedures/documents contradict (which could happen)?

More importantly, would an application for naturalisation in this case influence the HO's decision towards refusal of ILR?

Thanks again.
E

[John]

Enquirer, I don't think the discretion goes that far. It is necessary to have ILR before the naturalisation application goes in.


Have a read through :-

Topic: Naturalisation -- Outside the Normal Rules

-: where the discretion is discussed. It is 7.4.g that will be of interest to you.

[enquirer]

Agree with you, John.
Thanks
E

[enquirer]

Hello everyone.

I have to come back again.

Since July 04 there has not been made any decision despite a number of letters sent and calls made to the Home Office.
This is also after involving MP who wrote to the Home Office and compassionate circumstances (my father passed away 6 weeks ago). I wrote to the Home Office4 asking to assist with soonest consideration of the application as they consider compassionate circumstances, but they never replied.

My wife went to the HO this morning and was told that because my initial application in 1995 was for asylum, it would take years to get the decision on ILR.
This is contrary to the fact that I know people who have received/keep receiving ILR after ELR (exactly my case).

We are extremely desparate now. Can anybody recommend what to do to get the application looked at and decision made? Will a solicitor be of any help?

Really appreciating your replies.
Best Regards,
E

[please help]

I applied for ILR after completing 4 years of exceptional leave to remain more than a year ago and still haven’t received any replies. I called HO today and was told that my case still awaiting consideration due to the administrative delays. I was wondering if anybody knows how long it usually takes to decide this type of the application and if there are any ways to speed up the process. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

Dyncan
I have the same situation like you , my application has been outstanding for 7 months , i really don't know what to do, I have already got a lawer to help , he always tells me to wait ,,, but for how long ? I phone the home office every day and the same answer "waiting further consideration " any advice ? have you got any answer yet ?

[don67]

My wife is also ELR to be finished in early 2006. According to the messages above, I think we need to do some sort of preparations for HO officers to make decision easily. Can someone tell me what they should be? working? not taking benefits? taking higher education? giving strong reason of still having problem at back home?

She got ELR within 3 months after applying asylum. It was nearly 4 years ago.

Many thanks in advance

[enquirer]

I got my ILR this morning. I have been waiting for it from 1st July 2004.
What an experience that was...
I sent letters to the Home Office, complained to the Complaints Unit about the delay, wrote to my local MP and he contacted the HO 2 times on my behalf.
If I had not done all this, perhaps, I would have waited as long. I had valid compassionate circumstances, unfortunately, my father passed away 2 months ago and I could do NOTHING to help my mother.

John,
(All who has knowledge of this, pls contribute)

I wonder if you could provide your view whether it is reasonable for me to apply for Naturalisation outside the normal rules on 7.4(ii) or 7.4(g)?

7.4 Discretion to disregard immigration time restrictions in the final 12 months may normally be exercised if:

a. at the date of application, the applicant has had less than 12 months free of conditions but has been free of conditions for more than 12 months by the time the application is considered, provided the other requirements are met; or

b. a time limit was imposed inappropriately on return to the UK after a visit abroad, and the applicant subsequently demonstrates eligibility for returning resident status or entitlement to an exemption under s.8(2), 8(3) or 8(4) of the Immigration Act 1971, as amended by s.4 of the Immigration Act 1988 (see paragraph 9.1 below); or

c. the period of limited leave was less than 10 days at the beginning of the 12 month period before the date of application; or

d. the period of limited leave was between 10 and 90 days at the beginning of the 12 month period, if other statutory requirements, including the other residence requirements, are met and the applicant has demonstrated established links through the presence here of home, family and a substantial part of estate; or

e. the period of limited leave was more than 90 days at the beginning of the 12 month period, and the other statutory requirements, including the other residence requirements, are met, only if :

i. the applicant has established links with the UK through presence here of home, family and a substantial part of estate, and

ii. there are compelling business or compassionate reasons to justify granting the application now; or

f. the period of limited leave exceeded 10 days at the beginning of the 12 months period, and the other statutory requirements, including the other residence requirements, are not met, only in the most exceptional circumstances and if the criteria at e. above are met; or

g. consideration of an application for indefinite leave to remain, made more than 15 months before the citizenship application, had been protracted through no fault of the applicant, providing ILR was eventually granted; or

h. if the applicant is a nationals of an EEA country or is a Swiss national, we are satisfied that he or she was genuinely unaware of the need to satisfy this requirement.

Many Thanks,
E

[John]

Hey Enquirer ... great news! Congratulations!

As regards applying for naturalisation, looking at 7.4(g) :-

consideration of an application for indefinite leave to remain, made more than 15 months before the citizenship application, had been protracted through no fault of the applicant, providing ILR was eventually granted

-: it appears that at this point in time you do not qualify. You mention that the application for ILR was made on 1st July 2004 and that is less than 15 months ago. However you have not got to be a mathematical expert to work out that from say 2nd October 2005 all the parts of 7.4(g) appear to be met ... that is .... the application for ILR was made "more than 15 months before the citizenship application" and also consideration of the application "had been protracted through no fault of the applicant" and also "ILR was eventually granted".

So I would say ensure that the application for naturalisation does not arrive at the IND office in Liverpool before Monday 3rd October and hopefully they will exercise their discretion to let it proceed even though you have not had your ILR for 12 months. A covering letter specifically drawing their attention to 7.4(g) will not do any harm.

Presumably providing evidence about language ability is no problem for you. Based upon what you write, if you don't already have the needed proof then a Notary should be happy to sign a certificate for you.

Getting your application for naturalisation in before the end of October will cut out the need for you to take the new Citizenship test.

[enquirer]

John,

Many thanks for an awfully speedy reply!


You cleared for me the issue of 15 months condition, I was not quite sure how it was applied. This is better then I thought.

Your comments are of a great help to me.

Are you an immigration lawyer by any chance?

Kind Regards,
Eugene

[John]

Enquirer ... hope it all works out.

Me an immigration lawyer? No, a Tax Consultant, and one who knew absolutely nothing about immigration matters until meeting my Thai wife (as she is now) and going through the process of getting spouse visa, ILR, and naturalisation for her.

[enquirer]

Understood. Knowledge by expereince, hah?
Thanks once more, John.
Have a nice weekend.
Best Regards
E

[John]

Enquirer, I think a bit more than that ... in this sense. I have never been frightened of forms. After all I have been filling in tax forms all my life. So when faced with helping to complete forms to get a visa for my wife, and indeed also her daughter, now of course my step-daughter, I was not daunted by that prospect and found the guidance notes very helpful. Indeed any queries that I did have were rapidly cleared up on emailing the Visa Section at the British Embassy in Bangkok.

Same sort of experience with getting ILR at the Birmingham PEO a year later, and also getting my wife and step-daughter British Citizenship in the spring of last year.

Also I think very strongly that subjects like tax, and also immigration, are too big for anyone to have all the small print in your head. So it is a question of knowing where to look for that detail. You will find that many of my posts include a link to the relevant form or guidance, given that I often think that it is far better to give the official Government line on something rather than a third-hand version of it.

[enquirer]

Hi, John.

My troubles are not over, unfortunately.

After 3 weeks of waiting for the documents (I received addressed to me only a confirmation of receipt of ILR and promise the docs will be returned asap). So I went to the Home Office this morning to collect them myself.

After waiting for 4 hours I was told that the docs could not be found at this time, but the HO would track them down and contact me. So, as a self-employed I lost a day of earnings and achieved nothing.
Additionally, they told me that I have received ILR, but my wife has not.

I found that very strange as she was a dependant on my application. The HO officer could only see written by the case worker that my wife did not complete 4 years of ELR. She could not clarify what that meant.
My wife never had any ELR, she was on a student Visa when we got married and 8 months later I included her into my application for ILR whilst her visa was still valid.

At no time the HO communicated to us if there was a problem.

I had a short conversation with one solicitor who said that we should have notified the HO of our marriage after it took place. But I do not know of any requirements of this sort. The register office were aware of us being foreigners and did not make any indication of this requirement.

To me it looks like it is a pure admin hurdle, but the HO may have a different view. We have waitied foir 15 months now, how long more to wait, we don't know, especcially as the HO never communicates with us and we cannot get through to anyone, our letters just drown somewhere.

Appreciating your reply.
Regards
E

[John]

On 24th September Enquirer posted :-

I got my ILR this morning.

Are you now saying that you did not get your passport back at that time? If not, in what form did they tell you that you had got your ILR? Normally you would get your passport back and in it would be a nice new shiny sticker!

You say you went to the Home Office to get your documents. Had you been it touch with them about the documents? That is, what made you go along yesterday? Did they know you were coming? Where did you go? And did you know for certain that your papers were there? IND has a number of offices around the country and it is not always possible to know where a particular application is actually handled.

Your wife? Can you detail her UK immigration history? When did she first come to the UK? Was that on a student visa? What was the stated expiry date on her student visa?

[enquirer]

Hi, John.

After I escalated the delay to the MP, who wrote then to the HO, I received a letter stating that my case is under active consideration. Three weeks later I received a letter informing that I was granted ILR and that the documents would be forwarded to me as a matter of urgency. Three weeks later (that was yesterday), I went to the HO (Lunar House, Croydon).

The reason I could not wait anymore as there is a necessity for me to go to my home land as due to the loss of my father recently there are many things I need to do. A more pressing thing is that my mother needs support. On the wife' side things in the family are not good neither...
One of us must go urgently, and this is not me really as I am earning money in our family and at the moment I also have an injury which makes it difficult to travel.

I went to the HO without an appointment, I had to fill out a form for return of docs, then was told to come back in 2 hrs to collect them.

After 4 hrs , they told me that the docs are somewhere in Lunar House, but they are being transferred from one department to another and at this point it is not possible to locate them, but smbd will be in touch with me on the phone later on.

Now I realised, that this is somewhat a vague promise. Who will I go back to now? I asked for any contact numbers, but there is only one general number where you just cannot get any help.
The other alternative is to write -but God, how many times I wrote to the HO and did not get any reply.

My wife arrived in to the UK in 1996 and since then was constinuosly on student visas wthout any violation of immigration laws until I included her as a dependant into my application.

Thanks again, John.

E

[John]

My wife arrived in to the UK in 1996 and since then was constinuosly on student visas wthout any violation of immigration laws until I included her as a dependant into my application.

Not sure that you including her as a dependent constitutes a violation of immigration laws?

What is the stated expiry date on her latest visa? Was the application for ILR for her submitted before that stated expiry date? Has any written notification been received stating that the ILR application for her has been declined?

I don't think you should have just turned up without warning at Lunar House, unless you knew for certain that your papers were there. Totally possible that your application might have been dealt with in a totally different office. Indeed, maybe it was and that might explain why they could not instantly give you your passport etc..

[enquirer]

Hi, John.

What I meant was that she was continuosly on student visas even at the time when I included her in my application. It was 3 months till expiry of her latest visa at that time.

Only when I arrived to the Home Office I learnt that it is possible to make an appointment before hand. They don't tell you this on the phone.
A lot of people were queing to be seen without any appointment for different reasons including collection of docs and withdrawing of applications. The docs I was told are in Lunar House, but in a transfer from one department to another. The HO officeer was apologetic they could not find them easily.

Regards
Eugene

[John]

What I meant was that she was continuously on student visas even at the time when I included her in my application. It was 3 months till expiry of her latest visa at that time.

In which case she has not breached any immigration law! That is, she is not an overstayer!

Why? Legislation commonly known as Section 3C is in play. That is a person has a valid UK visa and applies in the UK for another before the stated expiry date. But IND have not decided the application by that stated expiry date. In which case the old visa is "treated as continuing" until the application for a new visa is decided, and indeed, if the application is refused, until such time as the deadline for appealing against that rejection has been reached.

So in the absence of any written notification that the application for your wife's ILR visa has been rejected, she still has a valid visa .... the student visa with the expiry date stated to be three months after the application was submitted. She is not an overstayer.

Your papers at Lunar House ... OK .... but that might not have been the case .... they could have been transferred to another part of the country. I believe, for example, if a PEO office in Birmingham, Liverpool or Glasgow has any spare capacity then cases are shipped in for them to deal with, rather than them just waiting for people to come in through the door.

A couple of years ago the Birmingham PEO office was shut for a time for refurbishment, that is, members of the public could not attend. But the staff were still there .... dealing with cases submitted by post!

[enquirer]

Thanks, John.

I will have to see how the things will develop in the next week or two. I have been promised a telephone call from the Home Office after all.

Regards,
Eugene

[enquirer]

I went to see a solicitor today and she told me that my wife will probably get a refusal of ILR and will have to go back to the country of origin and apply from there for a 2 year probationary visa of a wife of a person with settled in the UK (ILR based as a criteria or british citizen). The probability of getting it is quite good.

Does anyone know how long it takes to get such a visa?

However, she also said that the HO may at their discretion decide to still grant my wife ILR, this is not common, but happens.
Any idea how to influence this decision in our favour?

Many thanks for your answers.
E

[John]

Does anyone know how long it takes to get such a visa?

That varies considerably from country to country. So which country would she be applying in?

Any idea how to influence this decision in our favour?

Not personally, did the solicitor say?