ILR - Absences from the UK

[Rashid]

Hi,

A freind of mine is worried about his ILR and I haven't been able to find any confirmed information for him on UKBA's website. He has spoken to so many solicitors and nobody is sure about his case. I have asked him not to pay any fees to any solicitor and offered him that I can try on this forum to get some advice for him. Please see details below and be so kind to ket us have your advice/feedback on this,

My friend got HSMP in 2007 and he came to the UK a month after his Visa was stamped. He worked here for 4 months, had an accident (didn't go to GP) and he decided to go back to India as he was stressed and he had nobody to take care off him in UK; he has evidence of accident in form of correspondence with Insurance company. He stayed there (in India) for 4 months and came back to the UK, started a job and stayed here in the UK continously for 2.5 Years (except a few paid holidays totalling to 45 days). His father (back home in India) got ill by end 2010 and he resigned from the job and went to take care of his father who then had a heart attack. Being a resposnsible male person in the household, he had to stay with father for about 70 days and the returned to UK after his father got a bit better. Did a job here for about 2 months and had to go back home to India as his father got seriously ill (he has got medical records etc). His father then passed away and he had to stay with his family/sisters to take care of the family and therefore, he spent about 2.5 mlonths in India, he then came here in UK for 10 days to sort some tax matters, went back to India for a month and returend to UK again. Since then he has been here and financially active except that he had to visit his family for 12 days recently. Now, the time he has spent away totals to about 1 year since his Visa date. Please advise,
a) Can he apply for ILR considering that he was away on compasionate grounds?
b) If he applies for extension and then ILR, would he get right for appeal if appplication for ILR is refused?
c) The last extension (3 years visa) was stamped according to his Initial Visa date and therefore, his visa expires a month before he finishes 5 year period - Considering this factor alongwith points 'a' and 'b' stated above, should he apply for extension?
d) What if he wants to apply for ILR asap? again, is it correct if he gets extension and then applies for ILR, he won't get right of appeal?
e) What if he applies directly for ILR and ILR is refused, will he get chance to apply for extension considering that his Visa would have alreday expired by then?
Kind Regards

[Rashid]

One more point as I had sent above detail to my friend by email ans he has replied that, "in addition to below, when I went to India to take care of my dad, I was already in contact with a college to start a student recruitment business (to facilitate students from India to get admission in UK institutions) and therefore, I did some visits to their premises but the proposal didn't work out. Also, when I was doing this business activity in India, I had a business registered in the UK and I was paying quarterly NI bills etc. So, my visit can be considered on both family and/or business reasons; the business activity wouldn't have made me to stay for so long in India if my father wasn't ill though"