Unmarried partner and 4 year direct ILR

[kawasaki1]

Hi,

According to HO docs, if you can prove a 4 year stay with unmarried partner outside the UK you can get ILR straight away.

Why does the same not apply to inside the UK (or does it?)? For example, if one is with their partner for 4+ years in the UK legally, why can they not apply for ILR? It seems to me that stay inside the UK would be easier to prove and less prone to forgery.

Also, is it possible to switch from WP to Unmarried Partner visa in-country? The reason I ask is that in my case I have 2 more years left until the 5 year ILR. After that there is one more year for Naturalisation. Going via unmarried partner route I could get both ILR and then Naturalisation immediately after 2 years.

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

[John]

Let's firstly correct :-

Going via unmarried partner route I could get both ILR and then Naturalisation immediately after 2 years.

No quite totally correct. If not married to (or in Civil Partnership with) a British Citizen you would need to hold ILR for at least one year before applying for Naturalisation as British.

Why does the same not apply to inside the UK (or does it?)?

Ah well, there is a question! I think your problem is that you are attempting to look for logic in the Immigration Rules, and regretfully that is often lacking.

What is certain is that the ILE after 4 years together outside the UK, which was only introduced as recently as 01.04.03, is actually disappearing from the Immigration Rules in April 2007, as part of the introduction of the need to pass the Citizenship Test before getting ILR, again from April 2007.

Not pertinent to you, kawasaki1, but anyone outside the UK and married to, or living with, their British spouse/partner for at least 4 years .... and who might plan to move to the UK at some time in the future .... might be well-advised to make their visa application soon, before the ILE possibility expires. The ILE visa when issued will tend to have a "last activation date" of the date of expiry of the person's passport, which could be years away.

kawasaki1, is Marriage or Civil Partnership out of the question? (Sorry it is totally unclear from your post whether the two of you are an opposite-sex or same-sex couple.) Assuming your partner is a British Citizen, that would speed up the possibility of Naturalisation.

[kawasaki1]

Thanks John.

Different sex partner. Yes, marriage is a possibility (civil partnernship only applies to same sex, right?), but I was wandering if there is another route rather than rushing into marriage to simply speed up naturlisation. (After all, it is supposed to be for life!)

On the April '07 changes, is there a link that outlines all the proposed immigration changes coming our way? Am considering the switch to HSMP so might do it sooner rather than later.

Thanks

[John]

I was wandering if there is another route rather than rushing into marriage to simply speed up naturlisation.

The answer is no, only marriage (for an opposite-sex couple) to a British Citizen can cut the 5-year qualifying period for Naturalisation to a 3-year period. and cut out the need for ILR to have been held for at least one year before applying.

The April '07 changes? The fact that as from April 2007 it will be necessary for the applicant for ILR to have passed the Citizenship Test (or if their English is not good, completed a combined ESOL/Citizenship course) before applying for ILR. Once that change comes it it would be totally illogical for ILE still to be issued outside the UK for those already in a relationship that has lasted at least 4 years. So ILE stops being issued, forcing a time-limited visa to be issued, and thus the need to get ILR in the UK.