Does relationship ending after ILR affect stay / future?

[DaNo]

Hello everyone...I have been searching online and so many forums for an answer to my situation and no one seems to be able to give me any specific information. I am really at a loss here and I hope someone here can help and advise me further on this.

Here is my situation and it is a bit complex but please bear with me and I hope you can advise me. I came to the UK as a student in 2006 where I met my boy friend who is a UK citizen. We dated for a while and started living together while still being on a student visa back in 2007. After living together till 2009 (Still on a student visa) we applied for an Unmarried Partners visa and was granted this successfully the same year (2009) with a two year probationary period. In 2011 after completing this two year probationary period we applied for ILR and was granted this with success in 2012 .

Without going into too much detail, since then due to differences in our relationship we had to split (this year) and he has since started seeing someone else. Does this effect my current ILR status or my right to stay in the UK? I've looked all over the net and my paperwork, but I cannot find anything to say that my ILR can be taken away because of the split.

A friend of mine said that if the split happened after the ILR was granted it should not affect the ILR, however I am still worried. He also suggested that if I was ever needing to apply for a UK passport there may be issues with that as well as issues if I wanted to add any dependents in the future to my ILR (In case I just wanted to keep the ILR and not apply for a UK passport)?. Please help as I am so very confused right now with so much conflicting information out there online and no one seems to have a definitive answer to my query. I hope someone can help

[Amber]

Hello everyone...I have been searching online and so many forums for an answer to my situation and no one seems to be able to give me any specific information. I am really at a loss here and I hope someone here can help and advise me further on this.

Here is my situation and it is a bit complex but please bear with me and I hope you can advise me. I came to the UK as a student in 2006 where I met my boy friend who is a UK citizen. We dated for a while and started living together while still being on a student visa back in 2007. After living together till 2009 (Still on a student visa) we applied for an Unmarried Partners visa and was granted this successfully the same year (2009) with a two year probationary period. In 2011 after completing this two year probationary period we applied for ILR and was granted this with success in 2012 .

Without going into too much detail, since then due to differences in our relationship we had to split (this year) and he has since started seeing someone else. Does this effect my current ILR status or my right to stay in the UK? I've looked all over the net and my paperwork, but I cannot find anything to say that my ILR can be taken away because of the split.

A friend of mine said that if the split happened after the ILR was granted it should not affect the ILR, however I am still worried. He also suggested that if I was ever needing to apply for a UK passport there may be issues with that as well as issues if I wanted to add any dependents in the future to my ILR (In case I just wanted to keep the ILR and not apply for a UK passport)?. Please help as I am so very confused right now with so much conflicting information out there online and no one seems to have a definitive answer to my query. I hope someone can help

No affect and if you've been resident for 5 years in the uk and have had ilr for 12 or more months, you can apply to naturalise as British if you meet the other standard requirements.

Note that whilst you are not British you will be subject to the returning residents rules (click)

[DaNo]

Thank you so much for the response. I have been really stressed out since the split about this and was literally at a loss trying to find accurate info This takes a load off my troubled mind.

I have been living in the Uk since 2006 however does being a student for part of that residency also count when being considered for the 5 year eligibility period??.

What I mean is from 2006 - 2009 I was on a student visa as mentioned before and only in 2009 did I move to an unmarried partners visa and remained on it till 2011 after which ILR was applied and granted in 2012. I have held the ILR for over a year now. So do I qualify or do I have to wait longer to apply due to me and my partner no longer being together? Or does the fact that I was a student till 2009 mean my 5 year eligibility period only started from 2009?

Sorry about all the questions I am jut trying to make sure I understand the process before making the application to Naturalize.

[Casa]

All of your time spent legally in the UK counts towards the BC qualifying period. Assuming you meet all of the standard requirements you can apply now.

[DaNo]

All of your time spent legally in the UK counts towards the BC qualifying period. Assuming you meet all of the standard requirements you can apply now.

Thank you. In this case I will have a look at the standard requirements and lodge my application for Naturalization soon. Hope its okay to come back and ask about any queries I may have?

[Amber]

Indeed, hence:

All of your time spent legally in the UK counts towards the BC qualifying period. Assuming you meet all of the standard requirements you can apply now.

Thank you. In this case I will have a look at the standard requirements and lodge my application for Naturalization soon. Hope its okay to come back and ask about any queries I may have?

Sure, but post further questions in the British Citizenship Forum (click). Click here for the other requirements.

[DaNo]

I will do, thank you again. One last question. I am in the process of getting the documents sorted for this and came across this
https://www.gov.uk/becoming-a-british-c ... -can-apply

Under checking eligibility it says
You must also have:
>lived in the UK for at least 5 years before the date of your application (unless your spouse or civil partner is a British citizen).
>had indefinite leave to stay in the UK for the last 12 months (unless your spouse or civil partner is a British citizen)

What do they mean by unless you are a spouse or a civil partner? Are the rules different in that case? Does it mean if I am in I acquired my ILR as a spouse or a civil partner I will have to wait for more than 5 years? Now as mentioned before I have lived in the UK for more than five years and I am not a counted as a spouse or a civil partner since I was an unmarried partner. Does this mean the same as a spouse or civil partner and if it does do I need to wait longer?

[Amber]

Hello everyone...I have been searching online and so many forums for an answer to my situation and no one seems to be able to give me any specific information. I am really at a loss here and I hope someone here can help and advise me further on this.

Here is my situation and it is a bit complex but please bear with me and I hope you can advise me. I came to the UK as a student in 2006 where I met my boy friend who is a UK citizen. We dated for a while and started living together while still being on a student visa back in 2007. After living together till 2009 (Still on a student visa) we applied for an Unmarried Partners visa and was granted this successfully the same year (2009) with a two year probationary period. In 2011 after completing this two year probationary period we applied for ILR and was granted this with success in 2012 .

Without going into too much detail, since then due to differences in our relationship we had to split (this year) and he has since started seeing someone else. Does this effect my current ILR status or my right to stay in the UK? I've looked all over the net and my paperwork, but I cannot find anything to say that my ILR can be taken away because of the split.

A friend of mine said that if the split happened after the ILR was granted it should not affect the ILR, however I am still worried. He also suggested that if I was ever needing to apply for a UK passport there may be issues with that as well as issues if I wanted to add any dependents in the future to my ILR (In case I just wanted to keep the ILR and not apply for a UK passport)?. Please help as I am so very confused right now with so much conflicting information out there online and no one seems to have a definitive answer to my query. I hope someone can help

No affect and if you've been resident for 5 years in the uk and have had ilr for 12 or more months, you can apply to naturalise as British if you meet the other standard requirements.

Note that whilst you are not British you will be subject to the returning residents rules (click)

[DaNo]

Thank you again, I was just getting confused with the information out there since they kept mentioning 'unless you are a spouse or civil partner' and never mentioned unmarried partners or what the 'unless' meant. Ok I will proceed as normal.

[DaNo]

One last query everyone..given my current situation if I did not want to apply for a citizenship and only retain ILR for the time being is it possible to have dependents on my ILR?. I am weighing out the options between getting a citizenship and then getting an OCI card or just retaining my ILR. (Although it says date of expiry which I presume is when I need to get the card renewed)

[Amber]

Yes, those who are settled or British can sponsor deps.

You should be aware of the returning residents rules for ilr. Given the uncertainty of the home office, it is perhaps wiser to naturalise earlier rather than later.

[dvinas]

Just a couple of clarifications for you, and any observers.

1) Once you have ILR, all further applications (i.e. Naturalisation) are considered solely on the basis of having obtained ILR (by whatever means), *except* in the case that you are applying for Naturalisation as the spouse or civil partner of a British Citizen (i.e. you are still in the relationship).

Any such applicants for Naturalisation, will only have had to be resident for 3 years in total, with a maximum of 270 days absence (as opposed to 450 days). See: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/briti ... ofcitizen/

All other applicants for Naturalisation must meet the standard requirements, which includes 5 years residence, with a maximum of 450 days absence. (See: http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/briti ... uirements/) This includes applicants who were granted ILR while still married/partnered, but the relationship has since broken down (i.e. you, DaNo).

Please note that this differs from applications for settlement (ILR), in that those applications have a shorter residence requirement for partners of citizens or settled persons. In other words, if your spouse has ILR but not citizenship, you can attain ILR after 2 years (provided you originally applied for entry prior to 9-July 2012 and meet the other requirements), but be naturalised only after 5 years. Partners of citizens can be naturalised after 3 years.

2) By all accounts, it is better to apply for naturalisation as soon as possible, unless this would cause you some hardship (e.g. with your country of primary citizenship). Bear in mind that each time you leave and re-enter the UK, you must declare to the immigration officer that you are a returning resident. If you fail to do so, or they make a mistake in stamping your passport with the wrong stamp (like a visitor stamp), it is tacit admission that you are no longer intending to remain permanently, and you could lose your ILR. Granted, this is likely quite unusual, but it was pointed out by my immigration lawyer, and it seems like a risk I don't want to have to endure for the rest of my life. Gaining a British passport alleviates this worry, as well as any risk of future changes to the immigration rules.

3) ILR status is generally permanent, unless you forfeit it by leaving for more than 2 years (or fall afoul of the above). I believe the expiration date is more for the Biometric Residence Permit itself, which must be renewed regularly to update your photo, etc.

I hope this helps, and makes things more clear.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a professional, and none of this is to be taken as legal advice. All facts stated are as of the Immigration Rules as of the date of this post.

[Amber]

Just to let you know dvinas that 1 is not accurate. Partners of those settled or British (and some asylum cases) are since July 2012 (new applicants) on a 5 year route to settlement for ILR.

[dvinas]

Thanks for the heads-up. I've edited the post accordingly. I had originally included that tidbit, but it was lost among edits. Also please bear in mind that the pertinent paragraph was only meant to illustrate the differences between ILR and Naturalisation, which I've found to be confusing in the past. UKBA definitely have some conflicting/confusing rules, and they have caught people out in the past. It is best to consider these two topics separately, to avoid confusion.

[Amber]

Indeed, hence:

All of your time spent legally in the UK counts towards the BC qualifying period. Assuming you meet all of the standard requirements you can apply now.

Thank you. In this case I will have a look at the standard requirements and lodge my application for Naturalization soon. Hope its okay to come back and ask about any queries I may have?

Sure, but post further questions in the British Citizenship Forum (click). Click here for the other requirements.