Gaps between passports for Naturalisation

[muskan ali]

hi guys,

can anyone guide me please i am going to apply for Naturalisation in March 2015.i got my ILR based on 10 year long residency last year 2014.
my question is that my passport has expired in june 2013 will there be any problem while applying for Naturalisation.
can i proof this Gaps between my passports with credit cards statement or my car insurance

Thanks

[milan69]

HO might want to have proof that you were in the UK for the required period.
Letter from your employer, P60's, bank statements, medical letters can help prove that you were present.

[muskan ali]

HO might want to have proof that you were in the UK for the required period.
Letter from your employer, P60's, bank statements, medical letters can help prove that you were present.

thanks milan69 for your response...My passport was expired when i applied for ILR....so i got my ILR based on 10 years continuous legal residency....

DO i still have to proof residential requirement?

[milan69]

You don't have to prove your residential status when applying.
Your passport serves as proof that you were in UK for the qualified period.
If HO has any doubts they will ask you for further proof.

[muskan ali]

You don't have to prove your residential status when applying.
Your passport serves as proof that you were in UK for the qualified period.
If HO has any doubts they will ask you for further proof.

if i apply through NCS they will ask the gap between my passports?do i have to show my acknowledgment letter from UKBA when i applied for ILR

[milan69]

I don't think that they will need it.
Once again, if Home Office has doubts they will ask you for further proof of you residence for the qualifying period and that is what matters more than NCS who is acting only as an agent for HO.
In that case you would need to prove that you were present in UK for the period in question.
If so you can do that by providing:
Letter from your employer, P60's, bank statements, medical letters and similar..

[Kashiokinamasaka]

I had the same issue when i was applying. I had a year's gap between my two travel documents. Before the first travel document expired (December 2012) my family applied for ILR, the new travel documents that we were given had an issue date of December 2013.

First time i went to NCS they refused to process the application because i had no proof of being present in the UK for that 1 year that was evident from the old and the new travel document. I flashed my full time degree as proof of being present in UK from December 2012 to July 2013 but was told its not enough.

For the next NCS appointment i was told to bring a letter from the University that stated that i was a full time student from December 2012 to July 2013, letters from employers from September 2013 to December 2013 and any P45/P60 or payslips.

So yes i would not be surprised if they turn you down at NCS and request further proof of being present in UK for whatever year you have missing in your passports.

i hope this helps.

[akhurshid]

You need to prove that you were present in UK for last 5/3 years. Passport is one way to prove it. Any gap between passports has to be backed by other proof like pay slips. NCS will definitly ask you for the. And they might refuse to send your application without it.
Had this issUe when I applied for wife. She has 5 months gap and no Payslips. NCS refused to accpet invoices and letter in her name as they weren't from govt institution. Luckily her new passport had her old passport number so we explained that on page 15 and advised if that is not enough, HO is more than welcomed to class the period as absence as she had no other absence. We received her approval in 5 weeks.

[fwd079]

You need to prove that you were present in UK for last 5/3 years. Passport is one way to prove it. Any gap between passports has to be backed by other proof like pay slips. NCS will definitly ask you for the. And they might refuse to send your application without it.
Had this issUe when I applied for wife. She has 5 months gap and no Payslips. NCS refused to accpet invoices and letter in her name as they weren't from govt institution. Luckily her new passport had her old passport number so we explained that on page 15 and advised if that is not enough, HO is more than welcomed to class the period as absence as she had no other absence. We received her approval in 5 weeks.

Hi akhurshid.

Thanks, that got me thinking. What if the gap is not in passport dates but in visa stamps?

Suppose a person had two years dependant visa, then they left UK and visa expired, now they have applied as ILR's dependant, the gap between visas is six months.

So will their first two years be counted towards residence in UK or has their clock been reset due to this expiration of visa?

[akhurshid]

A very good question which I cant find straight answer to.

Here is something from CW's guide to grant ILR.

The continuous period in the UK must be lawful. This means the applicant must have spent
the qualifying period here continuously with leave to enter or remain and must not have
breached their leave conditions.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... eriods.pdf

Reading that kinda suggests that there are no visa breaks allowed for residence requirement.

[muskan ali]

You need to prove that you were present in UK for last 5/3 years. Passport is one way to prove it. Any gap between passports has to be backed by other proof like pay slips. NCS will definitly ask you for the. And they might refuse to send your application without it.
Had this issUe when I applied for wife. She has 5 months gap and no Payslips. NCS refused to accpet invoices and letter in her name as they weren't from govt institution. Luckily her new passport had her old passport number so we explained that on page 15 and advised if that is not enough, HO is more than welcomed to class the period as absence as she had no other absence. We received her approval in 5 weeks.

Thanks for ur response...i have 18 months gap between my passports i can proof 12 months with child benfit,Ho letter when i applied for ILR, pay slips....but i am confused with remaining 6 months at that time i was not working can i proof with Car ownership, car insurance, credit card statements

[akhurshid]

You need to prove that you were present in UK for last 5/3 years. Passport is one way to prove it. Any gap between passports has to be backed by other proof like pay slips. NCS will definitly ask you for the. And they might refuse to send your application without it.
Had this issUe when I applied for wife. She has 5 months gap and no Payslips. NCS refused to accpet invoices and letter in her name as they weren't from govt institution. Luckily her new passport had her old passport number so we explained that on page 15 and advised if that is not enough, HO is more than welcomed to class the period as absence as she had no other absence. We received her approval in 5 weeks.

Thanks for ur response...i have 18 months gap between my passports i can proof 12 months with child benfit,Ho letter when i applied for ILR, pay slips....but i am confused with remaining 6 months at that time i was not working can i proof with Car ownership, car insurance, credit card statements

I suppose you could. NHS appointment letter or any letter from your GP confirming if you have attended any appointments would be best.

[muskan ali]

You need to prove that you were present in UK for last 5/3 years. Passport is one way to prove it. Any gap between passports has to be backed by other proof like pay slips. NCS will definitly ask you for the. And they might refuse to send your application without it.
Had this issUe when I applied for wife. She has 5 months gap and no Payslips. NCS refused to accpet invoices and letter in her name as they weren't from govt institution. Luckily her new passport had her old passport number so we explained that on page 15 and advised if that is not enough, HO is more than welcomed to class the period as absence as she had no other absence. We received her approval in 5 weeks.

Thanks for ur response...i have 18 months gap between my passports i can proof 12 months with child benfit,Ho letter when i applied for ILR, pay slips....but i am confused with remaining 6 months at that time i was not working can i proof with Car ownership, car insurance, credit card statements

I suppose you could. NHS appointment letter or any letter from your GP confirming if you have attended any appointments would be best.

i took my ILR based on 10 years continues lawful long residency March 2014...i bave read in immigration board someone told that there must not be any problem.As u took ur ilr based on 10 years long resdiency

[fwd079]

A very good question which I cant find straight answer to.
Here is something from CW's guide to grant ILR.

The continuous period in the UK must be lawful. This means the applicant must have spent the qualifying period here continuously with leave to enter or remain and must not have breached their leave conditions.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... eriods.pdf

Reading that kinda suggests that there are no visa breaks allowed for residence requirement.

Many thanks akhurshid, page 27 of that document gave me the answer I believe:

This page tells you about lawful leave which continues whilst absent from the UK.

The continuous period is maintained if the:

 applicant leaves the UK without valid leave, but re-enters with new entry clearance within 28 days of their leave expiry date, or

 applicant leaves the UK with valid leave and re-enters the UK whilst that leave remains valid, provided the absence(s) do not exceed 180 days in a relevant 12 month period.

If the applicant’s leave expires whilst they are outside the UK and they apply for entry clearance within 28 days, the applicant’s continuous period is not broken. In this circumstance, if they successfully get a new grant of entry clearance, the period spent outside of the UK will count towards the 180 days allowable absence. This includes any time:

 after the expiry of their leave

 while the entry clearance application is under consideration, and

 where they are delayed entering the UK once entry clearance has been granted.

If the applicant’s leave expires whilst they are outside the UK and they apply for new entry clearance more than 28 days after their previous leave expires, the continuous period is broken and leave is not aggregated.

Last para gives clear cut answer as far as I understand, meaning if you have visa but it expires while you were outside UK and you don't apply within 28 days, your clock for ILR is reset.

Thanks again for that link, quite useful.

[akhurshid]

A very good question which I cant find straight answer to.
Here is something from CW's guide to grant ILR.

The continuous period in the UK must be lawful. This means the applicant must have spent the qualifying period here continuously with leave to enter or remain and must not have breached their leave conditions.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... eriods.pdf

Reading that kinda suggests that there are no visa breaks allowed for residence requirement.

Many thanks akhurshid, page 27 of that document gave me the answer I believe:

This page tells you about lawful leave which continues whilst absent from the UK.

The continuous period is maintained if the:

 applicant leaves the UK without valid leave, but re-enters with new entry clearance within 28 days of their leave expiry date, or

 applicant leaves the UK with valid leave and re-enters the UK whilst that leave remains valid, provided the absence(s) do not exceed 180 days in a relevant 12 month period.

If the applicant’s leave expires whilst they are outside the UK and they apply for entry clearance within 28 days, the applicant’s continuous period is not broken. In this circumstance, if they successfully get a new grant of entry clearance, the period spent outside of the UK will count towards the 180 days allowable absence. This includes any time:

 after the expiry of their leave

 while the entry clearance application is under consideration, and

 where they are delayed entering the UK once entry clearance has been granted.

If the applicant’s leave expires whilst they are outside the UK and they apply for new entry clearance more than 28 days after their previous leave expires, the continuous period is broken and leave is not aggregated.

Last para gives clear cut answer as far as I understand, meaning if you have visa but it expires while you were outside UK and you don't apply within 28 days, your clock for ILR is reset.

Thanks again for that link, quite useful.

Well, there we go No worries

[muskan ali]

can someone give me advice plz my husband due to apply for citizenship but there is some confusion regarding 10 years employment history.

My husband work in the past for couple of weeks but can not remember exact date.Does he have to mention as it was for couple weeks and can't remember the date.

[saanju9]

If it is within the last 6 six years... then the HMRC might have the records...
If not give them dates as closely as possible... and mention that the dates are given as far as you have remember them (in the extra information section)

[noajthan]

can someone give me advice plz my husband due to apply for citizenship but there is some confusion regarding 10 years employment history.

My husband work in the past for couple of weeks but can not remember exact date.Does he have to mention as it was for couple weeks and can't remember the date.

Contact HMRC for employment history.

Re: http://robertleach.co.uk/2013/08/reques ... from-hmrc/

[muskan ali]

Hi everyone, I applied for Naturalisation August 2015 I had a gap of 1 year between my passports.Today I received a letter asking for further documents to proof my presence in Uk during the gap.They are asking for wage slips,p60,statement of funds and any other source of income held.I am not able to provide wages slips and p60 as I was not working.so for the statement of funds do I have to provide my credit card statements and I have joint statement with my partner can I also provide that Bank statement

Thanks for ur guidance in advance

[geriatrix]

The answer to your question is already available in many of the posts in this topic.

[muskan ali]

The answer to your question is already available in many of the posts in this topic.

Hi sushdmehta want to ask that HO asking for statement of funds which one is better to send credit card statement or joint account statement.Mostly i am using credit card statement

Thanks

[Casa]

Hi everyone, I applied for Naturalisation August 2015 I had a gap of 1 year between my passports.Today I received a letter asking for further documents to proof my presence in Uk during the gap.They are asking for wage slips,p60,statement of funds and any other source of income held.I am not able to provide wages slips and p60 as I was not working.so for the statement of funds do I have to provide my credit card statements and I have joint statement with my partner can I also provide that Bank statement

Thanks for ur guidance in advance

In addition to Sushdmehta's response, the evidence you have suggested doesn't prove that you have been physically present in the UK during the period in question.

[Casa]

The answer to your question is already available in many of the posts in this topic.

Hi sushdmehta want to ask that HO asking for statement of funds which one is better to send credit card statement or joint account statement.Mostly i am using credit card statement

Thanks

A credit card statement doesn't show your balance of available funds...it shows how much you owe.

[muskan ali]

Hi everyone, I applied for Naturalisation August 2015 I had a gap of 1 year between my passports.Today I received a letter asking for further documents to proof my presence in Uk during the gap.They are asking for wage slips,p60,statement of funds and any other source of income held.I am not able to provide wages slips and p60 as I was not working.so for the statement of funds do I have to provide my credit card statements and I have joint statement with my partner can I also provide that Bank statement

Thanks for ur guidance in advance

In addition to Sushdmehta's response, the evidence you have suggested doesn't prove that you have been physically present in the UK during the period in question.

Hi casa but home office asking for statement of funds the letter they have sent.if I sent my credit card statements it is showing my presence as I was using most of the time.
I need ur advice which one I have to sent credit card statement or joint account
Kindly advice me plz

[Casa]

Playing 'devil's advocate' here, the case worker could take the view that you allowed someone else (family member for example) to use your credit card in your absence to prove you were still resident in the UK. Perhaps I'm being over pessimistic.