Loss original passport

oscar · Post by **oscar** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 10:17 pm

Hello everybody,

I was wondering if somebody would be kind enough to give me some advice.
As the tittle says, I loss my orginal passport that contained my PR stamp basically my girlfriend was doing a clearout and thought that the passport was expired so not needed,hence she chucked it away, few months has passed when I realised of what she did.
The original passport was expired few years ago and I never bothered to get the stamp transfered to the current one that I've got which is blank.
I got my PR in 1997 which at the time I was married to an Irish Citizen now we are divorced. The advisor who help me with the application, I've been told has moved abroad.Also I had never received any letter with the original passport. While doing some research, I came across this marvellous site from which I got the idea of applying for an SAB thinking that would tell me my history plus I would be able to get my HO reference number. Well I got my SAB file today with landing card, HO reference number , copy of the original passport but without the stamp and etc.. The letter accompanied the SAB says that the file HO ref xxxxx is declared as loss and it seems that the last location known was 1996 then the file went missing there is nothing after that year.
So now I don't know what to do. I rang the HO and somebody told me its upon me to prove that I've got PR.
I came to uk in 1994 so as I'm divorced and got no paper to prove that I've got PR, I'm thinking applying for the long residence conssession of 14 years but reading the forum it seems that HO is doing whatsoever to refuse ILR. I've enquired with my bank and they told me that they can provide copies of my past bank statements for a fee. I thought that the bank will have a copy of my passport with the PR stamped but realised that I opened the account well before I had my PR well few years prior. I also got my uk driving licence again few years prior of the HO granting me Uk PR.
Please somebody give me some advice /ideas of what to do. Is it a good idea to reapply on the basis of the 14 years long residence criteria?

paulp · Post by **paulp** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 10:32 pm

So sorry to hear about the loss of your passport, or rather spring-cleaning. It's a problem that the SAR did not come up with anything usable.

Have you been working recently? Have any of your past/current employers kept a photocopy of your PR? Quite a few companies have been doing that to pre-empt any problems with the new fines+imprisonment.

oscar · Post by **oscar** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 10:38 pm

Hello Paulp,
Thank you for the super fast replied. I'm self employed, so never had to show passport.

oscar · Post by **oscar** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 1:11 pm

Anybody else with any ideas or suggestions.

VictoriaS · Post by **VictoriaS** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 12:12 am

Write to the Home Office, by recorded delivery.

Hunt down the solicitor - check with the Law Society as to who took over his files when he moved.

Victoria

paulp · Post by **paulp** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 12:52 am

How long do law firms keep files? It's a bit more than 10 years since the OP got his ILR.

oscar · Post by **oscar** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 1:42 pm

Thank you for the suggestions.
The advisor was not registered with the law society, I was recommended to him by somebody who told me that he is very knowledgeable regarding immigration affairs so he was basically working from home.

Victoria or anybody who might know. On the form Ntl toc it says if your passport is loss you need a police report basically provide the HO with a crime number, for me its not applicable because I know the passport wasn't loss but thrown away and also even if I go and report to the police to get a crime reference number how would the HO find out about my PR status as they have loss my file.

paulp · Post by **paulp** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 2:11 pm

The police report is to prove that your passport has been lost or stolen. It can't be used to prove that you had ILR.

Just go into the police station and tell them that your girlfriend binned it and you want to report your old passport as lost so you can give the report to the HO. It's a simple formality only takes 2-3 minutes for the policeman to fill the form.

oscar · Post by **oscar** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:06 pm

Paulp thank you again for your time.
Lets say I report the loss of the passport and get a crime number, When I send the application form NTLTOC together with the crime number, how would the HO deal with my case as they have loss my file.

Surely I can't be the only one who has ever been in that situation.

Dawie · Post by **Dawie** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:10 pm

I find it hard to believe that the Home Office does not have a record of your ILR in their computer system, regardless of your SAB showing up a lost file.

paulp · Post by **paulp** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:17 pm

oscar wrote:Paulp thank you again for your time.
Lets say I report the loss of the passport and get a crime number, When I send the application form NTLTOC together with the crime number, how would the HO deal with my case as they have loss my file.

Surely I can't be the only one who has ever been in that situation.

You get a copy of the lost/stolen property report that you can send to the HO.

The onus is on you to prove the ILR if they don't have anything on their systems. If you can't, they may well ask you to apply for ILR all over again.

I wonder if you can ask your MP to put some pressure on the HO to find your lost file or other traces of your ILR. It does no harm to keep pestering them as well.

oscar · Post by **oscar** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 3:49 pm

The SAB I received shows a copy of the printout from their computer which shows my full name, DOB, Country of Origin, brief history up to 1996. I'm quite sure my PR application was made near the end of 1996 and I received my passport back with PR stamp in 1997 sometime.
Paulp good idea I'll contact my MP.

INSIDER · Post by **INSIDER** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 4:07 pm

Contact, the HO public enquiry office, explain the situation and provide your full name, date of birth and nationality. They should be able to confirm on the computer system that you were granted ILR.

paulp · Post by **paulp** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 4:30 pm

INSIDER wrote:Contact, the HO public enquiry office, explain the situation and provide your full name, date of birth and nationality. They should be able to confirm on the computer system that you were granted ILR.

Insider, if you guys/HO keep further information on the OP and his ILR but the Subject Access Bureau did not include them in the SAR, then your colleagues in the SAB have failed to observe the Data Protection Act.

oscar · Post by **oscar** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 9:39 pm

Insider,
Do you know if the guys from the SAB team use different computer from the guys of the PEO team, if its no then they will have the same information which will bring me back to square one, that is, no evidence of PR.

INSIDER · Post by **INSIDER** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 10:59 pm

Oscar

I am almost certain that the SAB would have used the current computer system when checking your records. There is an old system which I suspect your records would be held on. I am not sure if SAB have access to this system. The PEO do have access to the old system that is why I suggested you try and contact them.

oscar · Post by **oscar** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 11:24 pm

Insider,
Ok.Thank you very much for replying.

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Loss original passport

Loss original passport