If you have accumulated at least 20 years of residence in the UK which includes periods of unlawful stay, you may be eligible to apply for Leave to Remain in the UK based on your Private Life.
You may add qualifying family members to your visa application. For example, if you are applying as a partner with children, you can all apply on the same application.
If your application is successful, you would be granted Discretionary Leave to Remain for 2.5 years, on a 10-year route towards Settlement.
You may be eligible for Indefinite Leave to Remain by the 10th year of being on this Visa.
This is a very high standard of proof, you will need to show that leaving the UK would lead to very serious hardship for you. The Home Office will consider if you will be able to integrate in your home country or the country they propose your return to. You bear the burden of proof that you will have ‘significant obstacles’ to that integration, such as risks of being prosecuted or discrimination because of your sexual or political orientation or faith. The decision-maker will consider all the relevant factors:
The application can be made online on the Home Office website.
Besides passports or travel documents covering the relevant period, you also have to show yearly evidence of residence in the UK from official or independent sources.
There is an online fee waiver request form which you may fill in if you:
You should apply for another 30 months’ leave, no more than 28 days before your current visa expires.
A ‘continuous’ residence means living in the UK for an unbroken period. You:
√ Can be absent from the UK for a period of maximum 6 months at any one time, provided that you have an existing limited leave to enter or remain upon your departure and return.
X Any time spent in prison. Nevertheless, time before and after that imprisonment can be added to make the full amount of time.
This Discretionary Leave will normally be subject to a condition of no access to public funds, unless you can provide evidence that you are entitled to the funds because you are destitute.
QC Immigration can help Increase your chances of your UK visa application being accepted with the help of our experienced immigration lawyers.