[lagdm]

Married to British Citizen for 24 years, I got the kind of visa stated above for 27 months on March 2010; I passed the Life in the UK test. My visa is due in June, it is possible to apply for citizenship directly or I have to apply first for ILR?
If ILR, I have read here there are people waiting for 6 months for their visas! How can that be if they tell you to apply when you have 28 days left? Are these people overstaying? What about the time line for citizenship?
I want to apply but I can't give my passport away for such a long time, I have family matters that require my presence abroad on June de 9th and I already have tickets to travel... What happen if I leave?

 

[nyclon]

Married to British Citizen for 24 years, I got the kind of visa stated above for 27 months on March 2010; I passed the Life in the UK test. My visa is due in June, it is possible to apply for citizenship directly or I have to apply first for ILR?
If ILR, I have read here there are people waiting for 6 months for their visas! How can that be if they tell you to apply when you have 28 days left? Are these people overstaying? What about the time line for citizenship?
I want to apply but I can't give my passport away for such a long time, I have family matters that require my presence abroad on June de 9th and I already have tickets to travel... What happen if I leave?

If your visa says "KOL required" then you could have applied for ILR as soon as you passed the Life in the UK test. You don't have to wait. However, you do have to have ILR for 1 year before you can apply for citizenship. There are in-person appointments available for ILR.

As for those who have to satisfy a residency period (depending on the visa), yes it's true the earliest you can apply is 28 days before your the visa expires. No, they are not overstayers. They are covered under their previous visa while ILR is being processed.

I suggest that you look into getting an in-person appointment and sort out your ILR before you leave. If you don't and you try to enter on an expired visa, you will probably be turned away at the border

 

[AnAmericanInScotland]

You might want to go ahead and get that visa sorted now-use the in person service available, you'll know the same day if your ILR has been granted-read this for full details:

UK Border Agency | Premium service for applications in the UK

It's pretty straightforward, you make the appointment and then attend, they take your biometrics, check your documents when you meet with the official, and a decision is made while you and your spouse wait in the hall.

They mail you the biometric residency permit card, takes about two weeks. I don't think you can travel without the card, though, so you need to get the appointment made ASAP.

 

[lagdm]

I was shocked to know that I could have apply for the ILR without having to wait the 26 months... nobody told me that when I got the visa! Well I guess this is part of been a foreigner, you never know how it is, until you are one. Thank you very much for your advice, I will go to the BA page to check where I can make an appointment...

 

[AnAmericanInScotland]

I was shocked to know that I could have apply for the ILR without having to wait the 26 months... nobody told me that when I got the visa! Well I guess this is part of been a foreigner, you never know how it is, until you are one. Thank you very much for your advice, I will go to the BA page to check where I can make an appointment...

Keep us updated on things go for you. I will be using the one day service when my 24 months anniversary arrives, and would love to know how it goes from someone who has been through it

 

[Joppa]

To sum op, the OP should apply for same-day premium service for ILR as soon as possible. OP needs to wait for biometric residence permit (BRP) before leaving UK, which doesn't leave much time (less than 2 months). Appointments get heavily booked up and I fear they may have left it too late. They can book an appointment at any public enquiry office, not just the nearest.

To apply for British citizenship, OP, being married to a citizen, has to live in UK for 3 years. So once they get ILR, can apply for naturalisation in March 2013. Make sure that on the day of application, OP was in UK exactly three years before. Even if just one day out, application will be refused. So for example, if they apply on 15th March 2013, the OP must have been in UK on 15th March 2010, and the application will be refused if they didn't arrive till 16th March.

 

[lagdm]

Thanks to everybody for your answers, I am now in the process of booking an appointment and have read a lot of the documents at the UKBA webpage, but there is a lot to read and understand guys, you are much better!! There is plenty of booking for my kind of visa, but my husband is traveling and he is coming back begining of May, so I guess I have to wait another month for my appointment, which gives me very little time to get the residency card, my question is. Do I need the card to leave the country? If I don't ... could I ask someone here at home to DHL it to me when it arrives, so I have it when I return?

 

[Joppa]

Thanks to everybody for your answers, I am now in the process of booking an appointment and have read a lot of the documents at the UKBA webpage, but there is a lot to read and understand guys, you are much better!! There is plenty of booking for my kind of visa, but my husband is traveling and he is coming back begining of May, so I guess I have to wait another month for my appointment, which gives me very little time to get the residency card, my question is. Do I need the card to leave the country? If I don't ... could I ask someone here at home to DHL it to me when it arrives, so I have it when I return?

No you don't need BRP to leave UK, only to re-enter. Yes, you can get someone to send by courier. But there must be someone at your home address to receive it, or someone with your ID to collect it from the courier's depot when there's nobody at home.

 

[manny.j]

No you don't need BRP to leave UK, only to re-enter. Yes, you can get someone to send by courier. But there must be someone at your home address to receive it, or someone with your ID to collect it from the courier's depot when there's nobody at home.

Joppa, for the ILR Premium appointment, are we required to submit the SET(M) form online or can we simply print it and take it with us to the appointment?

We are still in the US but will be in the UK early next month and hoping to make this Premium appointment online before we arrive together with the LITUK one.

 

[Joppa]

Joppa, for the ILR Premium appointment, are we required to submit the SET(M) form online or can we simply print it and take it with us to the appointment?

We are still in the US but will be in the UK early next month and hoping to make this Premium appointment online before we arrive together with the LITUK one.

AFAIK, there is no online application within UK. In any case, for premisum service appointment, you have to download SET(M) form, complete it by hand and take it with you. Make a photocopy to keep for your record.
You can book your appointment up to 6 weeks in advance.

 

[manny.j]

AFAIK, there is no online application within UK. In any case, for premisum service appointment, you have to download SET(M) form, complete it by hand and take it with you. Make a photocopy to keep for your record.
You can book your appointment up to 6 weeks in advance.

Thanks Joppa. Is there any issues if instead of writing by hand we type the text on computer? I can type text on these PDF, in fact I have already done but had my reservations if UKBA would have any issues in us doing so? To me it looks much clearer when typed and it also is much easier to make amendements in case there are any errors or we need to update any information rather than filling the page all over again by hands

 

[Joppa]

Thanks Joppa. Is there any issues if instead of writing by hand we type the text on computer? I can type text on these PDF, in fact I have already done but had my reservations if UKBA would have any issues in us doing so? To me it looks much clearer when typed and it also is much easier to make amendements in case there are any errors or we need to update any information rather than filling the page all over again by hands

Yes, the PDF form on UKBA site allows you to type in your answers before printing out.

 

[manny.j]

Yes, the PDF form on UKBA site allows you to type in your answers before printing out.

If you know the web-address of this interactive SET(M) form, can you please post its location here? Because one I downloaded from here, I don't see it being interactive. I was intending to type the text with some software tools in this form. Thanks.

 

[lagdm]

Thanks Joppa! That is great news; my case is not that desperate if I can leave without the card. Now I have another question regarding the days out of the UK. Do the days of travel, in and out, count as absent?

 

[Joppa]

If you know the web-address of this interactive SET(M) form, can you please post its location here? Because one I downloaded from here, I don't see it being interactive. I was intending to type the text with some software tools in this form. Thanks.

I thought it was but obviously it isn't. so just download, print out and enter by hand.

 

[nyclon]

Thanks Joppa! That is great news; my case is not that desperate if I can leave without the card. Now I have another question regarding the days out of the UK. Do the days of travel, in and out, count as absent?

The day you leave and the day you return don't count as being out of the country unless you leave and return on the same day.

 

[lagdm]

For those of you who were following my post, here is my timeline. Applied in person on May the 9th, the whole procedure took about one and a half hours, mainly because there was a mistake with my Biometrics and they have to do it twice. I got my card on FRIDAY the 11th!!!! That is what I call Premium service!!! :clap2:

 

[Joppa]

For those of you who were following my post, here is my timeline. Applied in person on May the 9th, the whole procedure took about one and a half hours, mainly because there was a mistake with my Biometrics and they have to do it twice. I got my card on FRIDAY the 11th!!!! That is what I call Premium service!!!

You won't get your biometric residence permit on the same day. By secure delivery usually within a week (they say ten days) so you've done well getting in two days. At least you aren't left waiting three or more months with postal service!