What to do, what to do...

Hi everyone!

I am living in Edinburgh (from Canada) on a Tier 5 working visa which ends September 10th 2012. My Fiance (who is a British citizen from Edinburgh) and I started dating 3 years ago and have been living together the entire duration of my stay here in the UK. Before I moved here, we went back and forth between Canada and Scotland 2 weeks together, 4 weeks apart between Canada and the UK from Aug 2009 - Sept 2010 (when I moved). We have plans to marry next summer 2013, but we are looking into options into how I can reside and work over here until that date. I have done a lot of research into the Unmarried Partner Visa and there's only one portion of the requirements I am unsure of -- it states you need to be living together for 2 years and come September 10th, it will be exactly 2 years, but the issue will then be that my current visa will be expired.

I guess my question is, will 23 months (if I apply in August -- with the only exception being my current visa) be adequate enough for them to grant me this visa? My Fiance and I have our own place, joint account, I have a job over here, have been contributing to the economy since day one, I even volunteer haha! 24 months is the length they require, but my visa is only for 24 months, so we've only been allowed to live together for that long before I need to apply.

Thanks so much guys. Hopefully this post isn't too convoluted -- this is the first post on any website ever for me! I appreciate it.


Regards,

Shaun