Issues with application date for ILR from Tier-2 General

[-hj-]

Hello everyone,

I have an issue with current visa expiry / ILR application dates which I could really do with some help on.

I've worked for two different employers over the last five years - therefore, two BRPs covering the five year period. My current leave expires on 22nd December, and from the Home Office records I requested, I can see that my first Tier-2 General Leave was granted on 3rd January 2011 but for some reason, the BRP itself was printed on 23rd January 2011 (20 days later). Given that I can apply for ILR 28 days before the current leave expires, this poses an issue:

- If they take the BRP print date (23rd January 2011) as the start of the five year period, then the earliest I can apply for ILR is around 26th December. But my current leave expires on the 22nd so this will not work!
- If they consider the leave grant date instead (3rd January 2011), then I can apply around 6th December, and all should be fine as my current BRP would be valid. The Home Office case records also show that the Case Worker officially granted approval and requested the BRP on 3rd January 2011, so I'm hoping this is a more reasonable date to consider.

I don't have a copy of my original BRP to confirm the start date, - just the Home Office records.

What date is normally considered as the start of the five year period? Can I safely apply on 7th December or will I need to extend my Tier-2 visa just to get this ILR application in?

This is the only potential issue that could come up I think. For proof of employment, I have the Employment Summary letter from HMRC and P60 records from my current employer. Everything else is also in order. I intend to go with a one-day ILR application as they reportedly take ages otherwise.

Can you help with this please? It's stressing me out at the moment. Thanks in advance!

[CR001]

If your original visa was granted in Jan 2011, then you could have already applied based on 5 years residence.

[-hj-]

If your original visa was granted in Jan 2011, then you could have already applied based on 5 years residence.

Oh jeez, sorry, it was granted in January 2012 (not 2011 as I originally stated). My bad!

So the actual dates are:

- Grant of leave by case worker (from first employer): 3rd January 2012
- BRP print (first employer): 23rd January 2012
- Permit expiry date (from second employer): 22nd December 2016