ILR Application Date Advice

[DawnUK]

Hello Everyone

Many thanks for your help and contributions, I really appreciate them while I was reading the previous entries.

My journey's most important dates are as follows:
- I came to the UK in 2019 on a Tier 4 student visa, my entry stamp date was 25 August 2019.

- My first work visa was a Tier 2 General visa, whose COS was assigned on 16/07/2020 and I applied in the UK to switch from the Tier 4 student visa on 14/10/2020.

- The delay in application was due to delay in issuing my certificate by the university I was studying at. I can't remember the biometrics date for this visa application unfortunately.

- I started working for my employer as per the guidance during that period while waiting for a decision on 02/11/2020, while the visa itself was issued on 13/01/2021.

- I then applied for a skilled worker visa for the same employer and same job SOC but different role in 2021, which was issued on 16/11/2021.

- I then changed my employer to another but same job SOC in 2023, thus, applied for another skilled worker visa which was issued on 30/08/2023.

- Finally, I changed both my employer and my job SOC in 2024, thus applied again for another skilled worker visa, which was issued on 25/10/2024, and this is the one I am on now.

I have 3 questions regarding my situation:
1)- I noticed that the salary threshold for SWV and accordingly those used for ILR applications have been updated on the 01/07/2025. The new ongoing rate for my current job SOC as per this updated guidance is above my current salary, will this affect my ILR application?

2)- Which date did my ILR qualifying period start from? Is it the first Tier 2 visa application date (I don't have the biometrics date for this one, only the date of application as per the visa application summary), or the day I started working for my first employer as per the Tier 2 visa COS and employer letter, or the date it was issued on, or another date?

3) - What's my first eligible date for the ILR application?

My query might sound similar to previous ones, and most probably it's I won't lie, but I have contacted multiple immigration advisors and those who were able to answer my query all agreed that I should use the first day of work as per the first work visa (Tier 2 in 2020) and the letter from that employer as the date I start counting my ILR qualification period. One of them even told me that the decisions that are being produced by the Home Office these days are erratic and I shouldn't antagonise them further by using the Tier 2 (2020) visa application submission date as my start date for ILR qualifying period calculation!

Any advice is really appreciated.

Thanks.

[zimba]

1. They have not changed anything with regard to the settlement at all.
2. As per COVID concession in place, it starts from first application date 14/10/2020
3. 14/10/2020 + 5 years - 28 days

You should not listen to people whose advice contradicts official UKVI guides !
This is about when your lawful qualifying period for ILR started which has no relevance to when you started work at all. Work start date has never been relevant at all, whether you consider this concession or not. It is all about when your lawful residence begins. This concession allows the start of your lawful residence to be when you applied for your work visa rather than when it was first approved.

Due to major disruption to UKVI services during the COVID-19 pandemic, Tier 2
(General) and Skilled Worker applicants in the UK were permitted to start work for
their sponsors while waiting for decisions on their applications. This time while they
were waiting, but able to work, also counts towards the continuous 5-year period.
The applicant must have been in the UK with permission (including as a visitor or
with Exceptional Assurance), and the application must have been:

• for permission to stay
• made between 24 January 2020 and 30 June 2021 (inclusive)
• supported by a CoS on the date of application
• granted

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.u ... worker.pdf

[DawnUK]

Many thanks for your help and clarification Zimba, I really appreciate it. A hypothetical question though, if someone applied earlier than the first date they're eligible for the ILR, would their application be refused straightforward and they lose the application money, or would they be asked to withdraw it and have a refund, or would the home office hold their decision until they reach the eligible duration?

Thanks for all of your insights.

[zimba]

No. The date of application is not that important

Read: Applicants can benefit from the date of the ILR decision

[DawnUK]

Thanks for your quick reply, I read the attached article, really interesting information which I really appreciate. But according to it, if someone used the super priority service the biometrics date would be technically the day of the decision or the day after. What if the case worker deemed that the application on that date still did not hit the 5 years qualifying period, what decision would they make in that case?

Thanks again, I really appreciate your knowledge and help

[zimba]

Thanks for your quick reply, I read the attached article, really interesting information which I really appreciate. But according to it, if someone used the super priority service the biometrics date would be technically the day of the decision or the day after. What if the case worker deemed that the application on that date still did not hit the 5 years qualifying period, what decision would they make in that case?

Thanks again, I really appreciate your knowledge and help

How would you NOT hit your eligibility date if you plan it properly ??
ILR can be granted within 28 days of completing our 5 years. On the date of ILR decision you should be eligible for ILR and you should plan it that way. If you intend to use the priority service, then you must book your appointment date on or after the earliest date of eligibility. This is all in your control

[DawnUK]

I understand this I swear As per your earlier guidance the earliest date for the ILR application in my case is 28 days from the Tier 2 visa application submission date (14/10/2020), after 5 years of course, so that would be around 17th September 2025, did I get this correctly?

I totally agree with your explanation for the guidance in relation to the start date of my qualifying period, yet at the same time I am afraid that some caseworkers might share the view of the immigration advisors I told you about earlier, hence in that case they might consider my application an early one before hitting the 5 year period, so I am trying to evaluate the possible outcomes.

Thanks again