ILR

[ksab]

I'm a teacher, and therefore have many paid holidays.

The caseworker's guidance says:

Annex A – Calculation of the five year period for settlement
In assessing whether or not an applicant has fulfilled the requirement to have spent five years in continuous residence in the UK, short absences abroad, for example for holidays (consistent with annual paid leave) or business trips (consistent with maintaining employment or self-employment in the United Kingdom), may be disregarded, provided the applicant has clearly continued to be based here.
Discretion in cases where continuous residence has been broken
In addition, time spent here may exceptionally be aggregated, and continuity not insisted upon, in cases where:
• there have been no absences abroad (apart from those described in the paragraph above) and authorised employment or business here has not been broken by any interruptions of more than three months or amounting to more than six months in total;
or
• there have been longer absences abroad, provided the absences were for compelling grounds either of a compassionate nature or for reasons related to the applicant's employment or business in the United Kingdom. None of the absences abroad should be of more than three months duration, and they must not amount to more than six months in total for the whole five year period..
NB: Decisions in such cases must be taken at HEO level or above.
Where continuous residence has been broken, periods may be aggregated or shortfalls disregarded only with the approval of an SEO or Grade 7.


Does this mean that I do not have to worry about exceeding over 180 days paid leave during my 5 years here as it says paid leave may be disregarded?

[avjones]

How much over 180 days are you?

[ksab]

I am due for ILR in August 2011, I've currently spent 178 days out of the U.K. but they have all been on paid annual leave. If you exclude weekends/bank holidays it is around 135 days.

I will restrict my travel this upcoming year and hope to keep it down to around 190.

If there was a rule that said 180 including annual paid leave I would not travel more, hence the question

thanks!

[geriatrix]

Please don't make multiple posts on the same topic.