Update to absence requirements for 10 year lawful residence applications
Before 11 April 2024, when making an application for indefinite leave to remain under the long residence route, a person must not have been absent from the UK for more than 184 days at one time, or more than 548 days in total.
On 11 April 2024 the Home Office introduced Appendix Long Residence. This new appendix contained an updated set of rules on how someone can qualify for indefinite leave to remain after having completed 10 years of lawful residence in the UK. Also released on 11 April 2024 were updated guidance documents for Long Residence applications and to explain the Continuous Residence requirements. At the time, it was thought that a more generous approach was being taken as to how absences were being calculated under this route, and in particular it was believed that the Home Office have removed the criteria that meant that a period of 548 days absence would break continuity of residence. This was primarily due to the ambiguity in the wording of the rules and the clarification provided in the guidance issued at that time.
Appendix Long residence makes transitional arrangements for long residence applicants under paragraph CR2.2A which states:
CR 2.2A. Where the application is under Appendix Long Residence, for any qualifying period before 11 April 2024, the applicant must not have been outside the UK for more than 184 days at any one time, and must not have spent a total of more than 548 days outside the UK during that qualifying period, subject to CR 2.3.
This was then further explained in the previous Long Residence guidance which indicated that for 10-year qualifying periods ‘which extend beyond 11 April 2024, there is no 548-day limit’. This seemed a generous approach and meant that many who had previously been excluded from applying for indefinite leave to remain under the route would now qualify.
However, that generous approach was abandoned when the Home Office published updated Continuous Residence guidance and Long Residence guidance on 9 July 2024.
The amended Continuous Residence guidance now states:
‘These transitional arrangements preserve the position that continuous residence will be broken if an applicant has been absent from the UK for more than 184 days at any one time where the absences started before 11 April 2024, or for more than a total of 548 days overall in any part of their qualifying period before 11 April 2024.This means that:
- any single absences started before 11 April 2024 must be no longer than 184 days
- any part of a 10-year qualifying period before 11 April 2024 must not have total absences of more than 548 days
- from 11 April 2024 the applicant must not have been outside the UK for more than 180 days in any 12-month period’
Therefore, the guidance now makes clear that the 548-day threshold will still apply even where the qualifying period concludes after 11 April 2024, to periods of absence that took place before 11 April 2024. The new approach is still more generous in the sense that the 548 days absence requirement only applies to the part of the 10 year period that falls before the 11 April 2024. However, applicants will still need to be mindful of their overall periods of absence when making indefinite leave to remain applications.
Support relating to the 10 year lawful residence applications update:
If you would like assistance or advice on a long residence application, please schedule in a call with one of our specialised immigration experts who can provide further advice on this area.