Absences from the UK in ILR applications
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When absences matter
Continuous residence is a requirement in applications for indefinite leave to remain in the following routes:
- Skilled Worker
- Scale-up worker
- UK ancestry
- Global Talent
- Innovator Founder
- Private Life
- Long residence
This means that to make a successful application for indefinite leave to remain you have to show that during the qualifying period you haven’t been out of the UK for more than permitted periods of time.
This may sound a bit over-complicated, but depending on the immigration route, the qualifying period may be 5 years (as for skilled workers or scale-up workers and their dependents, as well as dependents of Global Talent and Innovator visa holders), 3 years (Global talent and Innovator) or 10 years (private life or long residence applicants).
Permissible absences also depend on the immigration route and the date of absences.
Generally, you should not be out of the UK for more than 180 days in any 12-month period. Some absences may be disregarded, depending on the specific immigration route.
For applicants under the Long Residence route, the restriction is 184 days at any one time for absences started before 11 April 2024, and cumulative absences before 11 April 2024 should not exceed 548 days.
Generally, requirements related to absences are set out in the Immigration Rules, Appendix Continuous Residence, and in the part of the Immigration Rules dealing with the specific immigration route you are relying on.
In most cases, where continuous residence requirements are met, absences are not exceed. However, there are exceptions to this rule and continuity of residence may be broken even if the absence allowance is not breached.
It should be emphasised, with the exception of application for permission to remain in the UK on the basis of Long Residence, continuous residence requirement only applies in applications for Indefinite Leave to Remain. If you do not meet the continuous residence requirement, you can still apply for permission to remain in your current immigration category or switch to another category.
What is continuous residence
Continuous residence is lawful residence in the UK for a requisite period of time which is not broken by excessive absences or periods of stay in the UK without permission.
The rules on continuous residence apply in respect of the time you spend outside the UK during the qualifying period (calculated from the date of application back) and any periods during which you may not have had permission to remain, as well as the timing of your applications for extension of stay or renewed applications for entry clearance.
How continuous residence is assessed
Generally, the applicant should not be outside the UK for more than 180 days in any 12 months.
There are rules related to absences which are to be disregarded.
When assessing absences of dependent partners, where the main applicant’s absences fall under one of the allowed categories, the same concession applies for the dependent partner.
Where you made an unsuccessful application for permission to stay and subsequently made a successful in-country application, the period of stay without permission does not break continuity of your residence.
If you left the country while your visa was valid and applied for entry clearance within 14 days of its expiry, continuity of your residence is not broken.
Disregarded absences
Where the applicant was assisting with a national or international humanitarian or environmental crisis overseas, their absence is to be disregarded.
Absences from the UK due to the pandemic or a natural disaster are disregarded. And so are absences due to compelling and compassionate personal circumstances, such as life-threatening illness or death of a close family member.
Also disregarded are absences for research activity by Skilled Workers sponsored for a job in one of the following occupation codes:
2111 Chemical scientists
2112 Biological scientists and biochemists
2113 Physical scientists
2114 Social and humanities scientists
2119 Natural and social science professionals not elsewhere classified
2150 Research and development managers
2311 Higher education teaching professionals
if such absences were approved by the sponsor.
Absences for research activities by holders of the Global Talent visa in Research or Academia do not count toward the 180 day limit.
Absences for research activities (but not for other projects or engagements) are disregarded for the Global Talent visa holders if they qualified as winners of Prestigious Prizes.
If you are applying for settlement under Appendix Settlement Family Life (on completing 10 years as a partner or parent under Appendix FM) absences before 20 June 2022 do not count. Absences after this date may be disregarded if they are for work, study or supporting family overseas and you maintain your main home and family life in the UK.
Continuous residence is not interrupted if the applicant’s partner is a member of HM Forces, an an employee of the UK Government, or a permanent member of the British Council and the applicant accompanies them overseas.
Time spent lawfully in the Channel Islands or Isle of Man is treated as time spent in the UK provided the most recent grant of visa or permission to stay was in the UK.
Continuous Residence in Long Residence applications
If you are applying for indefinite leave to remain, or further leave to remain, on the basis of 10-year long residence in the UK, continuous residence is assessed in this way:
You shouldn’t have spent more than 548 days in the UK during the qualifying period before 11 April 2024; after 11 April 2024 you shouldn’t be outside the UK for more than 184 days in any one time.
Continuous residence under Appendix FM – 5-year partner or parent route
Continuous residence requirement does not apply to partners of UK citizens who have completed the qualifying five-year residence period.
These applicants have to demonstrate an intention to live permanently in the UK and their past absences are weighted in this assessment. It is always advisable to explain the reasons for any prolonged absences exceeding six months. It is unlikely that the Home Office would refuse the application for ILR on the basis of extended absences but this may happen if the Home Office decides that you are not living in the UK but only occasionally visiting the country.
Continuous residence for dependants of other migrants
Dependent partner of a Skilled Worker or Scale-Up Worker has to meet continuous residence requirement during the five years with permission to remain as a dependent of the main visa holder. There is no continuous residence requirement for children. However, the child will be only eligible to apply for indefinite leave to remain when the second parent qualifies, unless the child was born in the UK.
Dependants of UK ancestry visa holders and of representatives of an overseas business do not have to meet the continuous residence requirement and can apply for ILR at the same time as the main applicant.
You cannot make an application as a dependent of a person applying for indefinite leave to remain under the Long Residence rule.
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Last updated on March 27, 2025
Last updated on March 27, 2025
