543 days outside the UK — and still granted indefinite leave to remain

The problem

Our client came to the UK as a young student, completed her degree, and stayed on. After ten years, she applied for ILR on the long residence route. The Home Office refused: she had spent 543 days outside the UK during her ten-year qualifying period, and the Home Office calculated the maximum as 540 days (18 months × 30 days).

Why refusal was likely

The 10-year ILR route requires that an applicant must not have been absent from the UK for more than 18 months in total. On the face of it, 543 days exceeds 540 days — and the Home Office's calculation appeared to confirm it. A refusal based on absences seems difficult to challenge.

Our strategy

We disagreed with the Home Office's arithmetic. A calendar does not have 30 days in every month. A year has 365 days (or 366 in a leap year). Eighteen months is one and a half years — meaning at least 365 + 182.5 = 547.5 days in a standard year, or 548.5 days in a period including a leap year. The Home Office's assumption of '1 month = 30 days' is factually wrong. Our client had been absent for 543 days. Under the correct calendar calculation, 18 months equals at least 547 days. She had not exceeded the limit. We appealed and made this technical legal argument.

Outcome

Appeal succeeded. ILR granted. Our client is now a permanent resident of the UK.

Get in touch

A refused application is not always the end. If you have been refused ILR — particularly on the basis of absences — there may be grounds to challenge the decision. What seems like a clear-cut refusal can sometimes be overturned with careful legal analysis. Contact us to find out.