Indefinite leave to remain? Residency permit? or other option

[TallyGrenshall]

I'm going to phone the Home Office in the morning but just wondered if anybody here would know anything.

Came back from holiday yesterday with my DM, who is an American citizen. She moved to UK 50 years ago when she was 15, worked for 6 years, met and married DF and stopped working when she had my oldest sister. She has lived in the UK ever since, has claimed family allowance/child benefit, and currently recieves a state pension in her own name as well as Carers Allowance for my blind DF

When she came though passport control, she was detained because she didn't have a residency stamp in her passport. She has been on holiday a few times since she's lived here and has never had this happen to her before (obviously). Eventually, they decided to clear her on a 6 month visa and said she has to get her residency status sorted out.

I've looked at the Home Office website andd I can't find anything that would relate to her situation. My parents do not earn enough for her to apply for a residency permit based on her marriage to DF (UK citizen), so should we be applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain? The website is not the easiest to understand tbf so I may have missed something.

Maybe just to make things more complicated, DM does not want to go down the route of dual citizenship, she says that her US citizenship is the last link she has and doesn't want to lose it (even though I have explained that she wouldn't but atm it's a total no-go)

[RunsWithScissors]

I believe that as she has over her for ten+ years, she can apply for indefinite leave to remain. That gives her residency, she can choose if she then wants to apply for citizenship or not (not needed to stay).

Not sure, but she might have to take the life in the UK test before she can apply. She may be old enough to be exempt though.

Good luck, UKBA should be helpful (even though the web site can be a nightmare for just finding out info). Have been advised that calling can be ridiculous to get a live person, email very slow, but ironically writing to them via regular post can get the quickest reply. Try phoning and emailing anyway, but thought it would be a good tip f they get you no where.

[RunsWithScissors]

That should say as she has been over here for

[BoringTheBuilder]

You can ask this at a immigration forum (google it) or maybe use a immigration solicitor who won't charge the first half hour

[TallyGrenshall]

Thanks :)

Christ only knows how this hasn't been noticed before. Hopefully it will be relatively simple to sort out

Thanks for the tip about writing as well, I'll give it a go in the morning but it's good to know that they will answer normal post as well

[mowbraygirl]

I am Australian by birth and have lived in this country for 44 years and still use an Australian passport. Ever since I maried DH who was born in UK I have had a Certificate of Entitlement to the Right of Abode put in my pasport. This only lasts for the life of the passport i.e. 10 years then I used to send my new pasport and the old one to the Home Office in Croydon and they would put a new stamp in it and would be back in a few weeks.

They changed the system by the time I got my last passport in 2007 you now need to download a form fill it in and send it together with a cheque for £130 and they tell you minimum time between 6 weeks and 6 months so do not make any travel arrangements in that time. I reeived mine back within 3 weeks.

I do not know about Definite Leave to Remain but will have a look into it as may be better than having to pay out £130 every 10 years.. Last time I came back from a holiday the chap at Passport Control was interested in the Certificate of Entitlement and said he doesn't see them very often.

I think I could apply for a British Passport as my matrnal grandfather was born in the UK but would really like to keep my Australian one as well.

I will be interested to hear what you have manage to find out.

[TallyGrenshall]

Well, spoke to them today and we have to send a SAR to see what permission was granted when they first moved here, and then take it from there.

DM said today that she remembered her Dad having to sign in at the local city hall every month for the first year, and then it stopped which suggests to me, and the woman I spoke to that some sort of permission to stay was granted after a year but because it was so long ago it's hard to tell. If she was granted permission then, we just have to fill in a form and send her passport away to be stamped.

If not then we will have to either go down dual citizenship or indefinite leave.

Fingers crossed because poor DM is in a right panic

[TweenageAngst]

Mowbray you are entitled to a British passport in your own right as you have been living and paying taxes for greater than 5 years. Why on earth have you not applied for a British passport? you can hold dual citizenship now the Aussie government relaxed the rules about 10 years ago. I hold EU and Australian passports No hassles with visiting EU etc.

[mowbraygirl]

Thanks Tweenage I will definitely look into it. In 2007 when I renewed my passport I went to the Passport Office in Australia House in London to get a renewal form. The person I saw questioned me as to whether this was my only passport as if they found out that I also had another one they would cancel the Australian one. It is also stated the same on the form.

I did notice that when I got a form for my DS it didn't state that any more. When the DC's were born I registered them as Australian citizens it did come in very handy as 5 years ago DS went out there with his wife for her job and because he was over 30 couldn't get a working visa unless a firm sponsored him.