I'm an overstayer

Help...I'm an overstayer in Northern Ireland. Will UKBA send out a letter to the address I'm staying at or will they phone for me? I don't intend to stay longer than 4 more months but I'm worried ukba will search for me. Can anyone help me? Has anyone else been an overstayer and managed to stay without problems from ukba? Thank you

Help...I'm an overstayer in Northern Ireland. Will UKBA send out a letter to the address I'm staying at or will they phone for me? I don't intend to stay longer than 4 more months but I'm worried ukba will search for me. Can anyone help me? Has anyone else been an overstayer and managed to stay without problems from ukba? Thank you

Hi MeliNI,  I don't know all the ins and outs of overstaying but I do know that it's a *really bad* idea and should be avoided at all costs.
It can have serious repercussions on any future visa applications and lead to a lengthy ban. I believe it is a criminal offence.

Others who know more about this should be along soon but in the meantime, are you able to elaborate on your circumstances so that they can better advise you?

Has anyone else been an overstayer and managed to stay without problems from ukba?

You will get problems from UKVI, if not now, then at a later date. Overstaying is a really bad idea and you are ruining your immgration history, not only in the UK but you will have to delcare your overstay to any country you want to enter as a non-citizen. The UK share immigration information with other countries. Overstaying has repercussions.

What visa are you overstaying?
When did your legal stay expire?
Are you working?
Have you been served with a deportation order? Note that not having been served this does not stop the police or UVKI from detaining you.

I never had a visa. I only came in the UK with a passport. I know I could be banned but that's not my worry. I just became an overstayer this month. I could visit with my passport for 6 months. This month my 6 months were up. Now. I'm an oveerstayer. So any help would be appreciated. I haven't been served any papers or anything. I'm wondering if and how soon ukba may send out a letter saying they know I've overstayed?

I never had a visa. I only came in the UK with a passport. I know I could be banned but that's not my worry. I just became an overstayer this month. I could visit with my passport for 6 months. This month my 6 months were up.

You did actually have a visa - it's just that it was a Visitor Visa, which was issued as a 6-month stamp in your passport.

Now. I'm an oveerstayer. So any help would be appreciated. I haven't been served any papers or anything. I'm wondering if and how soon ukba may send out a letter saying they know I've overstayed?

My advice: Leave the UK as soon as you possibly can (and by that I mean within the next few days). Even if you just cross over the border into the Republic of Ireland for now if you can't get back to your home country right away... the important thing is to get out of the UK ASAP.

Any length of overstay is not good, but if you have an overstay of less than 28 days, it may be overlooked by UKVI when you apply for future visas.

However, an overstay of more than 28 days can cause many more problems if you want to come back on another visa in future and may even lead to a ban from the UK.

I'm wondering if and how soon ukba may send out a letter saying they know I've overstayed?

There's no way to know, I'm afraid. They don't keep tabs on everyone on visitor visas to make sure they've left and so I don't think they would send out a letter.

It's your responsibility to know what date you must leave by and to make sure you are no longer in the UK after that date.

If you do overstay, it is then also your responsibility to declare your overstay on any future travel applications to the UK and to be completely honest about it.

- If you leave the UK within 28 days of the visa expiring, then you shouldn't be refused a visa in future (though you will need to apply for one in advance before trying to come back as a visitor, since you now have an overstay on your travel history)

- If you overstay for more than 90 days, you can be deported (which can result in up to a 10-year ban from re-entering the UK)

I'm wondering if and how soon ukba may send out a letter saying they know I've overstayed?

As you came into the UK as a visitor, UKVI will pick your overstay up as you leave the UK and it will be recorded.

In the UK, the police are allowed to stop and check and if you or anyone you are with are stopped, that is also when they will pick up that you are an overstayer and they can then detain you.

If you are overstaying because you have met someone, then don't ruin your immigraion history for somebody else. Years from now, even if you marry that person, you will realise that it just wasn't worth it.

Look at the small print on your health insurance to ensure you are still covered.

I never had a visa. I only came in the UK with a passport. I know I could be banned but that's not my worry. I just became an overstayer this month. I could visit with my passport for 6 months. This month my 6 months were up. Now. I'm an oveerstayer. So any help would be appreciated. I haven't been served any papers or anything. I'm wondering if and how soon ukba may send out a letter saying they know I've overstayed?

Your visa is the stamp in your passport you recieved when you went through the non-EU immigration line at the airport on arrival. It could be for 6 months or they could have given you less. Did you check the date on that stamp? It's probably for 6 months... but you never know.

MeliNI - The advice here is golden. You may not get the answer you are hoping to get but for your own record, it is best to leave ASAP. As mentioned, you could be stopped and detained at any moment, and you wouldn't want to live in that fear for 4 months or ruin whatever it is you have going on.

I very nearly was an overstayer because I was given wrong advice. I am so glad I took the advice of the good folks here and left when I did. I was able to come back with absolutely no problems. If I overstayed though, things would be very, very different.

First things first, are you in danger?

No I'm not in any danger. Thanks everyone for the advice...bty I'm also not working here...I forgot to say that earlier.

It doesn't matter if you are working or not...and if you do not have a working visa, you better not be! Also, some advice was to go to the Republic, but I believe that they have reciprocal agreements and I think  you can not stay more than 180 days in UK/Ireland Combined. Just something to check. Good luck.

A similar situation just happened to my friend.  He was an over stayer by 90 days because he met someone.  No one ever came for him nor did he recieve paperwork.  What happened was he tried to go back home.  Thats what got him into trouble.  Not only was he detained/deported when he arrived at heathrow, his passport is now flagged and he cant go back to the uk for 10 years minimum.  He has also been denied entry into several other countries including canada.  He has really destroyed his traveling life and job since he is required to travel on occasion.
All his troubles were not worth it for just a few days really.  Get out now while you can unless you plan on not traveling again once you are caught.  The finacial hit he took was in the range of 10k i believe once all was said in done.  That includes the cost of his original return ticket that he skipped out on, the second return ticket that got him caught and the third return ticket he had to purchase last minute because he missed his second return ticket flight while he was detained.