?how long does ILR last & what if move back to US?

How long does the  ILR last?  For example in the US the Permanent Resident Card is valid 10 years.

If we moved back to the US after I was granted ILR, at what point would I invalidate my ILR? For example in the US if you leave for more than 1 year you lose your permanent resident status.

Sorry for so many questions!

Cheers,

Jessica

If you spend > 2 years living outside of the UK the Immigration Officer will likely invalidate your ILR if you return to the UK.  If you have been on and ILR and living outside the UK for greater then two years, you should apply for entry clearance prior to returning to the UK.

@kitsonk Thanks!  That's what I thought!

How long does an ILR last? 

@kitsonk Thanks!  That's what I thought!

How long does an ILR last? 

Obviously an expert can give a more nuanced answer, but the I in ILR stands for "Indefinite". As in "permanent".

How long does an ILR last? 

Indefinite Leaves to Remain last indefinitely...  

ILRs are going away though.  If you are not eligable for an ILR in the next 12-18 months, pretty much expect to go onto a different type of leave which is likely to be called "Probationary Citizenship".

After a period of time in the UK though, most people are eligable for UK Citizenship, and that is the best way to ensure that you won't lose your right to live in the UK at some point in the future.

As in "permanent".

I am afraid it is far from that, minor crimes, living outside of the UK, a whole list of things could easily make it un-permanent...  We don't think the upcoming changes (the BCI Bill) will invalidate ILRs, but there maybe things that make it even more difficult to maintain them.  The Government doesn't like them.  They want you to become a Citizen or go home.

@everyone... thanks for the clarification!  I wasn't sure if the ILR needed to be renewed at any point or not, because in the US, the "Permanent Resident Card" although it 'says' permanent, does have to be renewed every 10 years.

ILRs are going away though.  If you are not eligable for an ILR in the next 12-18 months, pretty much expect to go onto a different type of leave which is likely to be called "Probationary Citizenship".

After a period of time in the UK though, most people are eligable for UK Citizenship, and that is the best way to ensure that you won't lose your right to live in the UK at some point in the future.

Kitsonk what you mentioned perked my interest. Do you think they will try to make having an ILR harder? If so why? Why does the government not like them so much? Do they offer too many rights to those who have them?

Also, its difficult to fathom that there will be nothing to replace the permanency of ILR's with the new bill. You basically have temporary residence, then pay for more temporary residence called probationary citizenship, then prove you should be here and get 'rewarded' by gaining citizenship in 3 years instead of 5. Have you heard if they will have something to give some protection to those who have made it to 2 years like you do when you apply for ILR?

Ensuring that we don't lose our right to live in the UK is probably the primary concern of which the government is offering no relief.

The Government, in part wants to simplify immigration.  When we say "ILR" it is actually some 20 different categories of people with a muddle of indefinite leave to enter and indefinite leave to remain in the UK.  Simplification is an honourable goal.  It is truly only a guess of what life post the BCI Bill will bring, but the Government wants to get rid of the ILR, which means it will want those who are currently are on ILRs to either move to Citizenship or leave.  There are likely to be limited ways the Government will be able to force this, but our suspicion is that one way they will "encourage" it is by actively curtailing leave because of minor criminal offenses, even including traffic violations.

There will be nothing to replace the indefinite nature of the ILR prior to full Citizenship.  The only exception is that when taking on a UK Citizenship is impossible for the individual due to them losing their birth Citizenship (e.g. India) or for certain religious reasons (e.g. Jehovah's Witnesses).  You will actively have to prove Citizenship would be harmful to you.

For those entering the UK and likely for those part of the way through the process (though UK-Yankee Advocacy is actively fighting this), you are right in surmising the Government will not be offering anything permenant until full Citizenship and that the wait for permanency will be longer then it has been to date.  There are some categories that will have to wait for up to 10 years before they can become Citizens.

I didn't realise ILR covered so many categories! No wonder it gets confusing sometimes to help those out on the forum who have to detail what visa category they are in. A lot of them lead to ILR!

Maybe you can shed some light on this for me...I don't understand the Government's idea in the new bill of having temporary visa status then paying for more temporary visa status??? Why wouldn't the Government want to offer some rights the ILR provided when achieving probationary citizenship? Why does the Government want to make the whole process so unsure and insecure? I think that if probationary citizenship had some stability like ILR offered we wouldn't fight it so hard. But for some of us, the need to ensure that we won't be chucked out of a country we have made our home is very very strong. The new rules the Government are proposing do nothing to offer some reassurance this won't happen. Now we have to add on another year of insecurity until citizenship. This is why I don't understand why we have to PAY for probationary citizenship and more insecurity.

In the Government's mind being "permissioned" allows you to come to the country and begin to get used to it, being a "probationary" Citizen allows you to prove your "worth" to the UK.

All of your points are part of the concerns we formally presented to the larger immigration advocacy community and which actually made it into the briefing pack that was presented to the House of Lords before the bill was presented to them.  While several of the Lords were very sympathetic to our concerns, it is hard to say how much will persist into the final bill.  Pop over to the Advocacy section of the forums for some details and you can keep an eye on any actions we take as a group.

I totally agree that uncertinity, especially in the world today, makes it almost impossible to plan a secure and safe life for us and our loved ones and then when we are charged an ever increasing premium for the "privilage" to settle in the UK, it becomes ever the more difficult, but right now, it is totally safe to be "hard on immigrants".  No one is going to lose office based on that.  Sad but true.

Thank you so much for the explanation! I really do appreciate it.

I know we are all in the same boat and much is being done behind the scenes to offer some help for all of us who are facing the same outcome. Being 'hard on immigrants' as you say is pretty much the foundation for all actions taken to tighten up immigration and unfortunately we all fall under that umbrella policy. I am staying abreast on the advocacy section of the forum for any new developments and if there is anything I can do to help I will surely jump in with gusto! Our lives and those who will come in after us are on shaky ground because of this crackdown on immigration. I feel for those who have to wait up to 10 years to gain citizenship. I just hope something can be offered to probationary citizenship to relieve the stress of being 'temporary'.