After receiving curtailment letter can I leave and RETURN within the 60 days?

I'm switching visa types and expect to have a new visa before those 60 days are up (I quit my old job).

However I have one really annoying thing happening. Because the process for both receiving the curtailment letter and the process for getting the new visa took longer than I thought it would it is running OVER my brother's wedding.

My brother lives in the US. His wedding is soon. I've received the curtailment letter saying I must leave by February something. I want to go to the wedding... and come back. But from what I understand that's risky and they might not let me back in!

I don't want to be stuck in the US for MONTHS until I get the new visa. I do have my flat here and my life here. But I also don't want to miss my brother's birthday!


I'm thinking of "cheesing" it too if there's a real risk they won't let me back in. I'm thinking of going to Ireland and flying out from there, then back to Ireland, then driving back to Northern Ireland heh. I have no idea if that's legal or if it would work.
Maybe that's possible because I wouldn't have to use my passport within the UK (would fly from London to Northern Ireland too)?


I just don't want to potentially be trapped in the UK for a few months. I also don't want to miss my brother's wedding. The whole curtailment letter and visa I expected to not take months and months to do and they seem to have delayed them both a lot.

I also don't want to risk going back to the US to try to hasten the new visa application (which is apparently only doable if I'm there) because on the off chance that my visa is denied I need to be able to set my affairs here in order and I couldn't if they wouldn't let me back in.

Yeah. It's complicated. Things have been delayed for reasons. I'm just wondering if I have any real, not real risky options. If my Ireland plan is feasible, etc.  lol


EDIT: Second question...
When my curtailment takes place, say my new visa gets denied (they say there's a slight chance but it's slim)... how long until I could re-enter the country as a normal traveler?

What visa do you currently have, what visa are you switching to, and whereabouts in the application process for the new visa are you?

Can you not apply for the new visa in person (it costs £500 extra for an in-person appointment)? That way, you would get the visa decision same-day and your visa will be delivered by post within 10 working days of the appointment.

I always wonder about these things. To me, and this may just be my peculiar perspective,  the immigration process trumps all. I am accused occasionally of supporting a loose approach to the rules, but in actuality feel that people should be very careful about doing it right.

It is just interesting that people will book holidays and things when a major change in immigration status is coming up, especially after reading about the dire situations some people have been through.

Tier 2 Work Visa to Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa. I've been told the quickest I can do it is like 7-10 working days if I do it in the US, 3 weeks if I do it in the UK. This assumes no delays.
The aim is for me to apply asap but I have a tax thing I have to finish first (they have a chance of refusing based on an unfinished tax situation if I applied now). I expect to be able to apply in early-mid January, possibly sooner.

I do not believe I can "same day" a Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa application.

It's too late for my brother's wedding even in the quickest timing. His wedding is a once in a lifetime thing (hopefully lol). I'm supposed to be best man. It's really upsetting that it's looking like I can't make it because I'm in visa limbo and have been for like 4 months so far.

I'm setting up a business here and also don't really want to risk that of course haha.

You can do a same day appointment to switch to a Tier 1 from a Tier 2.  Is your current (well old) Tier 2 a Tier 2 General or a Tier 2 ICT?

Honestly, you shouldn't have quit the first job without having the visa process sorted for the second job.  As you should have applied prior to the curtailment of the last visa.

I think you may want to seek an immigration attorney to see if they can sort this out for you.  Chances are the wedding is off the table.  You could risk traveling through Ireland but at this point you are already in a very grey area, all depends on how badly you want to stay in the UK.

Have you already invested £200k in to the new business?

You can do a same day appointment to switch to a Tier 1 from a Tier 2.  Is your current (well old) Tier 2 a Tier 2 General or a Tier 2 ICT?

Honestly, you shouldn't have quit the first job without having the visa process sorted for the second job.  As you should have applied prior to the curtailment of the last visa.

I think you may want to seek an immigration attorney to see if they can sort this out for you.  Chances are the wedding is off the table.  You could risk traveling through Ireland but at this point you are already in a very grey area, all depends on how badly you want to stay in the UK.

Have you already invested £200k in to the new business?

I "had" to quit because I just couldn't do it there anymore for reasons. (Complicated, mostly that I just didn't want to do it anymore to a high degree!). I was aware there was a more ideal way to do it but if I worked there until February I'd just be very unhappy putting it mildly.

I have met all the requirements for a Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa and beyond. And I have lawyers for this. Honestly, I'm just getting desperate and am foolishly asking on a forum hoping for some kind of beacon of hope. My lawyers too said it was grey and could go either way. I'm just really upset I probably can't make the wedding.

Call it an emotional internet outburst heh. Things didn't exactly go to plan timeline wise because the whole process on every level has taken 10x more time for no apparent reason. Send in tax forms, estimated to get back in weeks, takes months, government makes mistakes and typos my address horribly which delays things, delay delay. I thought I gave myself enough buffer to get everything done but it's been surprisingly inefficient as I've seen every estimated time go well beyond. But that's a whole other thing that isn't even visa stuff!

I figure even if I applied tomorrow there would be the chance that it would get delayed for whatever random reason. So there's always still a chance I have to move back to the US before I again come back to the UK. Hope for the best, plan for the worst. I thought I planned for the worst haha!


Thanks though.

Really glad to hear you have legal representation.  That's great.  And you are always welcome to vent here.

Honestly, why not go back for the wedding and sort the new visa from there?  Then you won't miss it AND you'll have your legal status back more quickly.  Seems pretty win/win.

Call it an emotional internet outburst heh.

I spend a lot of time out back kicking the wheelie bin. They are darned near indestructible.

Really glad to hear you have legal representation.  That's great.  And you are always welcome to vent here.

Honestly, why not go back for the wedding and sort the new visa from there?  Then you won't miss it AND you'll have your legal status back more quickly.  Seems pretty win/win.

There is always a chance the visa will be denied. If it is I'm not sure when I could come back to sort out my flat, all my belongings, withdraw from my rental agreement, etc.
Which brings me to another question I had if anyone knows, if my visa was denied when is the earliest I could return to potentially sort all that out?

I could sort it out and effectively move out before February but that would just be a giant pain. I don't exactly want to ship all my stuff to the US and immediately back to the UK again when my visa gets accepted. Blablabla there's just a lot of really painful, time consuming, and potentially costly stuff to do. (I know it's my fault though!)

I'm starting this business in ONE of these countries. I'd highly prefer the UK for business and personal reasons (business reasons outlined in the business plan!). But if I had to I'd start the business in the US. Hope they let me be a job creator here!

The visa is a tick box application.  Tick the boxes, get the visa.  What are the concerns you have for whether or not it'll be accepted?

If the visa was denied, you could apply for a visitor visa (about £80) to return to the UK for a short time to sort everything out.  You could apply for that immediately.

The visa is a tick box application.  Tick the boxes, get the visa.  What are the concerns you have for whether or not it'll be accepted?

If the visa was denied, you could apply for a visitor visa (about £80) to return to the UK for a short time to sort everything out.  You could apply for that immediately.

There was a tax snaffu at the company I worked for. They paid me in a weird way. This made all sorts of delays on me paying and filing some tax stuff for complete, weird taxy reasons I barely understand. Currently on the last bit of fixing the situation and making everything right. I hired some accountants to fix up everything and they'd been doing it for a good while now.
It's been highly recommended that I have my UK taxes in order before I actually apply. They've been known to deny applications because they found weird tax issues for the person.

My lawyer dudes are confident that I'll pass when I get my taxes fully in order. They've just taken a lot longer to fix than anyone thought they would. But there's still a small chance they'll look at my weird tax history and say "this looks weird, goodbye!" heh.

Hope for the best and plan for the worst!

Re travelling during curtailment: you cannot. If you leave the UK it is taken that you are departing and that's it!

It says it on your letter.
"If you leave the UK your leave to enter or remain will lapse under Article 13(3) of the Immigration (Leave to Enter and Remain) Order 2000 and you may require a visa to enter the UK."

At least, the curtailment procedures say it should be on your letter!! https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/520008/Curtailmentv16.0.pdf
page 94

There was a tax snaffu at the company I worked for. They paid me in a weird way. This made all sorts of delays on me paying and filing some tax stuff for complete, weird taxy reasons I barely understand. Currently on the last bit of fixing the situation and making everything right. I hired some accountants to fix up everything and they'd been doing it for a good while now.
It's been highly recommended that I have my UK taxes in order before I actually apply. They've been known to deny applications because they found weird tax issues for the person.

My lawyer dudes are confident that I'll pass when I get my taxes fully in order. They've just taken a lot longer to fix than anyone thought they would. But there's still a small chance they'll look at my weird tax history and say "this looks weird, goodbye!" heh.

Hope for the best and plan for the worst!

Yes, one of the first things they check when you apply is that your status and history are correct with HMRC.  Glad you are getting it sorted.

There was a tax snaffu at the company I worked for. They paid me in a weird way. This made all sorts of delays on me paying and filing some tax stuff for complete, weird taxy reasons I barely understand.



My lawyer dudes are confident that I'll pass when I get my taxes fully in order.

On a Tier 2 General visa you are meant to be an employee of the company that sponsored you and that is PAYE. PAYE is where the company deducts your taxes and pay these to HMRC each time they pay you, on the new(ish) Real Time system.

Are you saying that you were self employed with this company and therefore you had to pay your taxes to HMRC?

Or is it because you didn't pay more into your pension to prevent a taxable income of over £100,000 and therefore had to do a SA every year with HMRC: which you failed to do?
https://www.gov.uk/income-tax-rates/income-over-100000

I'm thinking of "cheesing" it too if there's a real risk they won't let me back in. I'm thinking of going to Ireland and flying out from there, then back to Ireland, then driving back to Northern Ireland heh. I have no idea if that's legal or if it would work.



I'm just wondering if I have any real, not real risky options. If my Ireland plan is feasible, etc.  lol

The UK and the Republic of Ireland share immigration data.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/historic-uk-ireland-visa-deal-signed