If your UK visa has expired and you are still in the United Kingdom, please note that you will be out of status and considered to be an ‘overstayer’.
In this blog we will be talk in detail about:
- What is meant by overstaying?
- ‘14 Day With Good Reason’ Policy
- What meets the criteria for ‘Good Reason’?
- Visa decision Pending
- Application rejected even when Applied on time?
- Departing from the UK
- Effects of overstaying and chances of re-entering into the UK?
- Overstay on your visa with Consequences
- Rights as an over stayer?
- Question about overstaying period in the UK?
The Home Office does not regularly inform or prompt visa owners of visa expiry. It is the visa holder’s liability to observe their visa expiry date.
Let us talk in detail.
What is meant by overstaying?
It is a against the law under section 24 of the Immigration Act 1971 to overstay your visa without realistic reason.
If your visa ran out, you have exactly 30 days to leave the UK voluntarily at your own expenditure prior to facing a ban on re- admission. On the other hand, you may pursue to relay on the 14 day Policy.
‘14 Day With Good Reason’ Policy
Earlier policies permitted a 28-day grace period minus the obligations to make justification, but any extent of tolerance provided under the leniency phase was eliminated from November 2016 and substituted by this tougher ‘14-day with good reason rule’.
Under the present guidelines, for delayed applications made on or after 24th November 2016, the Home Office will contempt a period of overstaying on condition that you apply for a new visa, or renewal of your existing visa, within 14 days of your prior visa expiring and that you can prove ‘good reason’ for having overstayed your visa authorization.
What meets the criteria for ‘Good Reason’?
The Home Office has delivered outline guidance on what establishes adequate ‘good reason’ for overlooking your visa expiry time limit. You should be able to prove that there were extraordinary conditions and be able to deliver proof to back up your entitlement.
For example if you were getting urgent medical care in hospital, or due to mourning of a loving family member or having a delayed reply from an educational organization that informed you of approval to study.
Intolerable reasons comprise overlooking your deadline or being too occupied with work or studies.
You will be required to reinforce your dispute with proof. A hospital admission for example will entail an official document that mentions the date of admittance and release as well as what you were treated for. This must be presented with your application inside the 2 weeks period.
Visa decision Pending
If you are anticipating a verdict on an application and your visa has run out, you will be obliged to hold any endeavors that your former visa allowed (such as employment) until a verdict has been made up and a fresh visa provided.
It is a criminal felony to resume work in the United Kingdom after your visa runs out. If your employer is conscious that your visa has ended, they are also executing a criminal felony by allowing you to work and they may also jeopardize Home Office penalty prosecution.
Application rejected even when Applied on time?
Keeping in mind that you submitted your application for renewal before your present visa finishes, you will have 2 weeks after getting the refusal to apply all over again (if you are allowed to) and in doing so prevent overstaying.
In this case, the good reason rule will not come into consideration, but your fresh application has to be submitted within 14 days of the rejection letter. If you fail to apply inside that period, you will then be believed as an over stayer.
Departing from the UK
Paragraphs A320 and 320(7B) of the Immigration Rules mentions that you have to depart from the United Kingdom willingly inside 30 days of your visa expiring in the United Kingdom.
If you depart from the UK willingly after the 30 day time, you may be banned from re-entering. The span of ban will hinge upon when you depart from the UK, whether you went willingly or were deported and whether you have the finances to pay to go back to your country of origin.
If you do not leave willingly, you jeopardize enforced removal by deportation.
Effects of overstaying and chances of re-entering into the UK?
There are long term penalties for people who overstay their visa period in the United Kingdom. If you depart form the United Kingdom willingly after the 30 day period, you run the risk of being disallowed from re-entering the United Kingdom for a maximum ten years. Nevertheless, if you have departed from the UK willingly within the first 3 months and at your own finances, you may not receive a re-entry ban.
Overstaying your lawful time of leave will be taken into concern in any upcoming UK immigration applications under general bases of permissibility. This may have a bad influence on any upcoming applications you submit for UK visas; the Home Office may decline your application on the basis that you are a great risk of staying on unlawfully in the United Kingdom.
If the motives are seen as dishonesty (purposely overstayed without decent motive), there are substantial penalties when trying to re-enter the United Kingdom. The obligation will be on you to demonstrate you are of good character, specifically if you have been in the past deported from the United Kingdom.
Overstay on your visa with Consequences
Must you not be able to demonstrate that you have decent motive for applying after your visa has ended you may face some serious penalties. The 14 day grace period does not provide you with much time to plan your worthy objective, so it is vital to act promptly and pursue legal advice.
You will be unable to get a renewed visa if you have by this time surpassed the 14 day threshold.
It is an unlawful felony to overstay your visa without virtuous purpose. You will not be legally permitted to work, and if held doing so, could face a jail verdict.
If your time of overstay surpasses the 90 day limit, you will more than likely tackle a ban on re-entering the United Kingdom for at least one year and a maximum of ten years.
Rights as an overstayer?
Your rights are automatically limited if you happen to be an overstayer. You will however be able to benefit with the emergency services in the United Kingdom, police, fire brigade and ambulance. Furthermore, you will be able to approach basic healthcare treatment.
If you have kids aged 16 and under, they may still go to school during the phase you remain in the United Kingdom after your visa ends.
Question about overstaying period in the UK?
Overstaying exposes a number of immigration matters. Although it is continuously desirable to act inside the periods and in advance of your visa running out, if you do realize you are encountering an expired visa, you will be required to move rapidly to identify your choices and make the essential application promptly.
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