Can residing for 10 years be considered as overstaying? The expiration date should be postponed.

"I was away for more than two months in the middle, and later I made up the payment, which was approved. Are these two months counted within the ten years?"

It doesn't count. But it also won't reset the years you've accumulated earlier. These are two completely independent criteria: one asks "Has the continuity been broken?" and the other asks "Do these days count toward the ten years?" Most people mix them into one question, thus either scaring themselves unnecessarily or miscalculating the submission date. Let's go through the process in the actual order it is handled.

First, list out the start and end dates for each permission segment.

The first step is not to calculate the years, but to make a timeline. Open eVisa account, take out old BRP, gather all the decision letters from previous years, and record the grant date and expiry date of each one. Student visa, work visa, spouse visa, Graduate, all of them, including those rejection letters you don't want to look at anymore.

Here is the first pitfall: Section 3C leave will not appear on any card. You submitted an extension application before the old visa expired. From the old expiry date until the day the Home Office makes a decision, this period is automatically extended under 3C, which is legal residence and counts towards the ten years. However, it stops at the moment "appeal rights are exhausted" — many people think they have status while waiting for a new application, but in fact, from that day on, they are overstaying.

Pull the timeline, pick out all the gaps, and classify them according to the following table:

How many days should the maturity date of 10-year permanent residency be postponed?

Add up all the days marked as "not counted" in the middle column, then push back the same number of days from the day you originally thought was the tenth year. If there were two months interrupted, push back 62 days, not a single day less.

According to LR 3.2 and LR 11.2 in Appendix Long Residence: any period of overstay between two permissions is excluded from the qualifying period. Overstays after November 24, 2016, are excluded even if they meet the Exceptions for overstayers. The version of the "Long residence" caseworker guidance dated August 3, 2026, states this unambiguously: no period of overstay will be counted towards the ten years, regardless of whether it is exempted.

By the way, correct a widely spread statement in agencies and forums: after the Hoque case was won, the overstaying that was "book-ended" by two periods of permission can be counted towards the ten years. This understanding is wrong. Hoque confirmed only one thing — this period would not break the continuity. At the same time, the court clearly stated that it does not constitute lawful residence, so it is not counted towards the ten years. The victory was in "not resetting the clock," not in "being counted."

My judgment is: if you have ever overstayed, don't spend money to fight for that period to be counted. Administrative review and appeal have almost no chance of success at this point. The Guidance is written exactly like this, and the visa officer has no discretion. It's more practical to use that money and effort on two things -- accurately recalculating the expiry date, and preparing evidence for the overstay period.

The issue of evidence has changed the source of provisions since November 11, 2025. The old paragraph 39E has been replaced by SUI 13.1 of Part Suitability, with content largely continued: the application must be submitted within 14 days after the old permit expires, and a "valid reason beyond the control of the applicant or his agent" must be provided on the spot in the application. Inpatient records, death certificates of direct relatives, and emails from schools delaying CAS are considered valid; "forget" or "too busy" are not considered valid. These documents must still be available ten years later, so scan and archive them while you still remember clearly.

If you're still unsure which category a certain period belongs to after drawing the timeline yourself, you can pay £5 at justiscript.com to get a written response from a qualified British lawyer regarding this specific question, in either Chinese or English, which is more reliable than guessing on forums.

Final self-check before submission: leave a few weeks buffer after the new expiration date, don't submit on the same day. A one-day error in the date of SET(LR) will result in rejection, and the fee will not be refunded.

This article is for reference only. For specific issues, please consult a licensed attorney.

[Data source] GOV.UK official website Home Office "Long residence" caseworker guidance (version dated August 3, 2026); "Applications from overstayers" (version dated August 3, 2026); Immigration Rules Appendix Long Residence LR 3.2, LR 11.2.

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