Leave to Remain Application Date: How to Calculate it and Why it is Important

You’ve left extending your visa until the last minute and are now in danger of missing the deadline. Does this matter and is there anything you can do about it? The answer to the first question is a resounding yes. Fortunately, in most cases, the answer to the second question can also be yes. For all of their issues, the introduction of online applications forms allows migrants in danger of running out of time to buy a little breathing space. The extension application can be made online, fixing that as the legal date of application, and the appointment needed to finalise things booked for a later date. This post explains the concept of an application date in immigration law, how to calculate it, and why making an application online can help beat the deadline.

Why is the date of an application for leave to remain important?

Knowing the legal date that an immigration application has been made on is important for a number of reasons. The most obvious one affects those who are applying to renew their leave. People in this situation must submit their application before the expiry of their current leave to avoid becoming overstayers, and therefore losing the right to work, the right to rent, and, these days, potentially their bank account or driving licence. If, on the other hand, they submit a valid application before the expiry of their leave, the terms and conditions of that leave will continue until a decision is made on the application (section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971). The date of application is also important to those who want to rely on paragraph 39E of the Immigration Rules. This allows for a period of overstaying to be overlooked when:

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