Overstaying on your UK visa is a serious offence that can frequently result in severe and far-reaching consequences, such as deportation, forced removal, detention, and other legal implications and convictions that may hinder your future immigration opportunities within the country.

The Home Office does not remind individuals of their visa expiry date. If you are unsure if you have overstayed, you should check your biometric residence permit or look for a stamp or sticker in your passport.

Who is an Overstayer in the UK

The immigration laws of the United Kingdom define an overstayer as a person whose visa or leave period has expired while they remain in the country.

Additionally, you may be considered an overstayer if your visa has been curtailed and you exceed the Home Office-specified time limit.

For example, a foreign national who was staying in the UK as a skilled worker but lost their job during their stay. The Home Office writes to the visa holder, curtailing their visas, leading it to expire in 60 days. If an individual stays here after the grace period of 60 days, they will be classed as an overstayer.

Section 24 of the Immigration Act 1971 states that a person who stays in the UK beyond the time of their leave or fails to meet the conditions of their leave may be guilty of an offence punishable by a fine or, in some cases, imprisonment for not more than six months (this may be increased in 2022 to a maximum of 4 years under the new Nationality and Borders Bill).

Possible Reason for Overstaying in the United Kingdom

In addition to desiring to remain in the country for work, pleasure, family, or investment opportunities, the following may cause you to overstay in the United Kingdom:

• Having a medical condition that poses a high risk of travel;
• Restriction by the country you intend to travel to
• Inability to arrange your travel on time
• Delayed response on a new visa application
• Covid reasons
• Forgetting your dates

What to do if you have overstayed in the UK

If you are currently an overstayer in the UK, you must take immediate action by regularising your immigration status within 14 days or leaving the country within 30 days. Engaging the services of an immigration lawyer who will review your situation and that of your family members and recommend the best course of action is highly recommended.

Your rights and options in the UK will depend on who you have with you. If you have been joined by family, you may have more options for remaining in the country. You will still be able to take your children to school until they are 16 and use emergency services, but your options will be limited because you no longer have the right to reside in the country.

The Home Office will disregard a period of overstaying if you make a new application within 14 days of your leave expiring and if you have a "good reason" beyond your control for why you were unable to apply on time.

What qualifies as a ‘good reason’?

The Home Office will disregard a period of overstaying provided that you make a new application within 14 days of your leave expiring and if you have a “good reason” which is beyond your control why you could not apply in time. “Good reasons” for overstaying may include where:

• the applicant was admitted to the hospital for emergency treatment (evidenced by an official letter verifying the dates of admission and discharge and the nature of the treatment)
• a close family bereavement
• an educational institution was not sufficiently prompt in issuing a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS)

Unacceptable reasons include forgetting your deadline or being too busy with work or studies.

The grace period for overstaying will only be granted under the most extreme of circumstances. Therefore, a person who overstays must provide as much evidence as possible to support their reasons.

What if my UK visa expires while I am awaiting another one?

If your visa expired when you submitted your new application, you will lose the right to work, access education, and receive benefits, and you will be required to suspend any activities that your previous visa permitted (such as working) until a new visa is granted. If your employer is aware that your visa has expired and that your new application was not submitted 'in time,' they risk Home Office penalties if they continue to allow you to work until you are granted a new visa or until a decision is made on an appeal or administrative review of your outstanding application.

As long as you applied for a new UK visa before the expiry of your current visa and your visa subsequently expired, you can remain in the UK. To understand how this works, we need to look at "section 3c leave" Section 3c of the Immigration Act of 1971 says,

“The purpose of section 3C leave is to prevent a person who makes an in-time application to extend their leave from becoming an overstayer while they are awaiting a decision on that application and while any appeal or administrative review they are entitled to is pending.”

In addition, the rules state that section 3c leave is applicable until the application is either approved or withdrawn. This is not the case if the application is invalid, for example: If you have left outside the rules and you are applying for a Skilled Worker visa.

• If you do not meet the minimum age requirements for a visa
• If you do not meet the nationality requirements for a visa (e.g., a commonwealth citizen if applying for an ancestry visa).
• Documents are missing from your application, and you sent the documents requested subsequently
• You have not paid your visa application fee, and you have not paid the fee when requested to do so.

Therefore, if the Home Office determines that you have applied for a new visa or visa extension without meeting the eligibility requirements, you may not be protected under 3c leave. It is imperative that you respond promptly to any requests for payment or missing documents from UKVI.

Will overstaying impact a future UK visa application?

There are long-term consequences for those who overstay their visa in the United Kingdom. If you leave the United Kingdom voluntarily after 30 days, you risk being banned from reentry for one to ten years. However, if you left the United Kingdom voluntarily and at your own expense within the first 90 days, you may not receive a re-entry ban.

Your overstaying your authorised period of leave will be considered in any future UK immigration applications based on general grounds of admissibility. This may have a negative impact on future visa applications to the United Kingdom; the Home Office might refuse your application on the grounds that you are a high risk of remaining in the country illegally.

If the reasons are deemed fraudulent (intentionally overstayed without a valid reason), there are severe consequences when seeking to re-enter the United Kingdom. You must demonstrate that you are of good character, particularly if you have been deported from the UK previously.

While it is always preferable to act within the timeframes and in advance of your visa expiring, if you find yourself in a situation where your visa has expired, you will need to act promptly to assess your options and submit the required application.



For expert advice regarding an application for Entry Clearance or Leave to Remain after becoming an overstayer, contact us on 020 3865 6219 or leave us a message.