Exempt vignette and ILR
My wife and I are EU citizens wanting to move to the UK. I’ve got a job offer from an international company and after asking them what type of visa they would issue and whether that counts against ILR as we want to get citizenship they replied that it will be an exempt vignette and that, yes, it counts against ILR.
However, in the sparse information I can find about this vignette, it only says that you are exempt from border checks. Nothing else. Those websites with a bit more details said that you still need 5 years on a “Tier 2” (what would be a SWV now) to qualify for ILR, so 10 years total.
Was there any recent change in these rules or is this still correct?
It also says the exempt vignette doesn’t give the “right to abode”. Would I be able to rent a flat on that vignette then? Or open a bank account?
Posted Nov 18, 2022, 9:42 AM UTC
This is a fairly specialised area. To clarify, would you be working for an 'international organisation'?
Settlement as someone exempt from immigration control is not well documented as far as eligibility. I personally know that exempt individuals are regularly granted indefinite leave to remain. I understand that this would be on the 10 year route, rather than the 5 year route.
However, assuming you are working for an international organisation (and not a diplomatic mission or NATO forces), exempt status does give you a direct route to British citizenship. If you are exempt from immigration control, you can qualify for British citizenship after 3 years in the UK. While diplomatic staff are 'technically absent' from the UK, the staff of international organisations are not, and therefore can use this time to count towards naturalisation (see guidance page 19).
As far as your ability to rent a flat or open a bank account, yes of course you can do these. However, some organisations and most landlords won't be familiar with an exempt vignette as proof of your legal presence in the UK. You should ask your employer for help if you encounter problems in this area.
Thank you for this detailed answer. :)
Yes, it would be an 'IFI'.
Is there any documentation about that citizenship application after 3 years and what else is needed to qualify? Gov.uk doesn't mention this anywhere (or I am blind).
There isn't, except it can be worked out from the document I linked. The number of people this applies to must be in the thousands, so the UK government don't care to provide specific guidance, and IMO it's a bit of a loophole (citizenship in 3 years is faster than almost any other route). You might want to discuss with a solicitor who specifically has experience with exempt individuals who are staff of international organisations. In my experience, HR at such organisations might have someone knowledgeable, or they might not. If you take up the job, you can also ask your colleagues for advice. It's a fairly unusual status and the standard advice you read on gov.uk mostly doesn't apply.
Hi I have been working with an international organisation for 5 years now. I want to apply for ILR but no info is provided for people with Exempt Vignette. Our HR is clueless and the employees with similar visa type before me used other routes like marriage. They all left. I wonder if at 5yrs I’m eligible to apply for ILR.
You should really ask this on its own thread but the short answer is you may be able to apply for citizenship.