Quote Originally Posted by gWaPito View Post
'I think' At least this absent mindedness doesn't just apply to my wife.

The earliest you can apply is 28 days before you present expires. Not anytime.

Good luck
she can gwapito, in fact if she had come to the uk on a visit visa or student visa etc in the past and taken the 'life in uk' test, she could have got ILE (same as ILR) instead of a spouse visa

We may be able to give you permission to live permanently in the UK as soon as you arrive, if:

* you and your partner married or formed a civil partnership at least four years ago;
* you have spent those four years living together outside the UK;
* you are both coming to the UK to settle here together; and
* you have sufficient knowledge of the English language and life in the UK. (You do not need to meet this last requirement if you are aged 65 or over.)

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/pa...civilpartners/