Present Perfect With For and Since

• When talking about an action’s duration use for if you talk about the period / duration of time, and since when you say when the action began. Examples:

for six years, for a long time, for more than an hour

since 2017, since January, since he joined the company

• When you talk about when something began (since) or its duration (for), you

need to use the present perfect (e.g. I have lived) and not the present simple (e.g. I live).

• Note that for and since can also be used in a phrase that contains the past tense:

I worked there for 10 years = now I work somewhere else.

I have worked here since I left school (if I left school in 2015, I could say

I have worked here since 2015. Consequently, since I left school is the equivalent of a precise time)

• Do not confuse for and since with from. Use from to talk about a range of time: I worked there from 2015 to 2017. They studied from 9 until 10.

• Note the difference: I am here for a month = My plan is to stay here for a month. I have been here for a month = I arrived here one month ago and I am still here.