[Quanta Mechanic]

I have been looking around the internet for a few sources of information about the possibility
of getting a restricted licence, before getting the full licence, in order to "bank" the ground exams and stop the 2 year clock from running out to get the unrestricted licence.

My searches have found either conflicting, unclear and some very old information, and I'm struggling to get to grips with it.

One site suggests:

"You can ‘stop the clock’ on everything but your navigation hours by making an application for a NPPL with operational limitations immediately, with a view to completing the navigation requirements later. Your total minimum hours requirements will be 15 rather than 25, and your total minimum PIC hours will be 7 rather than 10. All exams and hours must still have been completed within 24 months of application though."

Does this mean that all your passed exams will be banked , and if you want to obtain an unrestricted licence,
you just have to complete the qualifying nav/cross county within 2 years of applying for the restricted licence?

There's a few people out there that suggest there's no time limit on when you have to do the final nav/cross county (you just do it when you want)

I just wanted to know what the true position was.