When to Use "Have Been" vs "Was" (Real-Life Cases)

CEFR B1-B2 • Grammar • The single most confusing tense decision for non-native English writers

The two sentences that confuse everyone

Look at these two emails. Which one is right?

"I was working at Acme since 2022."

"I have been working at Acme since 2022."

The second one is right. The first one is the most common tense error from speakers of Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, and many other languages. It is not a small mistake — every native English reader hears it as "non-native" instantly. This page fixes it forever.

The core rule in one sentence

"Have been" (present perfect continuous) is for actions that started in the past and are still happening now. "Was" (past simple/continuous) is for actions that finished in the past.

The signal-word test

The fastest way to choose is to look for these signal words. They tell you which tense is right.

Use "Have been" when you see

since for + duration so far until now recently lately all day/year/morning

Examples: "since 2022," "for three years," "all morning," "so far this week"

Use "Was" when you see

yesterday last week/month/year in 2023 at 3 PM when X happened two days ago

Examples: "yesterday morning," "last quarter," "in March," "when the migration ran"

Real business email examples — side by side

Click each to hear the rhythm.

Case 1: ongoing duration vs finished period

Right: "I have been working on the migration since Monday — almost done." Started Monday + still going = "have been working."

Right: "I worked on the migration last week — finished Friday." "Last week" + "finished" = past simple "worked."

Case 2: recent completed action with present relevance

Right: "I have just finished the report — sending it now." "Just finished" + present relevance ("sending it now") = present perfect.

Right: "I finished the report yesterday at 4 PM." Specific past time = past simple.

Case 3: experience vs single event

Right: "I have led three migrations like this in my career." Life experience, time unspecified = present perfect.

Right: "I led the migration in 2023 when we moved off Oracle." Specific year = past simple.

Case 4: still happening vs done

Right: "I have been waiting for the security review since Tuesday." "Since Tuesday" + still waiting = present perfect continuous.

Right: "I waited two hours yesterday for the meeting that never happened." "Yesterday" + finished = past simple.

The killer test: ask "is it still happening?"

When in doubt, ask yourself: is the action still going on right now?

If YES → "have been" (or "have")
If NO, it finished → "was" (or "did," "wrote," etc.)

Apply the test to these:

"I (have been / was) at Acme for three years." Still there? → "have been at Acme."

"I (have been / was) at Acme from 2020 to 2023." Left in 2023? → "was at Acme."

"She (has been working / worked) on the report all morning." Still working? → "has been working."

"She (has worked / worked) on the report all morning yesterday." Yesterday is done? → "worked."

The common trap: "since" requires "have been"

If your sentence has the word "since," the verb almost always must be present perfect. "Since" describes a starting point that is still active.

Wrong: "I work here since 2022."

Right: "I have worked here since 2022." or "I have been working here since 2022." "Since" = ongoing from a start point. Always present perfect.

"Have done" vs "have been doing": both present perfect, but different

This is the next level of subtlety. Both connect past to present, but with different emphasis.

Form	Emphasizes	Example
Have + past participle (have done, have written)	Completion or result	"I have written the report."
Have been + -ing (have been doing, have been writing)	Duration or ongoing process	"I have been writing the report all morning."

Quick test: if you can add "and I am still doing it now," use "have been." If the action is complete with a result you want to highlight, use "have."

15 real business sentences — choose the right form

"I (have been / was) waiting for your approval for two weeks." → have been (still waiting)
"I (have been / was) waiting for your approval last month." → was ("last month" = finished)
"She (has worked / worked) at three companies before joining us." → has worked (life experience, no specific time)
"She (has worked / worked) at three companies between 2015 and 2022." → worked (specific time period)
"Sales (have been / were) strong this quarter." → have been (this quarter still going)
"Sales (have been / were) strong last quarter." → were (last quarter is done)
"The team (has shipped / shipped) eight features this year." → has shipped (this year still going)
"The team (has shipped / shipped) eight features in 2024." → shipped (specific year, done)
"I (have been / was) on this project since the kickoff." → have been ("since")
"I (have been / was) on the kickoff call yesterday morning." → was ("yesterday")
"He (has lived / lived) in Berlin for ten years." → has lived (still there) or lived (if no longer there)
"I (have just finished / just finished) the deck — sending now." → have just finished (recent + present relevance)
"The migration (has been running / was running) for 6 hours when it crashed." → was running (specific past moment)
"I (have already sent / already sent) the contract." → have already sent ("already" with present relevance) or already sent (acceptable in American English with specific time)
"We (have been monitoring / were monitoring) the system all night." → have been monitoring (still going) or were monitoring (if last night, now done)

Mistakes by language background

Spanish/Portuguese speakers: native instinct says "I am working here since 2022" (present continuous). English requires "I have been working here since 2022" — present perfect.
French speakers: "I have worked yesterday" (passé composé translation). English specific past time → "I worked yesterday."
German speakers: present perfect overuse. "I have done it last week" → "I did it last week."
Italian speakers: similar to French — passato prossimo with specific past time. "I have called him yesterday" → "I called him yesterday."
Hindi/Tamil speakers: ongoing actions sometimes use present continuous. "I am reading this book since two days" → "I have been reading this book for two days."

Practice: Test yourself

Tap each question to reveal the answer.

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