I will telephone you after I have seen Peter.

After you have completed this form, give it to the secretary.

We will not accept the offer until they have agreed to our conditions.

I will come back after I have had my lunch.

I understand that you have decided to accept the job.

Instead of the present perfect tense, we can use simple present tense in these sentences. Note that the simple present tense doesn’t put an emphasis on the completion of the action.

I will telephone you after I see Peter.

After you complete this form, give it to the secretary.

We will not accept the offer until they agree to our conditions.

A past perfect tense can be used in the subordinate clause when the verb in the main clause is in the past tense. Here the past perfect tense is used to show that one thing is completed before another starts.

After he had finished his studies, he went to the US.

He wrote his first book after he had returned from Nigeria.

Have you seen him this morning?
I have never seen anything like this before.
We have endured his tyranny for several years now.
He has not returned the book he borrowed from me.
I have just completed my book on Hindu mythology.
They have not yet paid the arrears from 1995 onwards.

Subject + intransitive verb (present perfect) + adverbials or complements

We have lived here for ten years.
The company has grown enormously in the last two years.
He has already gone to the post office.
I have been there this morning.

Notes

Adverbs of past time (e.g. yesterday, last year, two years ago etc.) cannot be used with the present perfect tense. However, adverbs like just, recently, as yet, ever, never, already, today, this morning etc., can be used with the present perfect tense.

Common errors

I have written to him yesterday. (Wrong)
I wrote to him yesterday. OR I have written to him. (Right)
His father has died last year. (Wrong)
His father died last year. OR His father has died. (Right)

Changing an assertive sentence into the passive

Active: I have written a story.
Passive: A story has been written by me.
Active: They have built a house.
Passive: A house has been built by them.
Active: He has broken my window.
Passive: My window has been broken by him.
Active: I have placed an order for a digital camera.
Passive: An order for a digital camera has been placed by me.
Active: She has done her work.
Passive: Her work has been done by her.

Changing a negative sentence into the passive

Active: I have not received a telegram.
Passive: A telegram has not been received by me.
Active: She has not written a story.
Passive: A story has not been written by her.
Active: She has not cheated anybody.
Passive: Nobody has been cheated by her.

Changing an interrogative sentence into the passive

Passive forms of these sentences will begin with has or have. When the active sentence begins with a question word (e.g. when, where, which, why etc.), the passive sentence will also begin with a question word. When the active sentence begins with who or whose the passive sentence will begin with by whom or by whose. When the active sentence begins with whom, the passive sentence will begin with who.

Active: Have you kept the secret?
Passive: Has the secret been kept by you?
Active: Who has done this?
Passive: By whom has this been done?
Active: Why have you told a lie?
Passive: Why has a lie been told by you?
Active: Who has torn my book?
Passive: By whom has my book been torn?
Active: Have you written the letter?
Passive: Has the letter been written by you?
Active: Has the policeman caught the thief?
Passive: Has the thief been caught by the policeman?
Active: Has the postal department released a new stamp?
Passive: Has a new stamp been released by the postal department?

‘Where is Alice?’ ‘She has been to the market.’ (Wrong)
She has gone to the market. (Right)

Explanation

She has been to the market means that sometime in the past she went to the market and came back. She has gone to the market means that she is still in the market; she hasn’t come back yet. If Alice was present on the scene, there was no need to ask where she was.

Have you ever visited the US? ‘Yes, I have gone to the US.’ (Wrong)
‘Yes, I have been to the US.’ (Correct)

Explanation

Yes, I have gone to the US means that I am still in the US. How can I answer the question then? Yes, I have been to the US means that I went to the US and then came back. So I know the US; I am not a stranger to that country.

Present perfect in the subordinate clauses

The present perfect tense can be used in the subordinate clause only when the verb in the main clause is either in the present or the future tense.

We will start the work after they have agreed to our conditions.
I will telephone you after I have seen him.
I will go to America after I have finished school.
After you have completed this form give it to the secretary.
He cannot be appointed before he has finished his studies.
I understand you have resigned from the committee.

When the main verb is in the past tense

When the verb in the main clause is in the past tense, the present perfect tense cannot be used in the subordinate clause. Use a past tense like simple past or past perfect.

He wrote this book after he has returned from Africa. (Wrong)
He wrote this book after he had returned from Africa. (Right)
She went to America after she has finished her studies. (Wrong)
She went to America after she had finished her studies. (Right)
We began the work after they have agreed to our terms and conditions. (Wrong)
We began the work after they had agreed to our terms and conditions. (Right)

When the verb is transitive

The present perfect tense has the following structure: Subject + has/have + past participle form of the verb + object + adverbials/complements etc.

Have you seen him this morning?
I have never seen him before.
I have just completed my book on Hindu philosophy.
They have already paid the dues from 1990 onwards.
He has not yet returned the book he borrowed from me.
It hasn’t stopped raining since yesterday.
She has endured many hardships.
I have not yet completed my work.
She has not returned home.

When the verb is intransitive

When the verb is intransitive, there will be no object and the sentences will have the following structure:
Subject + has/have + past participle of the intransitive verb + adverbials or complements etc.

We have lived here since 1995.
We have lived here for 20 years.
You have grown enormously in the last two years.
He has already gone to the market.
I have been there this morning.

She has slept for four hours.

Notes

The present perfect is a present tense, so we cannot place the action at a point of time in the past. Consequently, adverbs referring to the past time (e.g. yesterday, last week, last year, two years ago etc.) cannot be used with the present perfect tense.  But note that a period of time extending up to the present time may be mentioned. Examples are: for two years, for a long time, since 1995, in the last two years etc. Adverbs like just, recently, already, ever, never, yet, today, this morning etc., may also be used with the present perfect tense.

Common Errors

I have written to him yesterday. (Wrong)
I wrote to him yesterday. (Right)
She has died two months ago. (Wrong)
She died two months ago. (Right)
We have lived there till 1990. (Wrong)
We lived there till 1990. (Right)

Explanation

The adverbs ‘yesterday’, ‘two months ago’ and ‘till 1990’ refer to the past time and cannot be used with the present perfect tense. If you do have to mention these adverbs use the simple past tense.

Form
Affirmative
I have written.
He has written.
They/you/we have written.

Negative
I have not written.
She has not written.
They/you/we have not written.

Interrogative
Have I written?
Has he written?
Have they/you/we written?

The present perfect tense is used to talk about an action just completed.
Read the sentences given below.

I have finished the story.
They have returned.
She has applied for leave of absence.

The present perfect tense can also be used to talk about an action which began some time in the past and has continued up to the present.

I have always wanted to learn the art of painting.
We have lived in this city for several years.
I haven’t seen him for a long time.

To talk about past actions that cannot be attributed to a definite time

The present perfect tense can be used to talk about past actions which cannot be attributed to a definite time.

I have visited Canada and Australia.
I have written several short stories.
I have often gone to that theatre.
She has acted in a film.

Here we are talking about past actions but we do not state when that particular past action took place. Note that we use simple past tense to talk about past actions which can be attributed to a definite time.

Compare
I visited Canada and Australia last year. (NOT I have visited Canada and Australia last year.)
I wrote several short stories last week. (NOT I have written several short stories yesterday.)
I wrote to him yesterday. (NOT I have written to him yesterday.)

Notes

No adverbs of time referring to the past can be used with the present perfect tense. If you have to, use simple past instead.
However, certain adverbs like ever, always, never, constantly etc., can be used with the present perfect tense.

I have never seen him before.
Have you ever been to Kashmir?
He has constantly eluded the police.
John has always been a rebel.

The Present Perfect Continuous Tense

Form
Affirmative
I have been writing.
She has been writing.
They/you/we have been writing.

Negative
I have not been writing.
She has not been writing.
They/you/we have not been writing.

Interrogative
Have I been writing?
Has she been writing?
Have they/you/we been writing?

The present perfect continuous tense is used to talk about an action which began sometime in the past, has gone on till the present and is still continuing.

She has been sleeping for four hours.
I have been working in the garden since morning.
It has been raining since yesterday.

In the sentence She has been sleeping for four hours, she started sleeping four hours ago, slept without stopping for four hours and is still sleeping.
Note that we use the present perfect continuous tense to emphasize the duration and continuity of the action.