Reference Extents are printing when they shouldnt

Question

I have an issue that I cant seem to fix no matter what I try and google. 
 
 I have a Paper/Sheet Space with the current file referenced - and when I clip the reference the clipping extents then become printable. 
 
 Below is if the reference is turned on. 
 
 Below is if the reference is turned off. 
 
 As you can see the dotted line is the clipping line - no matter what I try I can seem to get rid of it - I am worried that the previous user has modified the configurations with microstation to always plot this - but I dont know where to look. He has since left the company and I am on my own with this. 
 
 Any help would be great. 
 
 thanks 
 
 John

Lorys · Answer

if the ref is off why can I see the Circle E? is the clip boundary dashed line in the ref file that is being clipped and is it a polygon not a complex string or 4 lines.. if you draw a fence manually and tell cad to clip the ref by active fence does it work as expected? are you sure its not clip mask instead of clip boundary.. done that myself a few times