UK doubles wait for permanent residence to 10 years under new 'earned settlement' rules

Migrants in the UK will now have to wait 10 years, rather than five, before they can apply to stay permanently, under a new system the British government calls earned settlement.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood set out the changes to the House of Commons on Monday, 2 November. Indefinite leave to remain, the status that lets people live in the UK for good, will stop being close to automatic at the five-year mark. How long someone waits will depend on what they earn, the work they do and how they have kept to the rules.

Some people can still settle faster. Those earning more than £125,000, and arrivals on top-talent schemes, could qualify after three years. People earning over about £50,000, and some public service staff such as doctors, nurses and teachers, could qualify after five. Care workers keep a five-year route too, provided they have stuck to the terms of their visa and been paid £25,000 or more a year, as do refugees who come through approved safe and legal routes.

Others face much longer waits. Anyone who has broken immigration rules faces at least 20 years, and the Home Office says migrants who rely on benefits also face a 20-year wait. People who enter the country illegally, including on small boats, could wait up to 30 years.

Everyone applying will also need a clean criminal record, English at roughly A-level standard, no debts owed to the government, and a record of paying National Insurance.

The government says nobody who already has settled status will lose it, and nobody will be made to leave the country. It expects more than half a million people to wait longer than five years, with many offered a further five-year visa instead. Changes will start to be written into the Immigration Rules from December and rolled out during 2027. Family members of British citizens, Hong Kong BN(O) holders and members of the armed forces keep their current routes.

The changes will be watched closely in Nigeria, which has sent large numbers of health and care workers, students and skilled workers to the UK in recent years.