UK Announces New ILR Rules: Permanent Residency Wait May Increase to 10 Years

The UK government has announced that permanent settlement will no longer be automatic after five years of living in the country. Migrants must now earn Indefinite Leave to Remain based on their earnings, economic contribution and immigration record. The standard wait rises to 10 years for most people, with faster routes for higher earners and certain public service workers. The changes followed a consultation that drew 200,000 responses.

Yes, eligible overseas care workers keep the five-year route to Indefinite Leave to Remain. The government dropped a proposed extension that could have raised their wait to 15 years. Care workers must have complied with their visa conditions and earned at least £25,000 annually. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said workers who answered the country’s call during a difficult period should be recognised for their contribution.

The government estimates that around a quarter of care workers will not qualify for the five-year route. Those workers will get another opportunity through a new five-year visa. They can apply for settlement after completing that additional period, provided they meet the requirements by then. A similar approach applies to public service workers in healthcare and education who arrived during the same period.

The new standard wait for Indefinite Leave to Remain is 10 years for most migrants. Faster routes exist for people earning above £50,271, who can apply after five years, and for those earning over £125,000, who can apply after three. Doctors, nurses and teachers meeting specified criteria also qualify for five years. The Home Office estimates about 500,000 people will wait longer than five years.

Every ILR applicant must meet four conditions, regardless of when they arrived in the UK. These are a clean criminal record under stricter requirements than today, a high standard of English, no outstanding debts owed to the UK government, and a record of sustained National Insurance contributions. The newspaper report notes that at least three years of National Insurance contributions will be needed.

Student, graduate and youth mobility routes will not count towards earned settlement. This means time spent on these visas will not be added to the qualifying period for Indefinite Leave to Remain. The retrospective nature of the change has caused anxiety among migrants who expected ILR after five years, including many Indians. Groups such as INSA UK have warned that it creates significant uncertainty for students, graduates and skilled workers.

Migrants who have breached immigration rules, including by overstaying a visa or accessing public funds during the five years before applying, face a wait of at least 20 years. Applicants should therefore keep to their visa conditions and avoid claiming public funds. The Home Office says people facing longer waits will not be forced to leave the UK and can apply for further visas.

Refugees arriving through approved safe and legal routes can apply for settlement after five years. Those arriving illegally could face a 20-year wait, which is reduced to 10 years for individuals who work or study. People entering through small boats or other clandestine routes could face an additional 10 years, taking the total wait to as much as 30 years. These rules sit within a wider shift towards an earned settlement system based on contribution and compliance.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said care workers who came to Britain to support the health and social care sector after Covid should be recognised for their contribution. The decision followed a year-long public consultation. She also acknowledged that some rogue employers misused the visa route by sponsoring overseas workers for jobs that did not exist, and the concession applies only to workers who meet the revised requirements.

Indians accounted for the largest number of workers on the Health and Social Care visa, receiving 104,555 visa extensions in the year ending December 2025. Indian migrants should check which category applies to them, whether care work, public service, or higher earnings, and confirm they meet the income, English, debt and National Insurance conditions. Those in other occupations may need to reassess their long-term plans under the stricter framework.