Settlement in the UK

What do you need to know about Settlement in the UK?

Settlement in the UK, also known as Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), is permission to remain in the UK without any time restrictions on the length of stay.

It is not the same as naturalisation as a British citizen and may, in specific circumstances, be ceased or invalidated. For example: if a fraudulent application is uncovered, or if the person resides outside of the UK for more than two years, or because of a criminal conviction that results in a Deportation Order coming into force.

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Legal guidance at a glance:

Advise on your Rights
Assessment of your Claim Free
Assessment of Good Character
Prepare documents in support of claim
Prepare your Naturalisation Application
Keep you informed of all developments

What is Settlement in the UK?

Under the Immigration Rules, if you have spent five years in the UK under a qualifying UK Immigration Status, then you may apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain and, if successful, you will be allowed to live permanently in the United Kingdom.

How do I know if I am in a qualifying status for Settlement?

To consider the Indefinite Leave to Remain qualification, you must either be under a Points-Based System (PBS) status that has not been suspended; or be under a family dependant status which leads to the qualifying status of settlement.

Your application for settlement will be subject to the legal requirements, subject to the type of UK Immigration Status you currently hold.

Immigration routes suspended:

The categories below were closed when the PBS was introduced (or have closed since) and the table below gives the nearest comparable route under PBS.

Previous category PBS Category Fresh talent:
• working in Scotland Tier 1 (Graduate entrepreneur) International graduate scheme
• Tier 1 (Graduate entrepreneur)
• Tier 1 (Post-study work)
• Tier 1 (Graduate entrepreneur)
• Carers (other than work permit holders)
• Tier 2 (General) or visitors’ category Jewish agency
• Tier 2 (General) General Agreement in Trade-in-Services (GATS)
• Tier 5 (Temporary worker – international agreement)
• Au pairs Tier 5 (Youth mobility scheme) – restricted age and nationalities Gap year entrants Tier 5 (Youth mobility scheme) – restricted age and nationalities Working holiday maker
• Tier 5 (Youth mobility scheme) – restricted age and nationality China graduate work experience
• Tier 5 (Temporary worker – government authorised exchange) International Association for the Tier 5 (Temporary worker – government authorised exchange)
• Teachers and language assistants Tier 5 (Temporary worker – government authorised exchange)
• Work permit holder – Training and Work Experience Scheme, Medical Training Initiative
• Tier 5 (Temporary worker) – Government authorised exchange and sponsored by a UK government department Voluntary worker
• Tier 5 (Temporary worker – charity worker) Japan youth exchange
• Tier 5 (Youth mobility scheme) or Tier 5 (Temporary worker) Research assistants to MPs Any part of the points-based system that they meet the requirements of. British Universities North America Club (BUNAC) students
• Tier 5 (Temporary worker – government authorised exchange) International Fire Fighters Fellowship programme
• Tier 5 (Temporary worker – government authorised exchange) Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) International secondment scheme
• Tier 5 (Temporary worker – government authorised exchange) EU Leonardo da Vinci programme
• Tier 5 (Temporary worker – government authorised exchange)
• Film crew on location Business visitor Overseas qualified nurses, midwives and student nurses not on work permits
• Overseas qualified nurses, midwives and student nurses not on work permits – Tier 2 (General) Student nurses
• Tier 5 – (Temporary worker – religious worker)
• Closed employment categories:
• Highly skilled migrant programme.
• Airport-based operational ground staff of overseas-owned airlines.
• Overseas government employees.
• Private servants in diplomatic households.
• Work permit holders – business and commercial and sports and entertainment.
• Ministers of religion, missionaries and members of religious orders.
• Sole representatives.
• Representatives of overseas newspapers, news agencies and broadcasting organisations.

Categories still qualifying (subject to all the requirements met) lead to settlement are:

• Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) migrant Representatives of an overseas business
• Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) migrant, accelerated UK ancestry
• Tier 1 (Exceptional Talent) migrant Retired persons of independent means
• Tier 1 (Investor) migrant Bereaved partner
• Tier 1 (Investor) migrant, accelerated Biometric immigration document (Biometric Residence Permit (BRP))
• Tier 2 migrant Other purposes/reasons not covered by other PBS Dependant application forms Employment not requiring a work permit

Can my family members that are living in the UK apply to settle in the UK?

If you are a spouse, civil partner, same sex or unmarried partner of a person present and settled in the UK and entered the UK on the correct Spouse Visa, Same Sex Visa as a civil partner, provided all the legal requirements have been met.

How many EU citizens are eligible for ‘settled status’?

Nearly four million EU nationals could be eligible, with the Government anticipating around 3.5million applications.

Those living in the UK lawfully for at least five years will be granted “settled status” and can live, work and claim benefits just as they can now.

All EU citizens who move to the UK before the cut-off point will be given “blanket permission” to stay for a period – expected to be up to two years.

Close family members of those with settled status who live in a different country will be able to reunite at any point in the future and will be eligible for settled status after five years.
Family members such as spouses, civil partners, partners of more than two years, and dependent grandchildren, parents and grandchildren.

Children born in the UK to parents from the EU will automatically become British citizens. Irish citizens will not have their rights affected by Brexit and will always be able to live and work in Britain freely, provided all the legal requirements are satisfied.

For further advice and guidance on your settlement rights as a spouse or EEA National or Family member call us on +44(0)1634 789223 today.

Settlement in the UK Reviews

See some of our reviews about Shabana Shahab, who will be your lead consultant, her wealth of experience and client management skills is a reflection of why many Settlement in the UK cases, have been successfully managed before the Home Office.

My mother's application for settlement in the U. K. Was professionally and diligently handled by Status Solutions. Thorough research was carried out by Shabana Shahab to provide overwhelming evidence which proved that there were compelling circumstances to grant my mother a visa for Indefinite Leave to Remain in the United Kingdom. The Immigration authorities issued the visa for my ailing mother, as Shabana ensured that all legal angles were covered. I would highly recommend Status Solutions.

My husband and I are extremely happy and grateful with the service that we've received from Shabana and the Status Solutions team. For the past 2 years my husband and I have had an extremely difficult journey with my immigration to the UK. We sought legal advice from other sources to help our case but were really let down by their lack of knowledge and care which made our journey much more difficult and stressful. My husband and I were immediately impressed by Shabana's knowledge of immigration law but most of all we were impressed with her genuine empathy for what we had gone through and her diligence in ensuring that our application was perfect. We would definitely recommend using Status Solutions for any immigration advice and help and will be seeking her services again when we go to review our marriage visa in the future. Thank you Status Solutions for your help; it has literally meant the world to us.

Honestly, since my visa application was submitted to the Home Office right in the teeth of Brexit, my fingers were firmly crossed. Status Solutions UK were extremely thorough and professional with respect to documentation and packaging. Subsequent to the submission of my application, status updates and communication from Status Solutions were few and far between. Nevertheless, it was clear that the company was doing its best under the circumstances. In conclusion, since all is well that ends well, I give Status Solutions lots of kudos for the successful outcome, and wish to thank them for a job well done.

Excellent free legal advice given. We recently applied for my wife's ILR (settlement) application. Shabana was very professional in her approach and was on point with the criteria we needed to meet. Our application was successful. I would not hesitate to recommend Status Solutions to colleague or friend in the future.

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