ILR requirements: what you need for indefinite leave to remain

In brief

Indefinite leave to remain is granted once you can show a completed qualifying period of continuous lawful residence on a route that leads to settlement, that your absences fall within the limit for that route, that you meet the English language and Life in the UK requirements, and that nothing in your immigration or criminal record triggers a ground for refusal. The qualifying period is usually five years, the fee is £3,226 per person, and the Home Office service standard for a decision is six months.

The five requirements, in the order they are assessed

Each one is evidenced separately, and each one can sink an application on its own.

Qualifying period by route

The period depends on the route you have held, not on how long you have been in the UK in total.

Skilled Worker

5 years, sponsor confirmation required

Spouse or partner

5 years on the 5-year partner route

Global Talent

3 years, endorsement-dependent

Innovator Founder

3 years

BN(O)

5 years

Long residence

10 years of continuous lawful residence

Documents to have ready

Assemble the evidence before you start the form: the application locks to the date you pay.

• Current passport, plus every passport covering the qualifying period
• Your eVisa status or biometric residence permit details
• A dated list of every absence from the UK, with reasons
• English language evidence: test certificate, degree or nationality
• Life in the UK test pass reference
• Route evidence: payslips and a sponsor letter, or relationship and accommodation evidence
• Details of any criminal convictions, cautions or immigration breaches

Where a document is not in English or Welsh you need a certified translation. Where a document is missing, say so in a covering letter and explain what has been done to obtain it, rather than leaving the caseworker to guess.

Fees and processing

One fee per person, and a choice of processing speed.

Application fee

£3,226 per person

Health surcharge

Not payable on a settlement application

Standard service

Six-month service standard in the UK

Priority services

Faster decision for an additional fee, where available

We review the travel history, the salary and sponsor position and the language and test evidence before an application is submitted, so that a borderline absence record or a missing certificate is dealt with while it can still be fixed.

How a caseworker actually assesses your case

The order below mirrors the order a decision-maker works through the file.

The first check is the immigration history: has your leave been continuous, with no gap where you were in the UK without permission, and has every extension been made on a route that leads to settlement rather than a temporary one. A single unremedied gap, even a short one caused by a late renewal, can restart the clock or, in the worst case, mean the qualifying period has to be built again from scratch.

The second check is absences, using the rolling 12-month method described below rather than calendar years. The third is the specified evidence for your route: sponsor confirmation and salary evidence for work routes, or relationship and accommodation evidence for family routes. Only once residence, absences and route evidence are settled does the caseworker move to English language, the Life in the UK test, and suitability, which covers convictions, deception, debts owed to the NHS and other conduct grounds.

Because the checks are sequential, an application can be strong on language and testing but still fail on the first two points, which is why the qualifying period and the absence record deserve the most attention before you pay the fee.

Common mistakes and refusal triggers

Most refusals trace back to one of a small number of avoidable problems.

• Applying before the qualifying period has actually completed, based on a miscounted start date
• Treating the 180-day limit as a per-year allowance rather than a rolling 12-month test applied to every window
• A sponsor who has stopped confirming the role, changed the salary, or ceased sponsorship without the applicant knowing
• An English test certificate that has expired or was never at the required level for the current application
• Failing to disclose a caution or minor conviction, which is treated far more seriously than the conviction itself
• Submitting bank statements that do not match the payslips or cover a different period
• Applying on the wrong route by mistake, for example counting time on a non-settlement visa towards the five-year clock

Dependants, transitional cases and other edge cases

Family members and unusual histories need their own check.

A partner or child who has been in the UK on a dependant visa throughout the same period can normally apply for ILR alongside the main applicant, provided the relationship is still genuine and subsisting and the dependant's own absences are within the limit. Each dependant pays the full fee separately, and each needs their own English and Life in the UK evidence unless they are exempt, for example a child under 18.

Where someone has switched between routes, for example from a Student visa to Skilled Worker, only the time on the qualifying route usually counts towards the five-year clock, even though the earlier period may still help build a ten-year long residence case. If your record includes a period of overstaying that was later regularised, or a period covered by section 3C leave while a previous application was pending, get the effect on continuity checked rather than assuming it either counts or does not.

Older versions of some routes, and legacy family and work categories closed to new applicants, sometimes carry different qualifying periods or absence rules from the current Immigration Rules. If your leave was granted under an earlier version of the rules, check which version applies to your case rather than relying on the rules current at the date you apply.

Who to contact next

Getting the timing right is usually more valuable than getting the form right.

If your qualifying date is more than a few months away, use the ILR calculator to confirm it and to test your travel history against the rolling absence rule now, while there is still time to adjust future travel if you are close to the limit. If your date is close or you are unsure whether a gap in your history is fatal, a case review before you submit is normally cheaper than correcting a refusal afterwards.