The May 2025 Immigration White Paper committed to increasing the standard qualifying period for settlement in the UK from 5 to 10 years. Following a consultation launched in November 2025, the government set out the final framework on 2 November 2026, with periods from 3 to 30 years. Rule changes are expected from December 2026, so an applicant planning on a 5-year route may need to wait twice as long. This post provides an overview of the earned settlement qualifying periods for a UK indefinite leave to remain application.
What are the earned settlement qualifying periods?
Under the current immigration rules, most applicants on a route to settlement apply after 5 years. On 2 November 2026, the Home Secretary announced in Parliament that the standard 5-year period will be replaced with periods of 3, 5, 10 and 20 years, and illegal entry can extend the wait to 30 years. Each applicant’s period will depend on earnings, occupation, family connection and immigration record.
Each applicant must also meet the same mandatory requirements, whichever period applies.
| Qualifying period | Who it is for | Main condition |
|---|---|---|
| 3 years | Exceptional economic contribution | Earnings of at least £125,141 in 3 of the 4 years before applying or qualifying through the highest talent group |
| 5 years | Strong contribution or a British connection | Earnings of at least £50,271 in 3 of the 5 years before applying or 5 years in an eligible health or education occupation or a recognised British connection |
| 10 years | The new default | Earnings of at least £12,571 in 5 of the 7 years before applying |
| 20 years | Applicants with an immigration breach or recent use of public funds | Earnings of at least £12,571 in 5 of the 7 years before applying |
| Up to 30 years | Applicants who entered the UK illegally | A further 10 years on top of the applicable pathway |
The earnings thresholds follow the income tax bands, so they will move if those bands change. Settlement for refugees follows a separate set of pathways.
Some groups retain their current settlement rules:
- people with status under the EU Settlement Scheme;
- bereaved partners and victims of domestic abuse, who can still apply for settlement immediately; and
- children who have grown up in the UK and children in local authority care.
High earners and top talent: who can settle after 3 years?
The announcement confirms the 3-year pathway proposed for the highest earners in the November 2025 consultation. Two categories of applicant will qualify:
- an applicant earning at least £125,141 in 3 of the 4 years before applying; and
- an applicant who qualifies through the highest talent group.
The £125,141 threshold matches the additional rate of income tax. One year below it is allowed within those 4 years. The highest talent group remains under review, pending a report from the Migration Advisory Committee.
The 3-year pathway is open only to applicants holding permission on one of the following “high talent” routes:
- Skilled Worker;
- Global Talent;
- Scale Up;
- Innovator Founder; or
- International Sportsperson.
An applicant relying on Global Talent or Innovator Founder permission must hold that permission at the most recent grant.
Higher earners, public service workers and British connections: who can settle after 5 years?
The 5-year period that applies to most routes today will continue only for the following four categories:
- Higher earners: earnings of at least £50,271 in 3 of the 5 years before applying.
- Public service workers: 5 years in a listed health or education occupation paid on a national pay scale.
- A recognised British connection: eligible partners, parents and children of British citizens, including partners on the spouse visa route, and Commonwealth citizens on the UK Ancestry route.
- Protected groups: Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas), and the partners and children of members of the armed forces. Armed forces personnel can settle after at least 4 years of reckonable service.
Working in public service does not currently shorten the route to settlement. Following advice from the Migration Advisory Committee, the response lists the qualifying occupations in Annex C. They include:
- generalist and specialist medical practitioners;
- registered nurses, midwives and paramedics;
- pharmacists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and radiographers;
- nursery, primary, secondary and further education teachers, and head teachers; and
- social workers.
Permission on the Family and Private Life routes does not qualify for the 3- or 5-year pathways. A partner of a British citizen whose permission was granted on the basis of exceptional circumstances is not covered by the British connection.
One-off transitional arrangements also keep a 5-year route for some care workers and health and education workers below degree level. Care workers must have entered or switched into the care route before the Immigration White Paper was published on 12 May 2025. The health and education workers must have come to the UK before that date. These are covered in the ILR update on earned settlement.
Most other applicants: who will need 10 years to settle?
The 10-year default was first proposed in the May 2025 White Paper. The consultation also proposed 15 years for workers in jobs below degree level, but the final framework dropped this. Every applicant who meets the mandatory requirements but does not fall within a shorter pathway will need 10 years, including:
- workers earning below £50,271 who are not in a listed public service occupation, including Skilled Workers in jobs below degree level; and
- care workers who joined the care worker route after 12 May 2025.
The applicant must earn at least £12,571 in 5 of the 7 years before applying. Two years below the threshold are allowed, so maternity leave, caring or illness does not automatically push an applicant onto a longer pathway.
The response states that people on a family visa “not sponsored by a British citizen will move to a longer pathway to settlement”. It does not name the pathway for partners of settled persons, so the period will depend on the rules when they are laid.
Applicants on a 10-year pathway can continue to renew their existing visas until they qualify.
Immigration breaches, public funds and illegal entry: when do the 20- and 30-year periods apply?
Under the current rules, a past immigration breach does not lead to a permanently longer route. The consultation asked whether a breach should add 5, 10, 15 or 20 years, and the response settles on a 20-year pathway. It will apply in two situations, regardless of higher earnings or other contributions:
- a specified immigration breach committed as an adult; or
- specified public funds received in the 5 years before applying.
The qualifying immigration breaches will be listed in the Immigration Rules. They will include:
- overstaying a visa;
- breaching a condition of permission;
- using deception in an application; and
- taking action to frustrate immigration controls.
A breach counts only where the applicant was aged 18 or over at the time. An applicant who has received public funds can return to a shorter pathway by completing 5 continuous years without them.
Illegal entry adds a further 10 years to the qualifying period. The government response states that this applies to all migrants, not only refugees. According to the Home Office announcement, a person who arrived by small boat or another clandestine route could wait up to 30 years. Like an immigration breach, it counts only where the person was an adult at the time.
A criminal record is treated differently. Any adult applicant with a criminal record in the UK will be refused settlement, rather than moved to a longer pathway.
Which routes count towards the qualifying period?
Under the current rules, lawful time on temporary routes can count towards settlement through the 10-year long residence route. Under earned settlement, only time on a route that leads to settlement will count. The response lists these as longer-term work, talent and family routes, Family and Private Life, protection routes and safe and legal routes.
Time on the following temporary routes will not count:
- Student and Graduate;
- High Potential Individual;
- Global Business Mobility;
- Youth Mobility, Seasonal Worker and other temporary worker routes; and
- Visit.
The consultation proposed removing the separate long residence route, so former students and graduates may face a longer route to settlement. The current long residence rules continue to apply until the new rules take effect, as do the current rules on continuous residence for ILR.
Time on a protection or human rights route cannot be combined with time on a work or family route. Where an applicant moves between the two, the qualifying period for the new pathway starts again from the date of the move.
Can a couple combine their earnings?
Yes, for the minimum contribution requirement. The consultation asked whether partners should earn settlement in their own right, and the response moved away from that approach. A couple can instead combine their earnings to meet a household threshold of £25,142, twice the individual threshold of £12,571.
The relationship must be genuine and subsisting, and only one person can rely on the other’s earnings. The response does not say that earnings can be combined to meet the £50,271 or £125,141 thresholds.
A partner who arrives with the main applicant can settle at the same time, provided they meet the relevant requirements. A partner who joins later needs to complete the same qualifying period first.
Do the new qualifying periods apply now?
No. The qualifying periods are government policy, and no Statement of Changes has yet written them into the Immigration Rules.
According to the House of Commons Library briefing, the Home Secretary told MPs the rule changes would start to be published in December 2026. They would then come into force over the course of 2027. The current 5-year routes to indefinite leave to remain continue to apply until the new rules take effect.
The Home Secretary told Parliament that the settlement rules are determined when a settlement decision is made, not when someone arrives. Unless the new rules include transitional provisions, an application is ordinarily decided under the rules in force on the date of the decision.
One related change is already in the Immigration Rules. Appendix KoLL requires B2 English for settlement applications made on or after 26 March 2027.
Frequently asked questions
Does earning £125,141 for one year qualify for the 3-year pathway?
No. The applicant must earn at least £125,141 in 3 of the 4 years before applying.
Will the spouse of a British citizen need 10 years to settle?
No. Eligible partners of British citizens have a recognised British connection and keep the 5-year pathway. They must still meet the mandatory requirements, including B2 English, the Life in the UK test and the contribution requirement.
Can a higher level of English shorten the qualifying period?
No. B2 will be the standard English requirement for settlement. The consultation asked whether C1 English should reduce the qualifying period, and the government decided that it will not.
Does time on a Student or Graduate visa count towards settlement?
No. Time on temporary routes, including the Student and Graduate routes, will not count towards the qualifying period under earned settlement.
How Whytecroft Ford can help
The qualifying period that applies will depend on an applicant’s earnings, occupation, family connection and immigration history, and the transitional provisions are not yet known. An applicant close to settlement under the current rules may wish to take advice on timing now. Whytecroft Ford’s immigration team is experienced, approachable and professional. The team prepares settlement applications every day, including applications by partners of British citizens and settled persons.
To discuss your application with our team, call 0208 757 5751 or use the contact form.
Disclaimer: The material in this article is provided for guidance and general information only and is not intended to constitute legal or other professional advice upon which you should rely. In particular, the information should not be used as a substitute for a full and proper consultation with a suitably qualified professional. UK Immigration Rules are subject to change. Please do contact the Whytecroft Ford team if you require further advice.
