The UK is preparing to rewrite the entire settlement system, and this consultation could drastically change your future. The familiar 5-year route to settlement may be replaced with a 10-year earned model that adjusts faster or slower depending on income, English level, occupation, and even the use of public funds. Two people starting on the same day could now wait for completely different lengths of time. The biggest question is whether these changes will apply to everybody already in the UK.
Please note that the proposed ILR rule is still under consultation and has not been finalised. If you have question or need assistance with your ILR application, please contact our immigration lawyers by calling us at 02037442797 or completing our enquiry form.
What does the “earned settlement” mean?
In short, the government wants to shift ILR from an automatic entitlement based purely on time to a privilege that must be earned. The principle is clear. You must contribute more to the UK than you take out. The earned settlement model is defined by three critical changes:
- The baseline doubled: the standard qualifying time for most routes like the Skilled Worker Visa goes from 5 years to 10 years.
- The time adjustment model: this 10-year period is flexible. It can be accelerated or delayed based on your conduct, compliance, and contribution.
- Retrospective application: this is proposed to affect people who are already in the UK and have started their journey under the old 5-year rule.
The entire system rests on four key pillars that every applicant must satisfy.
- Character
- Integration
- Contribution
- Residence
How the time adjustment model works under the new ILR rule
Let’s break down the time adjustment model because this is where the system gets complicated.
Starts with the 10-year baseline. You get credits or minus years by overperforming on the contribution and integration pillars. On integration, hitting C1 level English grants you a minus one year adjustment. But the real fast track is in contribution:
- If you have three years of taxable income over £50,270, you get a huge minus 5-year adjustment, taking you back to a 5-year path.
- Hit the top bracket, 3 years over £125,140, that’s a minus 7-year adjustment, potentially granting settlement in just 3 years.
However, the system is just as fast at applying penalties or plus years. The proposal to penalize the use of public funds, even where the home office itself authorised you to use them by lifting the no recourse to public funds condition could trigger a significant increase in your qualifying period. Furthermore, the existing 10-year ILR long residence route is to be scrapped entirely. Its purpose is now absorbed by the adjustable 10-year baseline, eliminating a vital safety net for many migrants.
The retrospective impact is perhaps the most destabilising part of the proposal. The Home Office intends these new tougher rules to apply to everybody currently in the UK who has not yet been granted settlement. Think about the implications. If you are a skilled worker in year three of what you thought was a five-year path, your expectation has just been shattered. Your application date has just been pushed out by 5 years as a minimum, assuming you meet the new contribution standard. This more effectively resets the clock for hundreds of thousands of migrants who plan their lives, their mortgages, and their families around the former 5-year rule. This entire strategic landscape has shifted, demanding immediate replanning from everyone caught in the middle.
The new model clearly creates distinct tiers of winners and losers. The winners, those earning significantly above the median wage, specifically hitting those £50k and £125k thresholds will see their paths to settlement dramatically accelerated. Also, individuals who spent 5 years in specified public service occupations are incentivized with a minus 5-year adjustment. This system is designed to reward high fiscal contribution immediately.
The proposals are explicitly and implicitly targeting low earners and those on certain visa types. Specifically, the consultation asks about setting a 15-year baseline for workers below RQF level 6, which includes a large portion of the Health and Care Visa route. This is a potential decade long increase in the wait time for essential workers who came to the UK under the promise of the former system. The message is clear. The path for low-wage labour is intended to be significantly longer and harder to access.
Why this radical move to the ILR rules?
The government cites the unprecedented and destabilising pace of migration between 2021 and 2024. They highlight that the high volume, particularly on routes like the Health and Care Visa, is projected to result in a peak of 450,000 settlement grants in 2028. The primary justification is fiscal cost. The government argues that by extending the path and enforcing a stringent contribution standard, they would ensure migrants contribute more through taxation over a longer period than they will cost by eventually accessing public funds. The proposed solution is therefore to strengthen social cohesion and public confidence by ensuring settlement is reserved for those who have definitively proven their value over time.
What should you do now?
This is a consultation meaning the final rules are not yet fixed. Your action is now critical. Respond to the consultation. All stakeholders must submit their views, particularly demanding transitional provisions to protect those already here from retrospective application.
If you are currently eligible or close to being eligible for settlement under the existing appendix long residence 10-year rule, apply immediately. This route is expected to be abolished soon.
If you are a main applicant, understand that your adult dependents will now have their own separately assessed qualifying period.
If you are a low earner or on a health and care visa, you need to consider alternative visas and career paths to switch and avoid the proposed 15-year minimum weight.
References:
GOV.UK: A fairer pathway to settlement
GOV.UK: Earned settlement
