Earned Settlement November 2026: What the New ILR Rules Mean for You?

The standard route to indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in the UK is doubling from five to ten years. On 2 November 2026, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood confirmed the final shape of the Government’s earned settlement policy in a statement to the House of Commons. Under it, how long you wait to settle will depend on what you earn, the work you do and how you have contributed, not simply on time spent in the UK.

Below, our senior UK immigration solicitors at Deluxe Law Chambers break down the essential updates, cabinet compromises, key requirements, and what these changes mean for your future in the UK.

Earned Settlement At A Glance

• 10 years becomes the standard qualifying period for ILR for most migrants, including anyone earning under £50,000.
• 5 years remains for those earning over £50,000 and for doctors, nurses, teachers and similar public service roles.
• 3 years for top earners on over £125,000 and arrivals on the UK’s highest talent schemes.
• Four baseline tests apply to everyone: a clean criminal record, high-level English, no debts to the taxpayer, and at least three years of National Insurance contributions.
• Care workers who came before May 2025 and met their visa conditions keep their five-year route.
• Refugees face 5, 20 or 30 years depending on how they arrived, cut by 10 years for those in work or study.

What is an earned settlement scheme?

Earned settlement replaces the long-standing principle that ILR follows almost automatically after five years of lawful residence. Instead, the qualifying period is set by your contribution, judged both financially and through public service. In the Home Secretary’s words, settlement “should be earned.”

ILR matters because it unlocks permanent residence, full access to the NHS and education, eligibility for welfare, and the usual path to British citizenship. Lengthening the route therefore affects visa costs, family planning, career decisions and, for employers, workforce retention.

The four baseline requirements:

Before any qualifying period is counted, every applicant must clear four disqualifying tests:

• No criminal record.
• English to a high standard, expected to be higher than today’s level.
• No outstanding debt to the taxpayer.
• At least three years of National Insurance contributions.

Two further conditions apply.An immigration breach pushes settlement back to 20 years. Anyone who has claimed benefits must show five continuous years without recourse to the state before applying.

The detailed evidence rules, including the exact English level and which debts count, have not yet been published in the Immigration Rules. We will update this guide when they are.

New ILR Qualifying periods: 3, 5, 10, 20 or 30 years

Once the baseline is met, your route to settlement falls into one of the following tiers:

Qualifying period	Who it applies to
3 years	Earners above £125,000; arrivals on the UK’s highest talent schemes
5 years	Earners above £50,000; doctors, nurses, teachers and other public service professions; refugees on new safe and legal routes; eligible pre-May 2025 care and public sector workers
10 years	Everyone else, including all those earning under £50,000
20 years	Anyone with an immigration breach; refugees who did not arrive by a safe and legal route
30 years	Refugees who entered illegally, for example by small boat

Those on the 10-year path are not locked out. They can keep renewing their existing temporary visas until they qualify. The Government’s case is that a top-rate taxpayer contributes around £1.5 million over a lifetime, which justifies the fastest route.

What this means in practice: salary now directly shapes your immigration timeline. A pay rise above £50,000, or a move into a recognised public service role, could halve your wait. Career and sponsorship decisions should be made with this in mind.

Care workers: transitional protection confirmed

Social care workers were the focus of many of the 200,000-plus consultation responses. Around 250,000 people and their dependants arrived on, or switched into, the care route between 2022 and 2025. The final policy splits them into two groups.

Care workers who met their visa conditions keep their existing five-year route to ILR. The key test is having earned at least £25,000 a year in the social care sector, as their visa required.

Care workers who did not meet their conditions, roughly a quarter of the cohort, get a second chance:

• They can apply for a further five-year care visa.
• That visa will not tie them to their previous employer, so workers with rogue sponsors can move on.
• The Government says it will help them find a legitimate care provider and allow more time before their current visa is curtailed.
• At the end of the new visa, they can apply for settlement again.

The Government has already revoked the licences of around 1,400 exploitative sponsors, so many workers will be in this position through no fault of their own.

Healthcare and education workers

The same transitional arrangements extend to public sector roles in healthcare and education identified by the Migration Advisory Committee, such as auxiliary nurses.

The May 2025 cut-off

These protections apply only to those who joined the relevant routes before the Immigration White Paper was published in May 2025. The Government’s position is that the 10-year default was widely understood after that date.

The Home Secretary also restated that settlement rules are applied at the date of decision, not the date of arrival. Anyone who arrived after May 2025 expecting a five-year route should take advice now on whether another tier is open to them.

Refugees: settlement now depends on route of arrival

The reforms draw a sharp line between refugees who arrive through official channels and those who do not.

• Safe and legal routes: a five-year path to settlement, matching higher earners.
• Other refugees: a standard 20-year qualifying period.
• Illegal entry, including by small boat: a further 10 years, making 30 in total.
• Work or study: refugees who enter employment or education can reduce their period by 10 years. A refugee who did not arrive by small boat and is working or studying could therefore settle at 10 years.

The Government has stressed that protection itself continues for as long as it is needed, whatever the settlement timeline. However, a 20- or 30-year wait carries real consequences for family reunion, travel, access to student finance and long-term stability. Refugees and their families should seek advice on how employment, study and evidence of integration can shorten their route.

What to do now: a practical checklist

The policy is announced but the amended Immigration Rules and full impact assessment have yet to be published. That window is the time to plan.

• Map your timeline. Work out which tier you are likely to fall into and when you would now qualify.
• Check the baseline. Confirm your National Insurance record, any outstanding NHS or tax debts, and your English language evidence.
• Review your immigration history. Any past breach, overstay or condition issue could trigger the 20-year period. Address it with a specialist before you apply.
• Consider your salary and role. Crossing the £50,000 or £125,000 thresholds, or moving into a qualifying public service role, could shorten your route substantially.
• Care workers: gather payslips and P60s showing earnings of £25,000 or more in social care, and confirm your route start date was before May 2025.
• If you qualify for ILR under the current rules, discuss with an adviser whether to apply before the new rules take effect.
• Employers: audit your sponsored workforce, flag staff affected by the longer route, and review retention and pay strategy.

Frequently asked questions