Indefinite Leave to Remain after 5 years or 3 years means that a person no longer needs to apply to extend their permission to live in the UK. They are allowed to stay here indefinitely - they are 'settled' in the UK. It is the most secure immigration status in the UK except for British Citizenship.
In most cases, you must live legally in the UK for 5 years without long absences in order to qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain. Certain types of visa do not allow you to apply for Indefinite Leave on this route, for example Student visas or Senior Specialist Worker visas.
You can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after 3 years if you are here:
You can apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain after 5 years if you are here:
You will need to pass two tests - the Life in the UK Test and an English Language test.
You must still satisfy all the requirements needed for your current visa status. If you cannot do this, you may have to move to the 'Ten Year Route to Settlement.'
Without Indefinite Leave to Remain you cannot apply for British Citizenship on this route. If you are married to a British Citizen, you can apply for British Citizenship as soon as you are granted Indefinite Leave to Remain. If you are not, you must wait 12 months before applying for Citizenship.
We can calculate when you are eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain and assess whether you are likely to be successful. After an initial consultation, we will advise you and list the documents we need from you. Having prepared the application with all the correct evidence, we write legal representations to the Home Office to ensure your application is properly considered by the Home Office. We submit the application on your behalf, and do the hard work for you.
We work on a fixed fee basis. This means that we do not work by adding up the hours we spend on your matter and then charging you. The price is given to you for the job beforehand. So we are transparent about our costs and you have certainty. See our costs page.
Once your application is submitted, you will need to visit a visa application centre near you to have your fingerprints and photo taken. The decision will take up to six months to come from the Home Office and you will receive a Biometric Residence Card that proves your new Indefinite Leave to Remain status.
"If you have immigration problems then look no further, I for sure will be using her [Angela's] services again in the future."
Paul Bore
We offer a special discount if you instruct us to do both your Indefinite Leave to Remain application and a subsequent British Citizen Application. See our costs page.
No. The law has changed. You now need to be in the UK for five years before applying.
You are exempt from passing the two tests if you are over 65 years old or if you have a health or learning difficulty that prevents you from taking and passing the tests. If you have lived here for 15 years you may be able to claim exemption from the tests under certain conditions.
If you have spent longer than 180 days outside the UK in any 12 month period, you will need to provide evidence to the Home Office that these absences were due to compelling or compassionate circumstances (such as illness or pandemics) or that your work was involved with humanitarian or environmental disasters or scientific research.
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