Almost 18 months after the Immigration White Paper was published in May 2025 (Restoring control over the immigration system), the government has published further details on the new earned settlement rules that they intend to introduce.
The proposals are a significant shake-up of the current rules, fundamentally changing the criteria that must be met for individuals to qualify for settlement (also known as Indefinite Leave to Remain). There will be significant impacts and ripple effects for individuals, their families and businesses in the UK and we’ve outlined below the key changes which will affect non-asylum and non-refugee migrants (as separate rules apply to those groups).
Certain routes are also not within the scope of the Earned Settlement framework, such as the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) route and the EU Settlement Scheme which retain their own rules.
We’ll know more once the changes to the immigration rules are published in December, including when the new rules will be implemented. The Home Secretary has however said that the changes will come into effect over the course of 2027.
What is changing?
New mandatory requirements
Several new mandatory provisions for settlement are being introduced, as well as tightening up of the existing mandatory requirements. The response states that an individual must meet all of these criteria (together with immigration route specific criteria) to qualify for settlement.
Existing exemptions for children under 18 and those aged 65 or over or with a physical/mental condition (such as no English language or Life in the UK test requirement) will continue as before.
- No criminal record – adult applicants with a criminal record will be refused settlement. This includes suspended sentences, absolute or conditional discharges, court-imposed fines, conditional cautions and community sentences so the net is cast wide. Discretion will also remain to refuse settlement where the offence was committed when the applicant was under 18;
- The English language requirement will be increased from its current Intermediate B1 level to Upper intermediate B2 level – i.e. equivalent to A-level English as a foreign language;
- As now, the individual must pass the Life in the UK test;
- A new requirement to earn at least £12,571 per year for at least three years. This is linked to the individual personal tax allowance and so will rise as and when this changes. There are also provisions for spouses or partners of the main applicant to be able to rely on “household income” which we explore further below. Certain exemptions will apply, including children, people aged 65 and over and those unable to meet the condition because of a physical or mental condition; and
- No unpaid government debts such as unpaid taxes, NHS charges and litigation debt – this is currently grounds for a discretionary refusal but will be a mandatory refusal under the new rules.
Residency periods
The main headline change is that the default qualifying period of residency required for settlement will increase from five to ten years. There is provision for shorter qualifying periods of residency in some cases:
Three year period of residency
- For high earners who have earned at least £125,141 per year (in at least three of the last four years immediately before applying for settlement); or
- For individuals who hold immigration leave under certain “talent” routes, such as Global Talent.
Clearly high earners are the big winners from the forthcoming changes as they should be in a position to apply for settlement after only three years, rather than the current five year period.
The knock-on benefit to employers who sponsor high earners under the Skilled Worker route is that they will be able to sponsor them for a shorter period, ultimately avoiding thousands of pounds in sponsorship and visa fees.
Five year period of residency
- For those earning at least £50,271 per year (in at least three of the five years immediately before applying for settlement);
- Those who have worked in a specified public service job for five years, generally in education and healthcare – for example medics, nurses, teachers, social workers;
- Care workers and certain public sector workers who benefit from limited transitional arrangements; or
- Those who are deemed to have a “British connection”. The information published so far refers to partners or children of a British national or Commonwealth nationals who qualify under the Ancestry route. This means, for example, that an individual who obtains immigration leave as a spouse/partner of a British national would still potentially be eligible to apply for settlement after five years in the UK, rather than the increased 10-year period. However, it’s not clear whether this provision would apply for an individual who holds leave under another route (e.g. as a dependant of a sponsored worker) where their spouse/partner has gone on to obtain British nationality
For anyone else who does not meet the criteria above, they will be pushed onto the new standard 10-year period to settlement. The government’s response states that those who apply under the standard 10-year route will have to demonstrate minimum annual earnings of £12,571 in at least five of the seven years immediately before applying for settlement. It’s unclear how this fits with the mandatory requirement to show at least three years of earnings at this level or the concept of household income.
This new 10-year route will mean increased immigration fees for individuals and, if they are sponsored, significant additional fees for their employers, which will run into tens of thousands of pounds, particularly where dependants are also applying. Employers will also face an increased compliance burden as a result of having to sponsor at least some of their employees for significantly longer periods.
Can any factors add time onto the qualifying residency period?
Immigration compliance will become even more important as the consequences of getting it wrong are draconian.
Public funds – anyone wishing to apply for settlement should avoid claiming any public funds. The response is slightly unclear on this area but states that applicants under the three, five or 10-year route will be expected not to have accessed public funds during the five years before applying for settlement. Further, if they continue to access public funds, they will have to complete 20 years on a qualifying route before being eligible for settlement, provided they meet the other mandatory requirements. The government will confirm which benefits and support will be taken into account for these purposes.
Immigration breaches – if an individual has committed any prior immigration breaches as an adult, such as overstaying beyond the expiry date of their immigration permission or breaching the conditions of their immigration permission, this will put them on the 20-year pathway to settlement. With the immigration system being so complex it’s not unusual in our experience for applicants to inadvertently get things wrong and tip into immigration non-compliance. In some cases, an innocent mistake may mean people have to extend their immigration leave for two decades before they are eligible to apply for settlement.
Are there any transitional arrangements?
It appears there will be only very limited transitional arrangements and that in most cases the new rules will apply to those already in the UK, moving the goalposts for settlement for many individuals and their families who may have expected to qualify for settlement after five years, but who could now have to wait significantly longer.
These groups however will be able to benefit from the limited transitional arrangements -
- Care workers – those who entered or switched into the Health & Care visa route before 12 May 2025 and who are earning £25,000 per year should be able to apply for settlement after a five year period (subject to meeting all of the mandatory requirements and the usual sponsorship requirements);
- Care workers – those who entered or switched into the Health & Care visa route but who do not meet the criteria above and so cannot qualify for settlement, will be able to apply for another five year Health & Care visa. This is to give them another opportunity to qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain after that further five year period; and
- Public sector workers – those in education and healthcare roles that are on a national payscale but which are not classified as highly skilled roles (i.e. below RQF Level 6 skill level – e.g. teaching assistants, nursing auxiliaries) who came to the UK before 12 May 2025 will retain the five year route to settlement (subject to meeting the new mandatory requirements and the usual sponsorship requirements).
Dependants
Partners
Under the current rules there is no requirement for a dependant partner to demonstrate earnings as part of their settlement application. However, when the changes come into effect, the consultation response indicates that the earned settlement framework, including the mandatory criteria, such as evidencing minimum annual earnings of £12,571, will also apply to most adult dependants.
To soften this slightly, the new rules will allow for couples living together to rely on household income and combine earnings to meet this mandatory earnings requirement. The “household income” threshold is currently set at £25,142 (twice the individual minimum earnings threshold) and one partner could meet the household income threshold through their earnings alone or the couple may combine their earnings.
According to the government’s response to the consultation paper, partners will be able to apply for settlement at the same time as the main applicant (unless they moved to the UK later than the main applicant). There is however little detail as to how this will work in practice in relation to the financial and salary requirements.
For example, it’s unclear what happens where the main applicant (for example a Skilled Worker migrant) has a high salary and is therefore able to apply for settlement under the expedited three year or five year residency period. Can the dependant partner also apply at that time alongside them if they have spent the three or five year period living in the UK as their partner but without their own earnings of £125,141 or £50,271 per year? What happens if the dependant has no earnings? Will the fact that the household income exceeds £25,142 per annum be sufficient for the dependant to meet the financial requirements?
Hopefully the published immigration rules in December will make this clearer.
Children
For child dependants there has been some clarification, which is helpful:
- Children under the age of 18 will be able to settle alongside their parents without meeting the mandatory requirements (as now), but a criminal record could lead to their application being refused;
- Children aged between 18 and 24 who are still dependent on their parents will be able to settle at the same time as their parents and will be exempt from the individual earnings requirement (£12,571 per year). They will however have to meet all of the other mandatory requirements; and
- Children aged 25 or over will be expected to qualify for settlement independently. The detail so far on this is unclear though as to whether this means they would have to switch out of the dependant route into another type of immigration category (e.g. sponsorship, partner etc) to start this process.
It appears that the current position that dependant children can only apply for settlement once both parents are also applying for settlement will not change. This would mean that if the partner of the main applicant is unable or will take a long time to qualify for settlement, it is possible that dependants who came to the UK as older children or teenagers may not be able to qualify for settlement before they turn 25 leaving them in an uncertain position.
What does this mean in practice?
As the new rules will not be implemented until some point next year it’s important to take action now.
Individuals
- Anyone who can already meet the requirements to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain under the current rules for their immigration route should consider applying as soon as possible.
- Anyone eligible to apply under the 10-year long residency route should consider applying before the rules change as this route will be closed.
- Individuals should keep a record of all absences from the UK, including departure date, date of return and reason for the absence and ensure they do not exceed 180 days absence in any rolling 12 month period. If they are likely to exceed this we recommend taking advice as breaking continuity of residence part way through a 10-year qualifying period will add years to their settlement pathway.
- As it’s currently unclear whether the income thresholds refer to gross or taxable income, individuals may want to be cautious for the time being about putting their income into salary sacrifice schemes (e.g. pension) so as to meet the particular earnings thresholds that could reduce their qualifying period for settlement to three or five years.
- With the English language requirement rising to Upper Intermediate level (B2), anyone who relied on a lower level English language test for the English language requirement for their current visa (e.g. Skilled Worker, Spouse etc) should check whether they will need to undertake a new approved English language test at a higher level.
- Others in the UK who have not previously had to meet an English language requirement (e.g. dependants of a Skilled Worker) should start considering at an early stage how they will be able to meet the B2 level English language requirement for their settlement application. Dependants in particular may be impacted by this change as the Upper Intermediate level is challenging and some individuals may need intensive English language classes to bring them up to this standard.
- Individuals should ensure they clear any government debt, such as tax or NHS debts.
- Individuals will need to avoid any criminal record to be eligible for settlement, so should take care to pay any motoring or parking fines or penalties promptly to avoid enforcement action that could lead to a court-imposed fine or conviction.
- Individuals should ensure they and their family members diarise visa expiry dates and submit extension applications in good time to ensure they do not inadvertently become overstayers.
- Individuals should ensure they are aware of any conditions related to their immigration permission and ensure they do not breach these conditions, for example by claiming public funds or by working more hours than are permitted (for example, in the case of those with Student leave or Skilled Workers who undertake supplementary employment).
- Individuals should keep a close eye on their earnings and consider seeking to negotiate a pay rise if they are very close to a threshold which would enable them to qualify for settlement earlier.
- Those coming to the UK or who are already in the UK should factor in the very significant additional costs if they or their family members are unable to apply for settlement at the five year mark.
- Individuals should consider taking immigration advice, given the draconian consequences if something goes wrong.
Employers
- The current uncertainty and the forthcoming changes will be stressful for many overseas nationals, especially those who will no longer qualify for settlement after five years. Employers should consider how best to keep employees who are overseas nationals updated about the changes. This could include arranging advice sessions with immigration advisers.
- Particularly for businesses which sponsor individuals under the Skilled Worker category, it’s worth checking if any of your workforce is able to get ahead of the new rule changes and qualify for settlement before the new rules come into effect.
- Employers should undertake an audit of overseas nationals to work out who will be affected by the changes. On the plus side, those earning at least £125,141 per year may be eligible for settlement after just three years in the UK. On the other hand, those most negatively affected will include employees who earn less than £50,271 per year, and those who may struggle to pass the higher English language requirements. Bear in mind that individuals will need to demonstrate these earnings over multiple years – not just in relation to the year in which they apply for settlement – so early planning is key. It’s also worth bearing in mind that even if the main applicant is not affected by the changes, their dependants may be.
- Employers hiring overseas nationals (especially where they are sponsored) should ensure they are aware of the forthcoming changes and the effect the changes will have on them and their family members.
- Employers who sponsor overseas nationals in roles with earnings of less than £50,271 per annum should start to model the increased cost of the changes, as the employer will now need to sponsor these employees for up to ten years, rather than the current five years.
- Employers should also factor in that dependants may need to extend their immigration permission for many years, at considerable cost. Employers should consider who will bear these additional costs and take care to avoid blanket promises to cover the immigration costs for dependants indefinitely. It’s therefore important to review policies and contractual provisions relating to visa fees and other immigration costs.
- Employers may also want to be able to clawback some of the immigration costs they pay if the employee leaves employment. Advice should be taken as there are a number of employment and immigration considerations as to what payments and how much may be recovered from the employee.
- Employers may wish to offer their employees and also dependants English language lessons.
- Employers should ensure that they comply with their sponsor obligations. Breaches such as failure to assign a new CoS and ensure the individual submits a new Skilled Worker application if their role changes significantly will not only risk sponsor compliance action but could also mean it will take the individual many more years to reach settlement, at significant additional costs.
- Consider whether there are ways to attract applicants from the resident labour market, especially for roles paying less than £50,271 per year given it will now be necessary to sponsor them for far longer.
- Employers who are tempted not to hire an overseas national who is otherwise suited to the role or to dismiss an existing employee to avoid sponsorship costs should take employment advice, given the risk of employment claims.
- Consider the impact of the settlement changes on the length of sponsorship. For example, for the highest earners, sponsorship of just three years may be enough. However, those individuals will only have a narrow month window at the end of the three-year period in which to apply for settlement, so will need to plan carefully for this, including avoiding overseas travel during that period.
To date settlement has largely been something employers leave to the individual. Earned settlement changes that. Settlement now needs to form part of an employer’s thinking about pay, recruitment, retention, sponsorship costs and long-term workforce planning.
If you would like help assessing how the earned settlement changes affect your workforce, or need advice on a workforce impact audit or a briefing for your HR team, please get in touch with our Immigration team.
This information is correct as at 4 November 2026. The detailed rules are due to be published in December 2026.
