ILR Eligibility Calculator: Check Your UK Settlement Date

Researched and maintained by the ILR Calculator UK editorial team · Reviewed against the Immigration Rules in force on 24 June 2026 · This page is general information about UK settlement, not regulated immigration advice. For advice on your own case, use an adviser regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) or a solicitor.

The ILR eligibility calculator is a free tool that checks whether you meet the time-based requirements for Indefinite Leave to Remain — your qualifying period (usually 5 years, or 10 on Long Residence), the 28-day early application window, and the 180-day rolling absence limit — across ten UK settlement routes. It gives you your earliest application date and flags absence risk in seconds. It does not assess the Life in the UK Test, English language or suitability, which are separate requirements covered below. The ILR application fee is £3,226 per person from 8 April 2026.

ILR Eligibility Calculator: Supported UK Visa Routes

The ILR eligibility calculator processes the settlement timelines for non-British and non-Irish nationals living in the UK on qualifying immigration routes. It supports ten of the most common settlement categories: Skilled Worker visa, Health and Care Worker visa, Spouse or Partner visa (Appendix FM), Global Talent visa (both 3-year and 5-year routes), Innovator Founder visa, Investor visa (transitional protection), UK Ancestry visa, the Hong Kong BN(O) visa, and the 10-year Long Residence route.

ILR Eligibility Criteria: 2026 Home Office Assessment

Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) applications are assessed by the Home Office against three primary criteria: (1) qualifying period and continuous residence; (2) absences from the UK; and (3) suitability, knowledge of language, and Life in the UK requirements. Our calculator focuses on the first two — time-based rules — because these are where the vast majority of applicants get caught out.

Since October 2024, all ILR applications must be submitted online via GOV.UK. The paper form SET(O) is no longer accepted. Biometric residence permits (BRPs) have been phased out and replaced by e-visas since the start of 2025 — your digital e-visa is now your primary evidence of status.

Qualifying Period for Continuous Residence

Most applicants need to demonstrate 5 years of continuous lawful residence on the same or a combination of qualifying routes. Long Residence applicants need 10 years. Some accelerated routes — Global Talent (with endorsing body confirmation) and Innovator Founder (with milestone evidence) — require only 3 years. Use our ILR qualifying period calculator to confirm the exact date you complete the requirement.

Absence Limits for Indefinite Leave to Remain

For most 5-year routes, you must not have been outside the UK for more than 180 days in any rolling 12-month period. The Home Office checks rolling periods — not calendar years — so a 12-month window can start on any date within your qualifying period. For Long Residence, the cap is 540 days in total with no single absence exceeding 184 days. Our ILR absence calculator breaks this down trip-by-trip for a more precise check.

ILR Qualifying Period and Absence Limits by Route

The table below summarises how this calculator applies the qualifying period and absence rules to each supported route. The 180-day rolling 12-month limit applies across all routes; total and single-trip caps vary.

Source: UK Immigration Rules — Appendix Continuous Residence, Appendix Settlement and the Long Residence rules. The 180-day rolling limit is the binding statutory test; total-absence figures are planning guides used by this tool. Single trips over 184 days can break continuous residence on Long Residence.

28-Day Early Application Window Concession

Under paragraph CR 1.2(a) of Appendix Continuous Residence, you can submit your settlement application up to 28 calendar days before your qualifying period completes. This is 28 calendar days (including weekends and bank holidays), not 28 working days. Our ILR 28 days calculator gives you the exact earliest valid date.

ILR Refusal Reasons: Common Application Failures

• Exceeding the 180-day absence limit in any rolling 12-month period, even by one day
• Gaps in continuous lawful residence (expired visa without a pending application, unlawful presence)
• Missing or expired Life in the UK Test certificate
• Failing to meet the English language requirement (CEFR B1, rising to B2 for some routes from 26 March 2027)
• Suitability issues — criminal convictions, deception, or NHS debt of £500 or more
• Submitting before the 28-day window opens (29+ days early results in refusal)
• Not meeting route-specific requirements (sponsorship, financial threshold, endorsement milestones)

Visa Routes for ILR: Route-Specific Guidelines

The Indefinite Leave to Remain assessment compares your immigration history against the rules set out in Appendix Settlement, Appendix FM, the Long Residence rules and route-specific Appendices of the UK Immigration Rules. Below is a summary of what each route requires.

Skilled Worker and Health and Care Worker ILR Requirements

Skilled Worker visa holders qualify for ILR after 5 years of continuous lawful residence with an approved sponsor. Time spent on the predecessor Tier 2 (General) visa counts towards the qualifying period. Your Certificate of Sponsorship, salary level and SOC code at the date of application must meet the going rate for the role. Health and Care Worker applicants follow the same 5-year framework with the benefit of a reduced visa fee and exemption from the Immigration Health Surcharge. There is no fixed total absence limit in Appendix Settlement — only the 180-day per rolling 12-month period cap applies.

Spouse and Family Route (Appendix FM) ILR Rules

If you entered the UK as a spouse, civil partner or unmarried partner of a British citizen or settled person under the 5-year route, you become eligible for ILR after completing 60 months of continuous leave (typically across two consecutive grants). You must show that the relationship is genuine and subsisting, that you intend to live together permanently, and that the financial requirement is met. The minimum income requirement is £29,000, in place since 11 April 2024; planned rises to £34,500 and £38,700 are currently paused while the Government reviews the Migration Advisory Committee’s recommendations. Applicants whose first partner application was made before 11 April 2024 may remain on the lower £18,600 threshold under transitional rules. Appendix FM does not impose a fixed total absence limit — each 12-month period is assessed individually against the 180-day cap.

10-Year Long Residence ILR Criteria

Long Residence is a powerful safety net for applicants who have lived in the UK with continuous lawful leave for 10 years in any combination of qualifying categories — for example, switching between Student, Skilled Worker and dependant visas. The absence test is stricter than 5-year routes: 540 days total and no single absence exceeding 184 days. Any single trip over 184 days is likely to break continuous residence unless due to compelling or compassionate circumstances. Note that the Government has proposed abolishing this route under its earned settlement reforms, so if you are close to qualifying it is worth checking your position now.

UK Ancestry, Global Talent, Innovator Founder and BN(O) Settlement

UK Ancestry visa holders qualify after 5 years of continuous residence with evidence of working or actively seeking work. They must remain Commonwealth citizens throughout. Global Talent applicants can qualify after 3 years where the endorsing body confirms significant contributions, or 5 years under the standard route. Innovator Founder visa holders may qualify after 3 years where endorsing body milestones for accelerated settlement are met. Hong Kong BN(O) visa holders qualify for settlement after 5 years of continuous residence; time held on the BN(O) route counts towards the qualifying period.

Positive ILR Eligibility: Next Steps for Application

A positive output means your inputs are consistent with the Home Office time-based requirements. It is not a guarantee. Before submitting, gather: your full passport history, e-visa status, P60s and payslips (work routes), relationship evidence (FM routes), Life in the UK Test certificate, English language evidence and any compassionate circumstances documentation. Submitting within the 28-day window triggers section 3C leave under the Immigration Act 1971, protecting your lawful status while UKVI decides.

Negative ILR Eligibility: Mitigating Application Risks

If the tool indicates excess absences or that you are still inside your qualifying period, options include switching to the 10-year Long Residence route, relying on compassionate or compelling circumstances, or extending your current leave and re-applying once compliant. Each path involves judgement calls. For a binding assessment of your own case, get advice from an adviser regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) or a solicitor on the Law Society register.

ILR application fees in 2026

From 8 April 2026, the standard ILR application fee is £3,226 per person (up from £3,029 in 2025/26 and £2,885 before that). A biometric enrolment fee of £19.20 also applies. The Immigration Health Surcharge does not apply to settlement applications. These fees are non-refundable if your application is refused. Priority services are available at additional cost: the priority service adds around £500 for a faster decision, and the super-priority service adds around £1,000 for a next-working-day decision (where eligible). Fee amounts are set by parliamentary regulations and typically increase each April.

Source: Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Regulations and GOV.UK visa fees. A separate biometric enrolment fee of £19.20 applies. The Immigration Health Surcharge is not payable on settlement applications.