The UK is a haven for business and career opportunities. It also surpasses the average Better Life index in many areas such as health, safety, and quality education. What’s more, the British passport is one of the most powerful passports worldwide, granting virtually frictionless access to over 187 destinations.
However, to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) and, eventually, British citizenship, you must traverse through a steep legal path that will involve lots of paperwork and checks. We’ll now be elaborating on the different steps that you must take in order to live in the UK.
UK Visas
Visas are the standard routes for entering the UK legally, some of which will qualify you to obtain permanent residence status. These visas are issued due to family links or for doing work, business, and/or studies.
A UK visa may not be required to enter the country for short visits for up to six months, but you are limited in the number of activities that you may undertake during that time. For example, you won’t be permitted to do paid or unpaid work for a UK-based company, nor work as a self-employed person.
Which UK Visas Are Eligible for Indefinite Leave to Remain?
Numerous work and family visas are deemed appropriate for future ILR requests. Student visas, however, are not suitable for this purpose, albeit you may switch from a student visa to an eligible work/family visa later on.
Some of the qualified visa routes worth mentioning are:
– Work/business visas: Innovator, Global Talent, and Skilled Worker visas
– Family and Spouse/Unmarried Partner visas
– UK Ancestry visa
The eligibility requirements for each visa can be found on the GOV.UK website, as well as the validity period and other assorted details such as fees or the possibility of adding family members to your application.
How To Qualify and Apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain
Although the prerequisites may vary slightly depending on the visa that you’re under, you are typically required to show that:
– You lived in the UK lawfully for the required period.
– You didn’t infringe on any immigration laws or have any criminal convictions.
– You didn’t spend more than 180 days outside the UK in a 12-month period.
– You have a level of English that’s equivalent to B1 within CEFR standards.
– You take the “Life in the UK” test and pass it with a 75% score.
You can also bypass the need for an ILR application, provided that:
– You were already eligible for British citizenship by any automatic means.
– You are under 18 years of age and dependent on a British citizen or permanent resident.
– You are over 18 and reliant on the long-term care of a British citizen or permanent resident.
– You held refugee status and were placed under the Gateway Protection Programme.
Residence Period
As a general rule, you ought to have spent five years legally on British soil. Nevertheless, you’ll be capable of applying after a shorter period under certain types of visas. To wit:
– Investor Visa (Tier 1): Two or three years depending on the type of business (the Investor route is not available at this moment)
– Entrepreneur Visa: Three years (this route is also not available)
– Innovator Visa: Three years depending on what the business has achieved
– Global Talent Visa: If you were sponsored as an “outstanding promise”, or “exceptional talent”, or under UK Research and Innovation fast-track criteria
Commonwealth citizens who took on military service for the British Armed Forces can apply for ILR after four years.
Long Residence (10-year rule) is required if you spent time under ineligible visas. However, to benefit from this rule, you must not have overstayed any of the previous visas you had been granted during that time and the stay must have been continuous.
Documents
For your ILR application, you’ll have to fill out a form. The form you should complete will wholly depend on the type of visa that you hold.
Apart from the form, you’d have to gather the following information and documentation (applicable also for your dependents):
– Your passport or travel document. You’d need to include all the expired passports that were valid while you were legally residing in the UK
– Two passport photos
– Your immigration history disclosing all the time you spent outside the UK (if any)
– Your birth/adoption certificate
– The documents proving that you fulfil the knowledge of English requirement (if you are not from a majorly English-speaking country)
– The certificate that you passed the Life in the UK test (if you’re not under 18 or over 65)
– Your financial information indicating that you have enough funds to sustain yourself (bank statements, reports, or similar)
– If you registered with the police upon arrival into the country, a police registration certificate
You must hand out the original issues of the documents unless you can justify why you’re unable to do so.
Processing Time
The time it takes for the UK Home Office to reach a decision may depend on factors such as the complexity of the case and whether you were asked to provide additional information or documents. On average, ILR applications take around six months to get approved (or rejected)
How to Apply for British Citizenship
Once you have attained ILR status, there’s a waiting period of 12 months before you’re allowed to file your citizenship request.
Those submitting their ILR petitions as UK Spouse visa holders are not bound by this waiting period, but only on the condition that they lived with their British partners for three years. In those latter cases, they can solicit their British citizenship certificate immediately.
Many of the requirements for British citizenship are the same as those requested for Indefinite Leave to Remain (such as knowledge of English proof). You must additionally show that you are of demonstrable good character, and you should not have any unspent convictions or be subject to immigration control.
Petition and Processing Time
The petition for British citizen status is filled out online. You ought to upload the scanned documents along with the fee payment receipt.
It usually takes six months to get your application processed. After its approval, you can schedule your citizenship ceremony. At the ceremony, you will receive your citizenship certificate, with which you may then apply for your British passport.
