What long residence is
Long residence is a route to indefinite leave to remain for people who have lived lawfully in the UK for ten continuous years, whatever routes they were on. It is for people who have not completed the shorter qualifying period on a single route, for example because they moved between visas. Once you have it, you can live and work in the UK with no time limit.
The requirements
- Ten continuous years of lawful residence. The ten years must be unbroken. A gap of more than a short period between permissions, or a period of overstaying, can break the continuity, although small gaps in time can sometimes be disregarded.
- Absences within the limit. For time since 11 April 2024 the limit is 180 days outside the UK in any 12-month period; earlier years were measured against a total of 540 days. Which applies depends on when your ten years ran. Longer absences can be forgiven in some circumstances. Use our absence calculator.
- The Life in the UK test. See the Life in the UK test.
- English language. At the level the route requires. See English language requirements.
- Suitability. The Home Office looks at criminal history and earlier breaches of immigration law.
What counts as lawful residence
Time on most visas counts: work, family, student and similar permissions. Some kinds of permission do not count, for example time as a visitor, and time without any permission does not count. Where you extended your visa in time, the period during which your application was pending counts, since your permission continued. Keep records of every visa you have held, and of the dates of each application. The Home Office relies on its own record, but errors do occur, and your own copies can fix them.
Cost
The Home Office fee is £3,226. There is no immigration health surcharge. The Life in the UK test costs £50, and an English test costs extra. See the fees page.
The proposed changes
The government has proposed abolishing the long residence route as part of its “earned settlement” plans, as part of a ten-year default period for settlement. At the date of review the long residence rules are unchanged. If you are close to completing ten years, the date of your application matters. See earned settlement: what is proposed, what is law.
If you have a gap
Many people discover a gap only when they prepare to apply. If you have a gap in your permission, a period of overstaying, or an absence over the limit, take advice before applying. Sometimes the gap can be explained or disregarded, and sometimes the better route is a different application, for example on human rights grounds if you have a family or private life here. See human rights and private life applications and overstaying and re-entry bans.
If it is refused
A refusal of long residence settlement is normally a refusal of a human rights claim and can be appealed to the First-tier Tribunal, within 14 days from inside the UK. See immigration appeals.
How we help
We build the ten-year chronology from your documents and the Home Office record, test each year and each absence against the rules, and prepare the application. A consultation is from £99.
