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When could you settle in the UK?
Your possible timeline. The checks that matter. Your next step.
Existing rules — preliminary check
Limited Skilled Worker and Health and Care Worker residence checks under the existing rules. Other routes need individual review. This is not a full eligibility assessment.
Existing-rule source checked 4 November 2026: Appendix Skilled Worker SW 21.1–21.2. Rules may change before a decision; today’s result does not guarantee future treatment.
Step 1 of 5
ANNOUNCED FRAMEWORK · INDICATIVE ONLY
Explore the announced framework
This separate assessment uses the policy published on 2 November 2026. It identifies a pathway to discuss, not eligibility under rules in force. Detailed rules, commencement and transitional provisions must be checked before applying. Sources reviewed 4 November 2026.
Use this alongside the existing-rules check. Neither result guarantees settlement. Future earnings are not treated as already earned.
Verified policy source: Home Office consultation outcome (updated 2 November 2026), CP 1707 chapters 2 and 8, table 1 and Annex C. Read the detailed announcement and sources.
Verified announcement · 02/11/2026
What was announced on 2 November 2026?
The Home Office has published its final earned-settlement policy response. The framework links settlement periods to contribution, qualifying residence and compliance. These are announced policy arrangements: detailed Immigration Rules, operational guidance and commencement provisions still need to be checked before applying them to an individual.
3-year pathway
Announced for the highest earners meeting £125,141 in 3 of the previous 4 years, or qualifying highest-talent applicants. Talent criteria remain subject to review, and all applicable requirements still matter.
5-year pathway
Announced for earnings of £50,271 in 3 of the previous 5 years, eligible public-service work for 5 years, or a recognised British connection. Separate targeted transitional protection also applies to specified existing workers.
10-year default
The announced starting point on eligible routes. The detailed standard contribution test is £12,571 in 5 of the previous 7 years, subject to the relevant exemptions and eligible household provisions.
20-year pathway
Announced for specified adult immigration breaches or continuing specified public-funds use where no relevant exemption applies. Other mandatory requirements remain. Refugees and illegal-entry provisions need separate assessment; periods must not simply be added together.
Other important changes
- The proposed 15-year pathway for workers in roles below degree level has been dropped. The announced default is 10 years unless an accelerated, protected or transitional arrangement applies.
- Care workers who entered or switched into the care route before publication of the May 2025 White Paper retain a targeted 5-year pathway if the £25,000 salary, genuine sponsored-work and other applicable requirements are met. This is not protection for everyone who arrived on any visa before that date.
- The framework also strengthens character, debt, English-language and contribution requirements, while recognising requirement-specific exemptions. Earnings or time alone do not secure settlement.
- Families, temporary-route residence, public funds and protected groups have distinct provisions. The FAQs below explain the main points and the limits of this initial calculator.
Which rules does this calculator use?
This calculator still gives a preliminary indication under existing rules. A separate indicative assessment helps you explore the announced framework. It does not calculate eligibility under new rules or a confirmed application date. Implementing Immigration Rules, commencement, saving provisions and individual exceptions must be checked before relying on a new settlement date.
Official policy source: Home Office CP 1707, November 2026, including summary table 1 and chapters 1–8. Consultation outcome updated 2 November 2026. Sources checked 4 November 2026. Current-rule calculations refer to Appendix Skilled Worker.
Your questions, answered
The announcement answers below summarise the policy response checked on 04/11/2026. They do not mean the new framework is already in force.
What do the result colours mean?
Green means potentially eligible on the preliminary current-rule checks completed. Yellow means more information or individual review is needed. Red means not yet eligible under the current residence check. The colours do not assess entitlement under the newly announced framework or replace an assessment of your documents.
Have the new earned-settlement rules taken effect today?
The response published on 2 November 2026 sets out the final policy framework, not an immediately available new application route. Detailed implementation materials and the relevant commencement provisions still need to be checked. This calculator continues to provide an initial check under existing rules; it does not calculate an entitlement under the new framework.
Consultation outcome; CP 1707 introduction · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
Will everyone have to wait 10 years for ILR?
No. Ten years is the announced default on eligible routes, with 3-year and 5-year pathways for qualifying applicants and separate protected or transitional arrangements. Some cases fall into a 20-year pathway. The applicable route, contribution history, mandatory requirements and eventual implementation provisions all matter.
CP 1707, summary table 1, printed p.42 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
Has the proposed 15-year pathway been dropped?
Yes. The final response drops the proposed 15-year pathway for workers in occupations below RQF6. Its announced default is 10 years, with scope for a shorter pathway where the relevant conditions are met. Some existing care, health and education workers have targeted 5-year transitional protection.
CP 1707, chapter 8, printed pp.38–40 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
Who could qualify for the 3-year or 5-year earnings pathways?
The announced 3-year earnings pathway requires £125,141 in 3 of the 4 years immediately before applying. The 5-year earnings pathway requires £50,271 in 3 of the previous 5 years. These are individual earnings thresholds, not figures to round down or combine across partners. Eligible public-service occupations and recognised British connections provide other announced routes to 5 years; the highest-talent provisions remain subject to review. A salary figure alone does not establish eligibility.
CP 1707, chapter 2, printed pp.11–14; table 1 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
What protection is announced for existing care workers?
Care workers who entered or switched into the care route before publication of the May 2025 White Paper are to retain the 5-year qualifying period if they meet the applicable £25,000 annual salary, sponsorship, genuine-employment and other settlement requirements. Strengthened minimum standards still apply unless an exemption is available. Being in the UK on a different visa before that point does not by itself establish this protection; precise cut-off and evidence rules need checking.
CP 1707, chapter 8, printed pp.38–41 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
What if a protected care worker cannot settle after 5 years or loses their sponsor?
The response provides for a further 5-year Health and Care visa opportunity for the targeted cohort who do not qualify for settlement after 5 years. It remains restricted to genuine care-sector work and is not an unrestricted work visa. For care workers covered by the announced sponsor-loss arrangements, the response specifies up to 120 days to secure a job offer, then a further 60 days to resolve visa and employment status, from 1 February 2027. Individual notices, eligibility and implementation provisions must be checked; do not assume those periods already replace a current notice.
CP 1707, chapter 8, printed p.39 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
Are there other transitional arrangements for existing workers?
Specified below-RQF6 health and education roles on national pay scales, such as nursing auxiliaries and teaching assistants, are to retain 5 years for the cohort in the UK before publication of the May 2025 White Paper, subject to visa requirements. For the affected pre-April 2024 Skilled Worker cohort in below-RQF6 roles moving to a longer pathway, existing extension terms are to remain available until 2035 rather than 2030. These are targeted arrangements, not a general exemption for everyone already here.
CP 1707, chapter 8, printed p.40 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
Is paying National Insurance for 3 years enough, and can partners combine income?
No. National Insurance history alone is not a complete eligibility test. The detailed earnings windows depend on the pathway: 3 of 4 years, 3 of 5 years, or 5 of 7 years for the standard 10/20-year contribution test. Eligible couples can use £25,142 household earnings to meet the minimum contribution requirement. That does not allow partners to combine salaries for the accelerated high-earner thresholds. Final evidence rules and any relevant exemptions still need checking.
CP 1707, chapter 2 and summary table 1 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
What other requirements are announced, and do C1 English or volunteering shorten the wait?
The framework includes strengthened character and government-debt requirements, B2 English, the Life in the UK Test, contribution and qualifying residence. Exemptions for children, people aged 65 or over and relevant physical or mental conditions are requirement-specific; they do not remove every suitability check. Volunteering does not reduce the qualifying period, and C1 English does not provide an additional reduction. The existing English-language amendments and their own start dates must also be checked separately.
CP 1707, chapters 1–3 and 6 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
Does receiving public funds mean someone must wait 20 years?
The announced 3-, 5- and 10-year pathways generally require 5 years without specified public funds immediately before applying, unless an exemption or safeguard applies. Otherwise a 20-year pathway may be relevant, with the other mandatory requirements still applying. The benefits covered and safeguards need further detail. Do not change essential support on the basis of a calculator summary; ask for a review of the specific benefit, route and exemption.
CP 1707, chapter 2, printed pp.14–15 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
What is changing for Long Residence, Student and Graduate time?
The response announces closure of the separate 10-year Long Residence route under the new framework. Temporary-route time, including Student, Graduate, High Potential Individual, Visit, Global Business Mobility and other specified temporary routes, is generally not to count towards the new qualifying residence period. Leave Outside the Rules needs further clarification. This does not mean the announcement has already closed an existing route: current cases require the actual Rules, commencement and any saving provisions to be reviewed. The response also restricts combining protection or human-rights time with work or family-route time.
CP 1707, chapter 4, printed pp.19–21 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
Can partners and children settle together?
The announced framework supports eligible families settling together, but a partner who joins later still needs to complete their own qualifying residence period. Children under 18 have specified exemptions from income, debt, English and Life in the UK requirements, with suitability still relevant. Young adults aged 18–24 who retain child-dependant status have separate provisions, including an exemption from individual earnings. At 25 or over, independent eligibility or another appropriate route is generally expected, subject to safeguards. A main applicant's result must not simply be copied to the family.
CP 1707, chapter 5, printed pp.24–27 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
Do refugees and protected routes have different arrangements?
Yes. The response describes separate arrangements for BN(O), Armed Forces, Afghan schemes, Windrush, certain vulnerable groups and specified legacy routes; EUSS remains outside these reforms. Refugee policy distinguishes designated Safe and Legal routes, Protection Work and Study and Core Protection, with different periods and requirements. Illegal-entry additions and Article 31 safeguards must be assessed separately. These cases are not determined by this basic work-route calculator and need their own route-specific review.
CP 1707, chapters 4, 6 and 7 · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
How should I use this calculator after the announcement?
Use the existing-rules check and the separate announced-framework indicative assessment for comparison. Neither is a full eligibility decision. The indicative assessment suggests pathways to discuss; it does not supply a new-policy application date. Have your visa history, employment, earnings and evidence reviewed against the rules, commencement and saving provisions applicable to your case.
CP 1707 introduction; current-rule planning scope · Announced policy checked 04/11/2026.
How can I enquire about my result?
A contact form appears directly beneath your result. You can also open it using the Request a Call tab. Your contact details are prefilled and can be corrected.
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