Overview
- Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood published proposals to shift most routes to indefinite leave to remain from five to about ten years, presenting settlement as a privilege to be earned.
- Fast-track paths are proposed for key workers and high contributors, with NHS doctors and nurses eligible after five years and some high earners or global talent visa holders after three.
- Penalties would lengthen waits to 15 years for many lower-qualified workers, up to 25 years for those who claimed benefits, and up to 30 years for people who arrived illegally or overstayed.
- Access to benefits and social housing would be reserved for British citizens rather than people with settled status, alongside tougher baseline criteria including a clean criminal record, A-level English, three years of National Insurance contributions and no debt to the state.
- The Home Office estimates about 1.6 million people could become eligible to settle between 2026 and 2030; the plans are out for consultation until February, are not retroactive for those already settled and sit alongside asylum changes such as 20-year refugee pathways with status reviews every two and a half years.