Settlement in Britain now takes ten years instead of five
No. The ten-year period is a government proposal from a consultation that closed on 12 February 2026. No response has been published and the Immigration Rules have not changed.
The claim does not check out. What the score means
Where it circulates. Circulating in chats and channels since 20 November 2025, when the “A Fairer Pathway to Settlement” consultation appeared.
The source is the Home Office consultation “A Fairer Pathway to Settlement”, published on 20 November 2025. It proposes a ten-year baseline for settlement instead of five, shortened for people judged to contribute to the economy and lengthened for some categories. It is a proposal, not a rule.
The consultation closed on 12 February 2026. The GOV.UK page still carries the “closed consultation” label and the line that responses are being analysed and the outcome will follow. None of the Statements of Changes to the Immigration Rules issued during 2026 brings in a ten-year baseline.
In practice: an ILR application made today is decided under the rules in force — five years on work routes, five on the EU Settlement Scheme, ten on long residence. Time already accrued has not been cancelled, and nothing yet says how transitional arrangements would work if the reform is adopted.
What did change in this area
The English requirement for settlement rises from GCSE level to A-level equivalent, which is B2 on the common European scale. Announced on 5 March 2026, it applies from March 2027; work visa applicants have had to meet that level since January 2026. That one is a decision, not a proposal.
Whether the ten-year period arrives, and on what terms, is unknown. The House of Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee came out against it in June 2026. We will update this check when the government publishes its consultation response.
While the rules stand, it is worth tracking your own clock: our absence counter for settlement works out days outside the UK on a rolling 12-month window, which is how the Home Office counts them. Everything we publish on this is gathered on the settlement and citizenship page.
What we checked against
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