If you have completed 10 years continuous and lawful residence in the UK, you may apply for settlement (indefinite leave to remain) under the long residency route. Settling (known as a indefinite leave to remain) means you can stay in the UK without any time restrictions.
Applying for settlement can be complex and daunting experience. At GB Immigration our expert team understand you want to start the next immigration-free chapter in your life quickly and with minimal disruption and expense.
The main requirement for a successful settlement application is that you must have lived in the UK for a continuous and legal period of 10 years: this essentially means that you must have held valid visas throughout the qualifying period and you must have been physically present in the UK.
There are various ways in which ‘continuous’ and ‘legal’ residence could be broken, including absences from the UK exceeding permitted limits, previous visa refusals and time spent in prison. There is a certain level of discretion that the Home Office must apply if there are short gaps in lawful residence. It depends on the reasoning and the timing of the relevant ‘gaps’ in residence.
In addition to the above, there must not be any reason why granting indefinite leave is against the ‘public good’ and you must meet the Knowledge of Language (B1 CEFR) and Life in the UK requirements. If you have a criminal background of any sort, it is important that you must not have any unspent convictions within the meaning of the Rehabilitation Offenders Act 1974.
Lawful residence can, in certain circumstances, include time spent in the UK under EU law. As such, you could combine your lawful stay under UK Immigration Laws with time spent under the Freedom of Movement provisions to apply for settlement on the basis of your 10-years long residence. This is wholly at Home Office discretion and it is therefore imperative to instruct a knowledgeable lawyer to assist you with your application.
If you wish to make an application for settlement on the basis of long-residence, we can assist you in gathering the required documentary evidences and submitting your application to the Home Office.
If you have completed your long-residence period in the UK but you do not meet the English language or Life in the UK requirement, we can assist you in making a two and a half-year extension application instead.
If you wish to make an application for indefinite leave to remain on a same day basis, we can assist you in applying for this and represent you on this day as well. Applications submitted through this service are ordinarily decided on the same day.
A long residence settlement application cannot include dependants. As each application is made in their own right, we can also assist your spouse and children with their applications.
For any children born in the UK before you were granted settlement on the basis of long-residence, we can assist you with making their British Citizen by Registration applications.
In the event that you have applied for settlement and you have received a refusal, our expert team are able to appeal the decision to the First Tier Tribunal and thereafter to the Upper Tier Tribunal if applicable.
De Montfort House, 1 De Montfort Square, Leicester, LE1 7ER
0800 368 8939