ILR After a UK Spouse Visa
You may qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after five years of qualifying UK residence on the five-year Spouse or Partner Visa route, provided you meet the settlement requirements. Check your route, residence dates, relationship, finances and language evidence before applying.
ILR is settlement. British citizenship is a separate nationality status requiring its own application. Getting married, completing five calendar years or receiving an extension does not automatically grant either status.
This guide explains the usual five-year partner settlement application. Our Spouse Visa service page covers the earlier application and extension stages.
What is Indefinite Leave to Remain?
ILR, often described as permanent residence, allows you to live in the UK without a time limit on your immigration permission. You can normally work and study without the restrictions attached to temporary partner leave.
It removes the need for further spouse visa renewals. However, you still need to maintain usable evidence of your status, and lengthy overseas absence can cause ordinary ILR to lapse.
You may become eligible for benefits, subject to the rules for each benefit. Being granted ILR does not automatically entitle everyone to every payment.
Whether you can register to vote depends on nationality, residence and the election concerned. Settlement alone does not give every person identical voting rights.
Who can apply for ILR after a Spouse Visa?
Start with your most recent Home Office decision. It should help establish whether you are on the five-year route, ten-year route or another category.
For the usual five-year partner application, check:
- You have completed five continuous years of qualifying residence with the same partner.
- Your current immigration permission and your partner’s status meet the settlement rules.
- Your relationship remains genuine and you intend to continue living together.
- You meet the applicable financial and accommodation requirements.
- You meet the knowledge of language and life requirements, or a permitted exemption.
- Your immigration history and personal circumstances satisfy suitability requirements.
This is different from settlement as the dependant of a work visa holder. The application form, qualifying residence and evidence must match your actual route.
If your relationship has ended, your partner has died or domestic abuse is involved, different provisions may apply. Obtain appropriately authorised advice rather than using an ordinary same-partner application without assessment.
When to apply: calculating your eligibility date
The earliest usual application date is twenty-eight days before completing the required qualifying residence. Applying earlier can lead to refusal. You must also protect your position before your current permission expires.
For someone admitted overseas as a spouse, check the date they entered the UK with qualifying permission. For an in-country switch, examine when qualifying partner permission began. A wedding anniversary or first visitor arrival is not a reliable substitute.
Time as a fiancé, fiancée or proposed civil partner does not count towards the five-year partner period. Other visa categories cannot simply be added to reach five years under this route.
Create a chronology showing applications, grants, UK entry and extensions, supported by decision records. Check periods of Section 3C leave where relevant rather than assuming a pending application created a gap or automatically protected you.
If your visa expires before you can qualify, a further extension may be needed. Do not let permission expire while waiting to reach the settlement date.
Residence, cohabitation and time outside the UK
You need to establish the required continuous residence and continuing family life. Travel history should be considered alongside where you and your partner actually lived.
Prepare a list of trips, dates, reasons and whether you travelled together. Longer periods overseas may need supporting records explaining work, family responsibilities or other circumstances.
Do not assume every absence means refusal, or that a marriage certificate answers questions about residence. The important task is to establish how your history meets this route’s requirements.
Proof of cohabitation should explain life together since the last grant, with earlier records available where needed to clarify the wider history. Address changes, separate correspondence and periods apart should be described accurately.
For a hypothetical couple who moved home twice, an address timeline can make their records easier to follow. Match the tenancy dates with relevant bills and letters. That helps explain the evidence; it does not replace the residence or relationship requirements.
Financial requirement for ILR in 2026
The correct income threshold depends on your qualifying application history. It is not automatically £29,000 for everyone applying after a spouse visa.
Qualifying applications before 11 April 2024
Transitional provisions can preserve a £18,600 annual minimum income requirement for qualifying same-partner cases. Relevant child additions are normally £3,800 for the first child and £2,400 for further children, capped overall at £29,000.
Some children are excluded from that calculation. Check their nationality and immigration position rather than counting every child in the household.
Applications under the newer threshold
The usual newer five-year partner requirement is £29,000 annually, with no additional minimum income increment for children.
Specified benefits and financial evidence
Where the sponsor receives specified disability or carer’s benefits, adequate maintenance provisions may apply instead. Evidence of resources and housing costs is still needed.
Permitted sources may include salary, self-employment, pensions or savings. Calculation and document rules depend on the category. Cash savings are assessed differently at settlement from temporary partner applications, so do not copy an extension calculation without checking it.
Use the required current evidence period. There is no universal requirement to submit every payslip for the full five-year period, although previous records can matter where your history needs clarification.
Documents you will need
Build a document list around the current form and your individual evidence needs. Typical categories include:
- Identity and permission: current passport, immigration decisions, eVisa details and relevant previous passports.
- Relationship: marriage or civil partnership certificate and evidence of a continuing genuine partnership.
- Residence: relevant cohabitation correspondence, address history and travel information.
- Proof of income: payslips, bank statements, tax returns or savings statements appropriate to the category.
- Accommodation: tenancy, ownership or occupancy records and household details.
- Language and life: qualifying English evidence and your Life in the UK Test result or reference, unless exempt.
Keep previous Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) records where useful, but check your current digital permission. An expired card does not necessarily mean your immigration leave expired.
Missing dates or unclear documents should be resolved where possible. Explain genuine differences, such as a changed employer or name, rather than forcing new records to match an old application.
The Home Office needs evidence establishing eligibility. Preparation should identify strengths, weaknesses and gaps, with each document serving a clear purpose.
Life in the UK Test
The Life in the UK Test normally forms part of the knowledge requirements for applicants aged eighteen to sixty-four, unless a permitted exemption applies.
The test lasts 45 minutes and contains 24 questions. You need 75 percent to pass, equivalent to eighteen correct answers.
Book through the official Life in the UK Test service. The published test fee is £50. Use the official preparation material and ensure the booking name matches the accepted identity document.
If you fail, you can retake the test, paying again. Allow time for preparation and another attempt before your application deadline.
Retain the pass reference. Do not assume you must produce a paper Life in the UK Test certificate if the service issued digital confirmation.
English language requirement: B1 level
For the ordinary settlement test route, you normally need an approved B1 level speaking and listening qualification or higher.
A qualifying degree taught in English or researched in English, eligible nationality or permitted exemption may provide another way to meet the requirement. An overseas degree can require appropriate recognition evidence.
Can I reuse my English test certificate?
A previous B1 English test is not automatically reusable in every situation. For an expired qualification used for settlement, published guidance requires it to remain on the current recognised list and to have been accepted for another UK immigration application.
Check the precise test and previous decision before booking another exam. Expired test certificates require assessment, rather than an automatic assumption that they are acceptable or unusable.
Age and medical exemptions have specific conditions. A diagnosis alone does not necessarily establish an exemption from either knowledge requirement.
Application process: preparing your ILR application
Step 1: check your eligibility
Confirm the route, qualifying dates, sponsor status and requirements. Resolve questions about residence or financial categories before selecting the form.
Step 2: prepare your documents
Check coverage periods, names, figures and explanations. Keep a clear evidence index so you can identify what was submitted.
Step 3: apply online
Use the official GOV.UK application for your route, usually SET(M) for an ordinary five-year partner settlement application. Complete the declarations and pay the applicable fee.
Saving the form is not submission. Retain confirmation of the application and payment.
Step 4: complete identity and biometrics requirements
Follow the instructions for your application, including any UKVCAS biometrics appointment and evidence-upload arrangements. Keep appointment confirmations and meet the stated deadlines.
Step 5: wait for a decision
Monitor requests and respond promptly. Avoid travel outside the Common Travel Area while the in-country application is pending, because departure can cause it to be withdrawn.
A valid in-time application may protect continuing permission under Section 3C if the relevant conditions are met. Check your individual status before relying on continued work rights.
ILR fees and processing times in 2026
The published ILR application fee, checked on 10 October 2026, is £3,226 per applicant. There is no Immigration Health Surcharge for settlement.
Budget separately for any English test, the Life in the UK Test, translations, appointment extras and professional fees. A single fixed English test price or generic biometric fee is not reliable for every application.
Published guidance gives a usual decision time of six months after providing fingerprints and a photograph. Complex cases can take longer. Faster decision services may be available, subject to eligibility and availability, without guaranteeing approval.
Check the official immigration fee table before paying.
Common ILR mistakes
Problems can include applying too early, relying on the wrong qualifying route, missing proof of cohabitation, failing to meet financial requirements or submitting unclear or mismatched documents.
The useful check is whether the application demonstrates the rules, rather than whether the bundle looks large. Identify substantive eligibility problems alongside administrative errors.
If you do not meet the settlement requirements, family life or hardship does not automatically produce ILR. Further temporary permission or another route may need consideration.
What happens after ILR?
Check your decision and access your eVisa through your UKVI account. Keep the account linked to your current passport and correct personal details.
Ordinary ILR can lapse after a lengthy continuous overseas absence, normally after more than two continuous years overseas, subject to exceptions. It can also be affected by deportation or revocation provisions. Obtain advice before planning extended residence abroad.
Can I apply for British citizenship immediately?
If you are married to or in a civil partnership with a British citizen, you may apply after ILR without the usual twelve-month wait, provided the other naturalisation requirements are met.
Otherwise, the usual ILR-based route generally requires twelve months holding settlement. Residence, absences and good character require separate checking. Our British citizenship service page explains that next stage.
Can my children apply for ILR too?
Your ILR does not automatically grant settlement to your children. Each child’s current permission, dependency and parental circumstances must be checked. Eligible children can be included where the route permits, with separate application charges. Adult children may also need English and Life in the UK evidence. Plan their applications alongside yours instead of assuming the same eligibility date.
How AHJ Immigration helps
A case assessment can clarify your route, dates and evidence needs. Contact us with the information you have, even before gathering every document.
Where instructed, application preparation and follow-up support are provided within the agreed scope. Confirm fees and responsibilities before proceeding.
Book a consultation or request a call back.
Call 0121 828 2224 or email hello@ahjimmigration.co.uk.
