People come to the UK for various purposes on temporary or long term visas and mostly have to return to their countries of origin upon completion of their job / study / visit. There are however some family / work / business related immigration categories which lead to settlement (ILR) in the UK.

Whoever has got Indefinite leave to remain (ILR) or Indefinite leave to enter (ILE) or permanent residence in the UK, that means he has no time limit on his stay in the UK which includes no work restrictions and eligibility to recourse of public funds. ILR is also a prerequisite of naturalization application.

From 06^th of April 2011, the UKBA has introduced more stringent rule of being free of any unspent convictions for all the applicants who wish to apply for permanent settlement / ILR in the UK, bringing the criteria in line with the naturalization application.

We will briefly discuss the family related immigration categories that lead to settlement / ILR in the UK i.e.

1. Spouses / Civil Partners of ILR holders or British Citizens: Initial leave is given for 27 months and upon completion of 24 months of residence (probationary period) in the UK, an application can be made for indefinite leave to remain in the UK.
2. Unmarried Partners of ILR Holders or British Citizens: Initial leave is given for 27 months and upon completion of 24 months of residence in the UK, an application can be made for indefinite leave to remain in the UK.
3. Spouses / partners of ILR Holders or British Citizens who become Victims of Domestic Violence: Only those spouses / partners of ILR holders or British Citizens who entered the UK on valid entry clearance or have leave to remain as spouse / partner and who become victims of domestic violence and their marriage or relationship terminate due to the Domestic violence, may make an application on such basis. There is no time limit that the applicants need to stay in the UK to be eligible to make this application.
4. Bereaved Spouses / Partners of ILR Holders or British Citizens: Those overseas nationals who have leave to remain or entered the UK as spouse / partner of a British Citizen or a person having ILR, may apply for ILR if their spouse dies during the probationary period.
5. Children of ILR Holders or British Citizens: British citizens or the persons having ILR or ILE in the UK can sponsor their children less than 18 years of age for permanent settlement.
6. Persons exercising rights of access to a child resident in the UK: This category is for those parents who have got rights of access to their child who is resident of the UK. They are given 12 months of initial leave and upon completion of 12 months, they become eligible for making their application for ILR.
7. Elderly parents or grandparents of ILR Holders or British Citizens: This category is for the elderly parents or grandparents of the British citizens or those who have got ILR status in the UK, who can make their application for settlement / ILR straight away. Once approved they are given ILR or ILE (in case they apply from overseas).

Whichever basis you wish to make your application for ILR, you need to provide evidences of compliance of immigration rules throughout your residence in the UK and meet specific requirements of the immigration category you are applying under.

At Nasim and Co Solicitors, we offer our expertise of advising and representing our clients in making their applications for ILR. We offer quality services at competitive rates and can also submit your ILR applications using Premium Service at PEO in Croydon.

You can contact us at 02085528612 or info@nasimandcosolicitors.com and one of team members will be in touch with you shortly.

 (Updated on 13th of May 2011)