United Kingdom: Home Secretary Unveils Earned Settlement Model With 10-Year Default Wait and 3-Year Route for Highest Earners
UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood set out an "earned settlement" model before Parliament on November 2: the right to live in the UK forever will no longer be granted almost automatically after five years, and how long someone waits will depend on their contribution and character. The highest earners will be able to settle within 3 years; those earning more than £50,271 and some public service workers such as doctors, nurses and teachers will be able to settle after 5 years; others face a new default of 10 years; and those who have breached immigration rules will only be able to settle after at least 20 years.
Anyone seeking settlement must first meet four non-negotiable conditions: a spotless criminal record, tightened from the current threshold of a 12-month suspended sentence; English spoken to a high standard, equivalent to A-Level English as a foreign language; no debt owed to the taxpayer; and a record of sustained National Insurance contributions. The government estimates over 500,000 people will wait longer than five years to settle, taking billions off the welfare bill; no one will be forced to leave, and everyone will have a fair chance to apply for new visas leading to settlement after 10 years. Settled status will never be removed from anyone who already holds it, and family members of British citizens, Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas) and members of the armed forces keep their current pathways.
Care workers who met their visa conditions and earned at least £25,000 a year during the pandemic period will be able to settle after five years, in recognition of their contribution; those who do not qualify, around a quarter of the total, will be offered a new five-year visa as a second chance, applying for settlement only once completed. Refugees on Home Office-approved routes will be able to settle after five years, others at 20 years, reduced to 10 years for those who work or study, and anyone who arrived by small boat or another clandestine means faces an additional 10 years, up to 30 in total. Prime Minister Andy Burnham backed the plan, saying people want a system based on control, contribution and rewarding those who play by the rules. "Settled status is one of the most valuable rights this country can offer. Until now it has been given almost automatically. From today, it must be earned," Mahmood said.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 照片：英国内政部大楼（伦敦），Lewis Clarke 摄，Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 2.0 授权 / Photo: The UK Home Office building in London, by Lewis Clarke, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
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- 2026-11-03United Kingdom: Home Secretary Unveils Earned Settlement Model With 10-Year Default Wait and 3-Year Route for Highest EarnersThis story
