United Kingdom — Home Office
UK ILR & settlement-date calculator
Enter your route and the date your continuous qualifying residence began to see your earliest Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) date and your earliest British citizenship date. The qualifying periods are taken from GOV.UK; the dates are indicative planning estimates, not a Home Office decision.
Earliest ILR (settlement)
15 January 2029
5 years after 15 January 2024
Earliest British citizenship
15 January 2030
12 months after ILR
- • Qualifying period: 5 years of continuous qualifying residence. Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, Scale-up, T2 Minister of Religion, International Sportsperson and most 5-year work routes settle after 5 years of continuous qualifying residence.
- • Continuous residence: No more than 180 days absent in any rolling 12-month period across the qualifying years. Breaks above the limit can reset or delay the clock.
- • Naturalisation: you must normally hold ILR for 12 months before applying for British citizenship (and meet the 5-year residence + absence limits: no more than 450 days absent over 5 years, and no more than 90 days in the final 12 months).
- • You must also pass the Life in the UK test and meet the English-language requirement (CEFR B1+) for both ILR and naturalisation.
- • These are indicative planning dates only — your actual absence record, the tests, good character, and a Home Office caseworker’s decision determine eligibility. Confirm the current rules on GOV.UK before relying on a date.
Dated verdict context
UK ILR settlement-date verdict context
Verified 2026-07-04
The calculator result should be read as settlement date arithmetic over GOV.UK qualifying periods: 5 years for Skilled Worker and the partner 5-year family route, 3 years for Innovator Founder, 3 or 5 years for Global Talent depending on endorsement basis, and 10 years for long residence.
An ILR date from this calculator is not a Home Office eligibility decision. GOV.UK can allow some applications 28 days before the qualifying date, but the route-specific evidence, absence record, salary or sponsor need, Life in the UK and naturalisation rules still control the outcome.
Skilled Worker / Health and Care settlement clock
5 years
GOV.UK says Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, T2 and Tier 2 settlement normally requires 5 years living and working in the UK.
GOV.UK - Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, T2 or Tier 2 ILR
Earliest application window
28 days before qualifying date
GOV.UK warns applications made earlier than the 28-day pre-eligibility window may be refused.
GOV.UK - Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, T2 or Tier 2 ILR
Global Talent settlement clock
3 years or 5 years
Global Talent can be 3 years for listed endorsing bodies, exceptional talent or eligible-award routes, and 5 years for exceptional promise routes.
Innovator Founder settlement clock
3 years
Innovator Founder settlement requires 3 years on the Innovator Founder or Innovator route plus a new endorsement showing business-growth requirements are met.
Partner 5-year family route
5 continuous years
Partner ILR on the 5-year family route requires 5 continuous years on the family visa as a partner, alongside relationship, income and knowledge-of-language-and-life checks.
Long residence route
10 years
Long residence requires 10 years in the UK legally without gaps; current GOV.UK guidance allows up to 180 days outside the UK in any 12-month period, with transitional limits for pre-11-April-2024 absences.
Citizenship wait after ILR
12 months; no wait if married to a British citizen
Naturalisation normally requires 12 months holding ILR or settled status; spouses or civil partners of British citizens do not need that 12-month wait.
Skilled Worker, arrived 15 Jan 2024
ILR 2029-01-15 (apply from 2028-12-18)
Route: Skilled Worker / most work routes; qualifying period 5 years; ILR date 2029-01-15; earliest application window 2028-12-18. The Home Office still checks salary, sponsor need, continuous residence, Life in the UK and route-specific evidence; this is date arithmetic, not an eligibility decision.
Effective 2028-12-18 - GOV.UK - Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, T2 or Tier 2 ILR
Global Talent, arrived 1 Mar 2024
ILR 2027-03-01 (apply from 2027-02-01)
Route: Global Talent (accelerated); qualifying period 3 years; ILR date 2027-03-01; earliest application window 2027-02-01. Global Talent can be a 3-year or 5-year settlement route depending on endorsement or eligible-award basis; this scenario uses the accelerated 3-year route.
Effective 2027-02-01 - GOV.UK - Business, investor or talent ILR
Innovator Founder, arrived 28 Feb 2025
ILR 2028-02-28 (apply from 2028-01-31)
Route: Innovator Founder (accelerated); qualifying period 3 years; ILR date 2028-02-28; earliest application window 2028-01-31. Innovator Founder settlement also needs a fresh endorsement showing the business growth requirements have been met.
Effective 2028-01-31 - GOV.UK - Innovator Founder or Innovator ILR
Spouse of a British citizen, arrived 10 Jun 2023
ILR 2028-06-10 (apply from 2028-05-13)
Route: Partner of a British citizen; qualifying period 5 years; ILR date 2028-06-10; earliest application window 2028-05-13. Partner settlement still depends on the correct family-route track, relationship evidence, financial or adequate-maintenance rules, Life in the UK and English evidence.
Effective 2028-05-13 - GOV.UK - Family ILR as a partner
Partner of a settled (non-British) person, arrived 10 Jun 2023
ILR 2028-06-10 (apply from 2028-05-13)
Route: Partner of a settled (non-British) person; qualifying period 5 years; ILR date 2028-06-10; earliest application window 2028-05-13. Partner settlement still depends on the correct family-route track, relationship evidence, financial or adequate-maintenance rules, Life in the UK and English evidence.
Effective 2028-05-13 - GOV.UK - Family ILR as a partner
10-year long residence, clock started 30 Sep 2016
ILR 2026-09-30 (apply from 2026-09-02)
Route: Long residence (10-year route); qualifying period 10 years; ILR date 2026-09-30; earliest application window 2026-09-02. Long residence still depends on lawful continuous residence, excluded categories, the current 180-day rolling absence rule and transitional pre-11 April 2024 absence limits.
Effective 2026-09-02 - GOV.UK - Long residence ILR
Skilled Worker, granted 29 Feb 2024 (leap day)
ILR 2029-02-28 (apply from 2029-01-31)
Route: Skilled Worker / most work routes; qualifying period 5 years; ILR date 2029-02-28; earliest application window 2029-01-31. The Home Office still checks salary, sponsor need, continuous residence, Life in the UK and route-specific evidence; this is date arithmetic, not an eligibility decision.
Effective 2029-01-31 - GOV.UK - Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, T2 or Tier 2 ILR
Source datasets
Limits
- This context tracks current GOV.UK production guidance, not press-reported or proposed settlement reforms until they are enacted in the official rules.
- The calculator does not inspect absences, lawful-status gaps, salary, sponsor letters, Life in the UK, English evidence, relationship evidence, good character or Home Office discretion.
- Global Talent 3-year settlement only applies to specific endorsement or eligible-award bases; other Global Talent cases can require 5 years.
UK work-route money stack
UK Skilled Worker cost, salary and settlement answer
Read the UK Skilled Worker route as one stack: visa fee, IHS, maintenance funds, salary floor and the 5-year ILR planning clock. The Health and Care Worker route is kept separate because its IHS and salary rules are materially different.
Skilled Worker costs
Application fee £819; IHS £3,105; show-only maintenance £1,270.
Modelled paid-away range: £3,924-£4,044; show-only range: £1,270.
Salary floor
General floor £41,700/year; discounted ISL/tradeable floor £33,400/year.
The occupation-specific going rate can still bind higher than the headline floor.
Health and Care split
Application fee £324; IHS £0; salary floor £25,000/year.
The IHS exemption is the reason this route should not be collapsed into a generic Skilled Worker cost claim.
- Full UK migration cost builder
- Skilled Worker cost-to-complete
- Skilled Worker fee breakdown
- UK salary thresholds
- Skilled Worker points calculator
- Health and Care Worker route
- Health and Care cost-to-complete
- Health and Care fee breakdown
Source dates: cost models checked 30 June 2026 and 1 July 2026; UK salary thresholds checked 30 May 2026. These links support retrieval and review, not ranking, traffic or market-share outcome claims.
Worked examples
Typical profiles run through the same calculator above. ILR is the settlement date; citizenship is the earliest naturalisation date.
| Profile | Route & start | Earliest ILR | Earliest citizenship | GOV.UK context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skilled Worker, arrived 15 Jan 2024 | Skilled Worker / most work routes · 15 January 2024 | 15 January 2029 | 15 January 2030 | ILR qualifying date 15 January 2029; GOV.UK window can open 18 December 2028 The Home Office still checks salary, sponsor need, continuous residence, Life in the UK and route-specific evidence; this is date arithmetic, not an eligibility decision. |
| Global Talent, arrived 1 Mar 2024 | Global Talent (accelerated) · 1 March 2024 | 1 March 2027 | 1 March 2028 | ILR qualifying date 1 March 2027; GOV.UK window can open 1 February 2027 Global Talent can be a 3-year or 5-year settlement route depending on endorsement or eligible-award basis; this scenario uses the accelerated 3-year route. |
| Innovator Founder, arrived 28 Feb 2025 | Innovator Founder (accelerated) · 28 February 2025 | 28 February 2028 | 28 February 2029 | ILR qualifying date 28 February 2028; GOV.UK window can open 31 January 2028 Innovator Founder settlement also needs a fresh endorsement showing the business growth requirements have been met. |
| Spouse of a British citizen, arrived 10 Jun 2023 | Partner of a British citizen · 10 June 2023 | 10 June 2028 | 10 June 2028 | ILR qualifying date 10 June 2028; citizenship can be same day if other rules are met Partner settlement still depends on the correct family-route track, relationship evidence, financial or adequate-maintenance rules, Life in the UK and English evidence. |
| Partner of a settled (non-British) person, arrived 10 Jun 2023 | Partner of a settled (non-British) person · 10 June 2023 | 10 June 2028 | 10 June 2029 | ILR qualifying date 10 June 2028; GOV.UK window can open 13 May 2028 Partner settlement still depends on the correct family-route track, relationship evidence, financial or adequate-maintenance rules, Life in the UK and English evidence. |
| 10-year long residence, clock started 30 Sep 2016 | Long residence (10-year route) · 30 September 2016 | 30 September 2026 | 30 September 2027 | ILR qualifying date 30 September 2026; GOV.UK window can open 2 September 2026 Long residence still depends on lawful continuous residence, excluded categories, the current 180-day rolling absence rule and transitional pre-11 April 2024 absence limits. |
| Skilled Worker, granted 29 Feb 2024 (leap day) | Skilled Worker / most work routes · 29 February 2024 | 28 February 2029 | 28 February 2030 | ILR qualifying date 28 February 2029; GOV.UK window can open 31 January 2029 The Home Office still checks salary, sponsor need, continuous residence, Life in the UK and route-specific evidence; this is date arithmetic, not an eligibility decision. |
Dates are produced by the calculator above from the GOV.UK qualifying periods. They assume continuous lawful residence within the absence limits — they do not by themselves grant settlement.
About this calculator
UK settlement runs from a time-limited visa, to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) after a qualifying period of continuous residence, to British citizenship by naturalisation. Most work and family routes settle after 5 years; Global Talent and Innovator Founder after 3; the long-residence route after 10. Naturalisation is normally 12 months after ILR, except for spouses of British citizens, who can apply immediately on ILR. This tool does the date arithmetic over those published periods — it does not assess your absence record, the Life in the UK test, the English requirement, or good character, all of which the Home Office checks.
Calculator provenance
- Rule review date
- 4 July 2026
- Calculation method
- Adds the published qualifying period to the residence start date, then derives the earliest naturalisation planning date.
It does not audit absences, continuous lawful status, Life in the UK, English evidence, good character, or Home Office discretion. This independent calculator is for planning only; the authoritative result is the relevant government or caseworker decision.
FAQs
When can I apply for ILR in the UK?
For most work routes (Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker) and family routes, after 5 years of continuous qualifying residence. Global Talent and Innovator Founder can usually settle after 3 years. The 10-year long-residence route requires 10 years of continuous lawful residence.
How long after ILR can I apply for British citizenship?
Generally 12 months after you receive ILR (and after 5 years’ residence overall). The exception is the spouse or civil partner of a British citizen, who can apply for naturalisation as soon as they hold ILR — there is no 12-month wait.
How many days can I be outside the UK without breaking continuous residence?
On most 5-year routes, no more than 180 days in any rolling 12-month period across the qualifying years. For naturalisation, no more than 450 days over the 5 years and no more than 90 days in the final 12 months. The 10-year long-residence route uses different absence limits.
Does this calculator confirm I will get ILR?
No. It is date arithmetic over the published qualifying periods, not a Home Office decision. Your actual eligibility depends on your absence record, the Life in the UK test, the English-language requirement, good character, and continuous lawful status. Always confirm the current rules on GOV.UK.