Settling in the UK

Once a visa holder is granted ILR, they:

• will no longer be restricted in the type of employment they can undertake;
• will be able to work outside the UK for up to 2 years without losing ILR;
• may be eligible to apply for British citizenship after 12 months (or as soon as they are granted ILR if married to, or the civil partner of a, UK national). 

Home Office guidance provides more information on rights and status once ILR has been granted.

The table below lists visa routes which lead to ILR and the length of the qualifying period in each case. As this is based on the visa routes most often seen within the collegiate University, it is not an exhaustive list.

The Home Office ‘Find out whether you can apply to settle in the UK’ guide can help those who are unsure whether they are eligible to apply.

Switching visa route re-starts the ILR ‘clock’

With the exception of Skilled Worker/ Tier 2 and Tier 1 Exceptional Talent, it is not possible to combine time spent under different visas when applying under the standard 5 year ILR route. As a result, any switch from one visa route to another (such as Skilled Worker/ Tier 2 to Dependant, or vice versa) restarts the 5 year ‘clock’ to ILR.

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The following table provides a summary of the main costs for an ILR application. The same costs are payable for the main applicant and each dependent (main applicant's partner/ spouse and/ or dependent child). These Home Office fees tend to increase each year in April.

Visa Loan Scheme

Our reimbursement of visa costs & visa loan scheme pages provide details on the support the University can offer to applicants on the fees. The Visa Loan Scheme is not, unfortunately, available to those with ‘college only’ appointments.

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When to submit an ILR application

ILR applications must be submitted online:

• Before the applicant’s current visa expires. The appointment to submit biometrics, however, does not have to be before the expiry date of the current visa.
• No more than 28 calendar days before the end of the relevant 3, 5 or 10 year qualifying period. If an application is submitted earlier than ‘28 days before’, it will automatically be refused.

A standard (5yr) and ‘Long residence’ (10yr) ILR applications can take up to six months to process, and a further 1-2 weeks to receive the new BRP after a decision is made.

An application submitted through the Super Priority route should result in a decision within 1-2 working days but it will still take a further 1-2 weeks to then receive the new BRP.

An application submitted through the Priority route (a new option only available to Tier 2 visa holders who are applying for ILR) should result in a decision within around 5 working days but again it will take a further 1-2 weeks to then receive the new BRP.

No travel while an application is pending

Even though the applicant will retain their documents, they must not travel while their application is being processed. Any travel outside the Common Travel Area (CTA) (UK, Ireland, Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey and the Channel Islands) automatically results in the application being withdrawn by the Home Office.

Working while an application is pending

As long as an ILR application has been submitted before the current visa expires, the visa holder can continue to work under the conditions of their existing visa while the application is being processed.

If the application has not been decided at the point the current visa expires, the department/ college will need the application reference number to request verification of the applicant’s continuing right to work from the Home Office Employers Checking Service.

When ILR is granted, the new BRP must be presented to the department/ college so that they can carry out a new right to work check and update their records. If the applicant was a Skilled Worker/ Tier 2 visa holder, the department/ college will also need to send copies of the new BRP and a Changes & Leavers form to the Staff Immigration Team (SIT).

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• Find the correct guidance and application link based on the current visa using the Home Office guide to ‘Find out whether you can apply to settle in the UK’.
• Draft online ILR application. Applicants can save and later return to a draft application through a link emailed to them by the Home Office.
• Submit ILR online application paying ILR, biometrics, and optional Super Priority, fees.
• When transferred to ‘Sopra Steria’ website, book UK VCAS appointment to submit biometric information.
• Applicants have the option to upload scanned copies of supporting documents or have these scanned at their UK VCAS appointment.

When an ILR application is submitted online, the applicant is transferred to the Sopra Steria website to book an appointment at a UK Visa and Citizenship Application Services (UK VCAS) centre. Sopra Steria is the private company which runs the UK VCAS centres on behalf of the Home Office.

The main applicant and any dependants applying at the same time must submit their biometric information (fingerprints and facial image) at the UK VCAS appointment. Fingerprints are not taken for children under 5 years old.

• There are seven ‘Core’ UK VCAS centres, which do not charge additional fees, the closest of which to Oxford are Birmingham, Croydon, and Cardiff.

• There are around sixty ‘Enhanced Service Centres’ which charge additional fees, the closest of which to Oxford are Reading and Warwick.

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Applying for ILR is expensive and can be complex. For this reason the Staff Immigration Team (SIT) provides more detailed advice, and support with queries on the requirements, application forms and process to applicants directly. Visa holders within the collegiate University can contact SIT at any point if they have queries or want to discuss applying for ILR. Where there is a choice between different types of application, SIT can discuss the requirements but cannot recommend one over another.

Standard 5 year ILR

As SIT holds details for Skilled Worker/ Tier 2 visa holders sponsored by the University, they run checks within six months of their visa expiring, to ascertain who may be ready to apply for ILR.

SIT is happy to assist applicants through the process of applying for ILR, and provides advice and a template employers letter to the applicant's department, faculty, college. They cannot, however, check ILR applications, supporting documents, or absence histories before submission.

If an applicant has complicated issues or queries, SIT can seek clarification from their immigration solicitor or the Home Office.

If, however, an applicant has very complicated issues or queries, or wishes to have their application, supporting documents and/or absence history checked before submission, they may want to seek their own advice from an immigration solicitor.

‘Long residence’ 10 year ILR

SIT has some experience of ‘Long residence’ ILR applications and can assist with queries on the requirements, application form and processes. SIT is not, however, in a position to provide as much support as they do for applications under the standard 5 year ILR route.

British citizenship

SIT can assist with queries on the requirements, application forms and processes for Naturalisation, and Registration (of children under 18), as a British citizen but are not in a position to provide as much support as they do for ILR applications.

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