UK doubles wait for permanent residency, exempts care workers

The UK government has revised its immigration rules and doubled the time most foreign workers must wait to qualify for permanent residency, from five years to 10. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood spoke about the changes in Parliament on Monday, according to Al Jazeera.

Permanent residency, known in the UK as indefinite leave to remain, carries the right to work, study, use the free National Health Service and claim welfare benefits. The new rules are due to take effect next year and will apply retroactively to workers already in the country.

Eligibility will be tied to income. People earning more than 50,000 pounds a year can still apply after five years, and those earning more than 125,000 pounds can apply after three. Everyone else will be placed on the 10-year path. The median UK salary is about 39,000 pounds.

Hundreds of thousands of care workers will be exempt from the stricter rules. Under the revised plan, they can settle after five years if they have met visa conditions and earn at least 25,000 pounds a year. The concession followed political outcry within Labour. The government first proposed last year that lower-skilled workers wait 10 to 15 years, a plan opposed by unions and parts of the party, especially over its effect on care workers.

For refugees, those arriving through new safe and legal routes can settle after five years. Other refugees face a standard 20-year wait, reduced to 10 years for those who work or study. Anyone who arrived by an illegal method, such as a small boat, could wait up to 30 years.

Applicants will be disqualified if they have a criminal record, cannot speak English to a high standard, owe money to the government, or have not made at least three years of national insurance contributions.

Mahmood said: "Settlement should not be automatic. It should be earned." She also said: "Those who contribute most will settle fastest." And: "Those who don't play by the rules will be refused or wait longer."

She said the overhaul would mean half a million people settle later than otherwise, saving the government billions of pounds in benefits. The government estimates up to 1.4 million people will receive settled status between 2026 and 2030. The changes followed a 12-week consultation that drew more than 200,000 responses. The government also says UK-France law enforcement cooperation has cut Channel crossings this year by more than 40 percent compared with 2025.