The UK Still Won’t Say When ILR Changes Take Effect. Here’s Everything Confirmed So Far
If you arrived in the UK in 2022 on a five-year route to settlement, you are due to qualify for Indefinite Leave to Remain in February 2027. That is five months away. And as of this week, the government still will not say whether the rules you planned your life around will still apply by then.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood gave evidence to the Home Affairs Committee last week, and it was published in full only today. Asked directly when the "earned settlement" reforms would be announced, she said a decision is coming "very soon", declined to give MPs a date, and confirmed only that it would happen "later this year", before the first wave of 2022 arrivals reaches the five-year mark.
What just happened
In the September 17 session, Mahmood was pressed on whether earned settlement would be implemented before February 2027. Her answer confirmed the timeline pressure without resolving it: "I am very aware that a large group of people who arrived in 2022, absent any change, would qualify in February 2027. We have to give certainty to the system... Later this year we will set out the new policy on settlement, taking into account all the consultation responses we have had, as well as any transitional arrangements we might decide to implement."
She also restated a legal principle worth knowing regardless of what happens next: the rules that apply to your application are the rules in force at the point you apply, not the rules that existed when you first arrived in the UK.
Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy pushed further on the anxiety this is causing people who, in Mahmood’s own words, are a "highly knowledgeable cohort" who "tend to know their rules very well." Mahmood’s response gave the clearest hint yet at what transitional protections might actually look like: options range from "passporting certain cohorts through" so they keep the current five-year route unchanged, to "different options for other cohorts over a longer period." No decision has been made on which applies to whom.
What "earned settlement" actually proposes
Under the plan first published on November 20, 2025, the default qualifying period for Indefinite Leave to Remain would rise from five years to ten. Settlement would stop being a fixed clock and start being something adjusted up or down based on four pillars: character, integration, contribution, and residence.
In her own words at an IPPR speech in March, Mahmood described the core conditions as "a clean criminal record, no debt to the taxpayer, a history of being in work and paying taxes, and higher standards of English language." She has said publicly that higher earners and public servants, her examples were doctors and nurses, could qualify sooner than the ten-year default, while others could wait longer.
The timeline so far
November 20, 2025 — Government publishes "A Fairer Pathway to Settlement" and opens consultation.
February 2, 2026 — Westminster Hall debate, triggered by two public petitions with over 100,000 signatures each. Every backbencher who spoke opposed applying the changes retrospectively.
February 12, 2026 — Consultation closes with more than 200,000 responses.
March 1, 2026 — Mahmood tells The Times the changes will be retrospective and take effect "this autumn."
March 5, 2026 — IPPR speech; separately, a Statement of Changes is laid before Parliament confirming one piece is already locked in: the English requirement for settlement rises from B1 to B2, effective spring 2027.
June 23, 2026 — The House of Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee publishes a report strongly opposing several elements of the reform, including the government’s use of powers that bypass full parliamentary scrutiny.
September 17, 2026 — In evidence to the Home Affairs Committee, Mahmood says a decision is coming "very soon" but will not name a date.
Today, September 24, 2026 — That evidence session is reported in full.
What is actually locked in
Out of everything above, only two pieces are confirmed, not proposed:
The English requirement rises from B1 to B2, effective spring 2027 (this is already law, laid before Parliament in March).
Two groups get a five-year discount regardless of the wider reform: partners, parents, and unmarried children of British citizens, and BN(O) visa holders. The government confirmed in February this was not up for consultation.
Everything else, the 10-year default, the exact earnings or service thresholds that shorten it, and above all the transitional arrangements for people already partway through their five-year route, remains undecided.
Who is out of scope entirely
Regardless of how the reform lands, some groups are not affected: people who already hold ILR, EU Settlement Scheme settled status holders, and Windrush scheme beneficiaries. If you fall into one of these categories, nothing here changes your position.
What this actually costs someone
During the February debate, Labour MP Barry Gardiner raised a constituent family who had already paid £28,726 in visa fees and charges under the current rules. He warned that if they were pushed onto an extended pathway, their total costs could exceed £43,000, with no guarantee the rules would not change again before they finally qualified. That is the practical stake behind the political language: for a family paying application fees at every renewal, a longer qualifying period is not just a wait, it is a running bill.
What to do right now
You are close to your 5-year mark. Keep your continuous residence and absence records precise. Under the principle Mahmood herself restated, the rules in force when you actually apply are what count, so filing promptly once eligible matters.
You arrived in 2022 or later. You are in the group most directly affected by the timing question. There is no official transitional policy yet, so treat any blog claiming to know the exact cutoff with caution.
You are a partner, parent, or child of a British citizen, or a BN(O) visa holder. Your five-year discount is already confirmed, independent of how the wider reform lands.
You are preparing your English language evidence. Plan for B2, not B1. That change is no longer a proposal.
Anyone affected. Watch for the government’s formal response to the consultation and any Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules, that is the only place transitional arrangements will be made official.
Frequently asked questions
Is ILR definitely changing from 5 to 10 years?
It is the government’s stated intention and has been repeatedly reaffirmed, but as of today it has not been implemented and no Statement of Changes covering the qualifying period has been laid before Parliament.
Will the changes apply to people already in the UK?
The Home Secretary has said yes, this would apply retrospectively to those who have not yet secured settlement, though the exact transitional arrangements remain undecided.
When will we know for sure?
The Home Secretary says "later this year", before February 2027, when the first large group of 2022 arrivals would otherwise qualify under the current five-year rule. No specific date has been given.
Is the English language requirement change confirmed?
Yes. The rise from B1 to B2 was laid before Parliament in March 2026 and takes effect in spring 2027, independently of the wider reform.
This article is for information only and is not legal advice. Rules referenced here are current as of September 24, 2026 and may change; confirm your specific situation with a qualified immigration adviser or solicitor.
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