Politics · United Kingdom · 3 hrs ago
More than 200,000 granted UK settlement as proposed rules remain unresolved
More than 200,000 people have received indefinite leave to remain in the UK since ministers proposed tougher rules last year.
Indefinite leave to remain, or ILR, lets someone stay in Britain permanently and apply for benefits and, later, citizenship.
Under the current rules described, people who have legally lived in the UK for five years can qualify for settlement.
The government proposed an “earned settlement” plan that would double the qualifying period to ten years, and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood later said she wanted the changes to apply retrospectively.
She has warned that 1.6 million people could qualify for settlement between 2026 and 2030 without reform, with a projected taxpayer cost of £10 billion for that group.
The proposal has faced opposition from Labour MPs and trade unions, including Angela Rayner’s criticism of applying the changes to people already in the UK.
The plan’s future remains unclear, and Mahmood has signalled that it may be watered down.
More than 200,000 people have been granted indefinite leave to remain in the UK since ministers proposed stricter settlement rules, the Daily Mail reports.
The proposed rules remain unresolved after a backlash from Labour MPs and trade unions.
Under current rules, people who have lived in the UK for five years can apply for indefinite leave to remain.
The Government proposed doubling the qualifying period to ten years, citing high migration and the number expected to become eligible for settlement.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has signalled the plan may be watered down, while critics of the delay say more people will gain settlement under existing rules.
- Who
- More than 200,000 people have been granted indefinite leave to remain. The proposed changes are being debated by the Government, Labour MPs and trade unions.
- What
- The Government’s proposed stricter settlement rules remain unresolved as people continue to gain indefinite leave to remain under current rules.
- When
- The reported total covers the period since ministers proposed restrictions last year. The article was published on 18 October 2026.
- Where
- The United Kingdom.
- Why
- The Government proposed stricter rules because of high migration and the number expected to become eligible for settlement. The plan has faced objections, including over applying changes retrospectively.
Shabana Mahmood and supporters of stricter settlement rules
Angela Rayner and opposing Labour MPs and trade unions
Qualifying period
Shabana Mahmood and supporters of stricter settlement rules
The Government proposed doubling the qualifying period for settlement from five years to ten.
Angela Rayner and opposing Labour MPs and trade unions
Critics objected to changing the rules for people already in the UK.
Retrospective changes
Shabana Mahmood and supporters of stricter settlement rules
Mahmood wanted the stricter rules to apply retrospectively.
Angela Rayner and opposing Labour MPs and trade unions
Rayner called the retrospective plan un-British and a breach of trust.
The Government proposed earned settlement, which would double the qualifying period from five years to ten.
Mahmood said she wanted the stricter rules to apply retrospectively and warned that 1.6 million people would be entitled to settle between 2026 and 2030 without reform.
Mahmood said the lifetime cost to taxpayers of the cohort would be £10 billion.
Rayner stood by her criticism of the plan’s retrospective nature.
The Daily Mail reported that more than 200,000 people had gained indefinite leave to remain since the proposal.
- People granted settlement
- More than 200,000 since the restrictions were proposed
- Current qualifying period
- Five years of residence in the UK
- Proposed qualifying period
- Ten years
- Potential settlements without reform
- 1.6 million people between 2026 and 2030
- Estimated taxpayer cost
- £10 billion
What people are saying
Every single day, hundreds of mainly low-wage or no-wage immigrants get the right to stay here permanently and claim benefits.
Why is she delaying? It's because she's scared of Angela Rayner and the Left of the Labour Party, and she hasn't got the courage to implement her own plans.
capitulated to Labour's open-borders zealots
un-British