Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has unveiled a sweeping transformation of the UK's legal migration system, introducing a new 10-year path to settled status for most arrivals since 2021 while creating fast-track routes for high earners and innovators.
A New Era for UK Settlement
In a statement to MPs on Thursday, 20 November 2025, Mahmood outlined plans that will fundamentally alter how migrants gain indefinite leave to remain (ILR). The reforms specifically target the nearly two million migrants who have arrived since 2021, a cohort the Home Secretary referred to as the "Boris wave" in reference to the post-Brexit immigration changes under former Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
The central pillar of the new policy requires individuals arriving from 2021 onwards to wait 10 years before they can apply for settled status, a significant increase from the previous five-year requirement for many visa categories. To qualify, migrants must be working, make National Insurance contributions, speak English to A-level standard, and have a clean criminal record.
Fast-Track Routes for Economic Contributors
Despite this broader tightening, the government has created notable exceptions for those deemed to provide significant economic value. Entrepreneurs and high earners will benefit from substantially reduced waiting periods.
Individuals on visas such as the Global Talent visa and the Innovator Founder visa will be able to gain settled status after just three years. Similarly, higher and additional rate taxpayers will also qualify for this accelerated three-year pathway.
Doctors and nurses working within the NHS will have a middle-ground settlement period of five years, recognising their crucial role in public services.
Tougher Measures for Lower Earners and Benefit Claimants
The reforms introduce considerably longer waiting times for other groups. Low-paid workers, particularly those on care worker visas, and their dependents will face a 15-year wait for settlement.
In what represents the longest settlement period in Europe, migrants who are reliant on benefits will need to wait 20 years before they can apply for ILR. The government stated these measures are specifically designed to clamp down on illegal migration and make the UK less attractive to asylum seekers.
Mahmood defended the reforms, stating: "This is the result of the extraordinary open border experiment conducted by the last Conservative government. Settlement in the UK is not a right but a privilege, and it must be earned." EU citizens will be exempt from these changes under the existing Brexit agreement.
Business Community Responds
The announcement comes as new research highlights the importance of migrant founders to the UK economy. A survey from The Entrepreneurs Network revealed that more than half of the UK's fastest-growing companies had a founder born outside the country.
The policy group has called on the government to make visa routes more efficient and preserve ILR for high-potential individuals. Researchers also recommended introducing a new visa for university spinouts to improve prospects for higher growth.
Nick Rollason, head of immigration at law firm Kingsley Napley, which supported the research, commented: "At a time when the broader immigration policy landscape is being reshaped by external forces, it is vital that the UK government stays focused on remaining open to global talent that can build businesses that create jobs and provide the revenues that pay for public services."
