ILR BNO Visa: Your 5-Year Settlement Date

Enter the day your time in the UK on your BN(O) visa started to see when you can apply.

You can seek ILR after five unbroken years living in the UK on a BNO visa. ILR means indefinite leave to remain, the Home Office's way of saying you may stay in the UK for good. The five years begin from when your visa time in the UK started, and you may submit your form shortly before that date.

When Can You Apply?

Your form can go in up to 28 days before the five unbroken UK years are finished. If you apply sooner than that, the application is refused, so work out the dates rather than relying on a guess.

Find the date your time in the UK on your visa began. Five years after that is the day you qualify, and you can apply from 28 days before it.

The fee is £3,226 for each person who applies. Four people applying as a family would pay it four times, one payment each.

Visa Time That Counts

Your five years do not need to be spent on one visa. Any UK time under a visa that can lead to settlement can count, provided your current visa is the BN(O) visa.

Days with leave outside the rules are not included. That means permission given outside the usual visa rules, such as the leave some BN(O) status holders and their families got at the border before the BN(O) visa opened.

Days Spent Outside the UK

Usually, you must not have been away from the UK for more than 180 days within any 12-month span across the five years. This applies to any 12 months in a row, not just calendar years, so a long trip that crosses New Year still counts in full.

If you are often abroad, keep a simple record of each journey, with the day you left and the day you returned. Those notes make it far easier to see how near the limit you are at any moment.

English Level You Need

The required level is B1 for speaking and listening. B1 is the level this route sets for settlement. If you are 18 to 64, you also need to pass the Life in the UK Test, a short test about British life and history.

On this route, the rule keeps B1 and no 2027 change is planned. Once you have B1, you do not need to aim higher because of a later date.

Children and Other Family Members

A child aged under 18 does not need to build five years alone. Children under 18 can apply to settle once their parents are eligible, even if they haven't spent five years in the UK themselves.

Still, every family member files their own settlement application, and every application carries the £3,226 fee. There is no one form that settles a whole family together.

Earned Settlement and the Five-Year Wait

This government proposal would change how long some visa holders wait before settlement. Under the proposal, people on a BN(O) visa and partners of British citizens would stay on the present five years, so the date you are aiming for would stay put.

This is only a consultation proposal, not an active rule. For now, plan around the five-year wait, the 28-day application window, and the 180-day travel cap.