Ten-Year Long Residence

Settlement based on ten years of lawful and continuous residence.

You may be able to apply under the long residence route if you have lived in the UK lawfully and continuously for ten years and meet the other requirements.

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Key checks

Ten years of lawful residence on permission that counts towards the route.
Continuous residence and absences.
Current permission to stay.
English and Life in the UK requirements.

Why a full timeline matters

Old passports, Home Office decisions, application dates and travel records may all affect the calculation. A simple list of visa expiry dates is not always enough, so we reconstruct the history before advising you to apply.

When we may need to refer you
If there are gaps in your permission, periods of overstaying, or the application would rely on a gap being disregarded or on private-life arguments, the matter is outside our Level 1 authorisation. We will tell you and signpost you to an appropriately authorised adviser.

How WLIS can help

1 We check that the route suits your plans and that the matter is a straightforward one within our IAA Level 1 authorisation.
2 We review your eligibility and your documents, and explain plainly anything that needs attention.
3 We give you a document checklist written for your circumstances rather than a generic one.
4 We prepare the application form and supporting documents, and you check and approve the final information before anything is submitted.
5 We help with submission, biometrics or identity steps, and your eVisa and UKVI account after the decision.

What we can and cannot help with

We provide advice and application assistance for straightforward immigration matters within our IAA Level 1 Immigration authorisation. Where a matter falls outside that authorisation — for example because it involves adverse immigration history, a discretionary or human-rights claim, an administrative review, an appeal or tribunal work — we will tell you and signpost or refer you to an adviser authorised at the appropriate level.

If an application is refused, we will explain the decision and whether any further work remains within our Level 1 authorisation. Where an administrative review, an appeal or other higher-level casework is needed, we will signpost or refer you to an appropriately authorised adviser. We do not provide appeal or tribunal representation.

UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) makes the final decision on every application. No immigration adviser can guarantee that an application will be approved.

Our IAA regulation How we work Fees

Questions clients often ask

Does a short gap in my leave break the ten years?

It can. The rules allow certain gaps to be disregarded in limited circumstances, but relying on that involves the Home Office exercising judgement about your history. An application that depends on a gap being disregarded is outside our Level 1 authorisation, and we would signpost you to an appropriately authorised adviser.

Does time spent as a visitor count?

No. Permission as a Visitor is excluded from the qualifying period, along with some other short-term categories such as Short-term Student on an English-language course and Seasonal Worker. Most other forms of lawful permission can count, which is why the assessment turns on what kind of permission was held during each period. We reconstruct the full history from your passports and Home Office records before advising.

Can time as an overstayer be included?

No. Time without permission is not lawful residence. If your history includes overstaying, the application is not a straightforward one and is outside our Level 1 authorisation. Tell us at the outset and we will explain the position and signpost you.

Official sources we check

We check what we publish against the Home Office's own guidance. These are the GOV.UK pages behind the advice on this site — use them to confirm anything you read here, because the rules change and the official page is always the current one.

GOV.UK content is published by the UK government and is not part of this website.

Talk to us about ten-year long residence

Tell us what you want to apply for, the status you hold now and when your current permission ends. We will confirm whether the matter is within our Level 1 authorisation and offer a suitable appointment.

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The enquiry form is on this site and reaches us directly. Please do not send identity documents until we ask for them.