Guides

How the rolling 12-month absence limit actually works, what counts as a permitted absence, and three worked examples showing how close trips can get you to the limit.

When exactly you can apply for ILR before completing five years, how to calculate your earliest date, and the mistakes that get applications refused.

What actually happens when you apply for settlement on the Skilled Worker route, from eligibility checks to your UKVCAS appointment and the wait for a decision.

How settling as a partner differs from the Skilled Worker route — the relationship test, the English requirement you can't skip, and the financial requirement that depends on when you first applied.

The official service standard for ILR decisions, the exact date it's measured from, where to check real current performance, and what to do once you're past it.

How to book, what to bring, whether you can skip the appointment with the ID Check app, and what actually happens once you're in the room.

How registering a UK-born child as British connects to (and depends on) a parent's own settlement — including the route that has nothing to do with the parents at all.

The 12-month wait after getting ILR, the 5-year residence and absence limits that are different from the ILR rules, and the requirements married couples can skip.

Why you can no longer get a replacement BRP card, how to report one lost or stolen anyway, and the right fix for each common eVisa/UKVI account problem.