ILR, if the 10-year permanent residency requirement is not met, can I first obtain a 2-year residence permit?

Ten years of residence, just distinguishing between "residence" and "permanent residence" is already complicated enough.

Holding the same ten-year visa record, applying for settlement and applying for a two-year temporary residency may face two different outcomes. As of September 27, 2026, the current "Immigration Rules" Appendix Long Residence still retains these two options: if all the conditions for settlement are met, you can apply for ILR; if you have met the requirements for ten years of lawful residence, continuous residence, and suitability, but lack the required English or knowledge of life in the UK, you may be eligible for a temporary permission assessment. The term "suitability" includes whether you have triggered any grounds for refusal under the immigration rules. Just looking at the number "ten years" is not enough to determine the application. This also determines whether you need to pay the healthcare surcharge later, and when to arrange the settlement application again.

My judgment is clear: those who have been confirmed to temporarily not meet the conditions for permanent residency, but are eligible for long-term temporary permits, should directly assess the latter, which is more cost-effective. There is no need to pay the permanent residency fee first and then convert.

Ten years qualified: ILR lack English or life knowledge

The premise of this category is very specific: a full ten years has already met the provisions, and the identity and other relevant conditions are also qualified, the lack falls on the English proof or Life in the UK (Knowledge of Life in the UK). Home Office "Long residence" edition dated August 3, 2026, section 1 clearly retains this temporary residency path. If one of the two knowledge requirements is not met, it may be necessary to consider it, not requiring both to be unmet; those who have already met the applicable exemptions should submit evidence according to the exemption.

The approved period is 24 months. It has an expiration date, and still belongs to limited-term residence.

Use a hypothetical scenario to see the difference: For an applicant whose ten-year residency condition and other conditions have been verified, the current permit is about to expire, and he has not passed the life knowledge test and is not exempt. He can compare the original renewal route with the temporary long-term residence permit, and choose according to respective qualifications, fees, and family arrangements. If the current permit is still sufficient to prepare for the test, it should be assessed whether the permanent residency conditions can be met within the validity period of the permit, and there is no need to change the route immediately just because of one failed test. This judgment will affect whether an additional application fee and medical surcharge are paid.

Two years is the term for the approved license. Whether to choose it or not depends on whether the current status needs to be continued.

The impact of this permit on living arrangements should also be taken into account. According to the approval conditions outlined in the Long Stay Guidance, the holder is allowed to work, including self-employment and voluntary work, and to study, but the applicable courses must meet the ATAS academic technology approval requirements; the permit is subject to a restriction that public funds (designated public benefits) cannot be claimed. Those who are currently working should verify the work permissions after approval with their employers; those with family members need to confirm each person's application basis individually.

Calculate separately before applying: temporary permits usually require payment of IHS (medical surcharge), while direct application ILR does not require payment.

According to the 2026 fee schedule of Home Office, the application fee for a long-term temporary visa is £1,407, and ILR is £3,226. For adult applicants without IHS exemption or reduction, the two-year health surcharge is calculated at £1,035 per year, totaling £2,070. Applying directly for a two-year visa, the total is £3,477. This calculation is based on a full 24 months and does not include optional service fees; the exact amount due should be determined based on your specific application.

Those who have submitted ILR also have a prescribed conversion procedure.

现行《Immigration Rules》Appendix Long Residence LR15.2至15.4规定：审案人认为申请人可能符合长居临时许可等指定路线时，会变更申请并通知本人。无须另付一笔临时许可申请费，原永居申请费也不退，所需IHS仍要付。按上面的成人两年情形，支出成为£5,296，比直接申请临时许可多£1,819。转换后仍要接受相应资格审查，收到通知不等于已获批。

The notice of back payment needs to be handled promptly; the unpaid IHS has not been applied for and approved for exemption, and the application after the change will be deemed invalid.

If you receive a notice of change, I suggest reading out the four contents item by item: what category the original application has been changed to, which route is considered, what materials need to be submitted additionally, and the deadline for payment or response. The reply can use the application number on the notice, respond item by item, and keep the submission confirmation. After paying the amount due IHS, keep the payment records for verification; if applying for a reduction in IHS, confirm the applicability of the application, the required evidence, and whether it has already been approved. The following are the checking methods for handling notices; the specific deadlines shall be based on the official notice received.

The application fee for permanent residency has already been paid, and this cannot be used to skip the medical surcharge notice.

The permanent residency application still needs to verify all conditions at that time. The current LR11.3 usually requires that the applicant has been in the current pathway for 12 months on the day of application; LR11.4 exempts those who obtained their current permit before April 11, 2024. According to LR13.1, for applications submitted before March 26, 2027, non-exempt applicants need at least B1 in speaking and listening English; for applications submitted on or after that day, at least B2 is required. Those preparing to transition to a temporary long-term resident permit should consider the start date of the new pathway, the date when the English requirement changes, and the expected ILR application date together, and cannot directly take the day of passing the test as the submission date.

The budget should also separately reserve the cost for future permanent residency application, calculated according to the standards at that time.

Ten years itself is not enough: two years of license cannot compensate.

Another situation is when the applicant has not yet met the ten-year qualification period, or still cannot meet the continuous residence requirement according to applicable rules. The current LR3.1 and LR4.1 include these two requirements in the temporary permit conditions, so a two-year permit cannot be used to make up for the remaining years. Even if English and knowledge of life have been passed, they cannot replace these two requirements. If the current dispute is whether a certain experience can be counted, a more useful question during consultation is: which rule applies to this experience, and after processing, can it meet the threshold for the temporary permit itself.

"The statement 'Permanent residency is temporarily not eligible' needs to be broken down into specific items to be useful."

For those who indeed do not meet the criteria for long-term temporary permission, the current LR6.2 provides an alternative consideration of Appendix FM (Family Life) or Appendix Private Life (Private Life), and whether it can be approved depends on the respective rules. The amended document HC584 published on September 3, 2026, will take effect on October 8, 2026, modifying this process: when the decision maker considers that the applicant may meet the above routes, the application will be changed and the applicant will be notified; no additional application fee is required, but the required IHS must be paid. This change applies to temporary permission applications transferred to other routes, without removing the ten-year long-term residency threshold, nor changing all ineligible applications into two-year permits.

As of the date of this verification, the October changes have not yet taken effect; the basis for ILR's application remains the aforementioned LR15.

When preparing materials, I condense the questions for professionals into one page: what kind of permit is being applied for this time, which criteria have already been met, what evidence is still missing, and what additional documents are required if it is transferred to another route. For cases involving family or private life grounds, I organize relevant evidence about relationships, children, and living conditions according to actual reasons, instead of replacing them with a single statement "hoping for discretionary residence." This kind of organization is suitable for people whose visas are about to expire and need to arrange time between exams and renewal, focusing the consultation on the real issues affecting the outcome.

In the consultation, place the original license expiration date on the first page of the documents. Any alternative arrangements must be evaluated in conjunction with this date.

[Data Source] Home Office Long-term Residence Appendix and Case Handling Guidelines; HC584 Amendment Document; UK Government Application Fee and Medical Surcharge Explanation.

This document is for reference only. For specific issues, please consult a licensed attorney.

The UK government's 10-year residency guide states the conditions for a two-year extension: "
You need to have already been in the UK legally for 10 years without gaps."
Chinese translation: The applicant must have legally and continuously resided in the UK for ten years.

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