Can the spouse and children of the work permit ILR be processed together? First, check the status of the main applicant.

"Handle it together as a family," it sounds convenient, but when it comes to filling out the application form, it's so complicated.

This article discusses the settlement arrangements for the spouses and children of Skilled Worker (technical worker visa) applicants as of October 1, 2026. Here, it needs to be divided into two situations: the main applicant is applying for permanent residency under the worker visa, or has already obtained permanent residency. The basis for division is SW 37.2 and SW 39.1 in the current "Immigration Rules" Appendix Skilled Worker. The spouse visa and other visa routes have separate provisions and cannot directly apply the application order mentioned in this article.

My judgment is: if the principal applicant is preparing to settle for ten years, and the family members are also planning to apply for a work permit and dependent permanent residency, the principal applicant should be approved first, followed by the family members' application. If renewal is needed, it should be arranged in advance.

Applying for a work permit ILR: family members must each meet the requirements

The main applicant has submitted a work permit pathway permanent residence application and has not yet received a decision, meeting the entry conditions under SW 37.2(e)(i). Eligible spouses and children can apply together. At the decision stage, SW 39.1(a) requires the main applicant to be approved for the work permit permanent residence at the same time. Therefore, family members submitted in the same batch still have their own review criteria, and the fact that "the main applicant has submitted" cannot be considered as a guarantee that the family members will be approved.

This route uses SET(O). When applying, family members must be in the UK and complete the relevant identity documents, biometric information, and payment requirements individually; each person also needs to be verified one by one in the same batch.

The spouse needs to verify their dependent visa, relationship and continuous residence. SW 42.1 requires a continuous five-year period as the main applicant's dependent partner, and SW 43.1 also requires meeting the continuous residence appendix. When preparing documents, you can put the start and end dates of each dependent visa, the person you are dependent on, actual residence and departure records into the same timeline table, to check whether the qualification periods can be connected. Previously holding your own student or work visa, the time of marriage and cohabitation will not automatically count as dependent partner visa time; if you previously held other dependent visas, you should check together with the old approval letters which stages can be accumulated, and cannot just look at the start date of the current visa.

The relationship must be genuine, ongoing, and comply with the requirements for partner relationships in the appendix. English language and Life in the UK requirements must also be met by the spouse themselves, or have appropriate exemptions.

Children need to be verified on a separate page. The dependent child of a work visa does not have a separate five-year eligibility period, but must meet the conditions of identity, relationship, age, and living arrangements. According to Appendix Children CHI 4.3 of the Immigration Rules, it usually requires another parent to also obtain settlement or already has settlement or British nationality. If only one parent meets the criteria, it needs to be checked whether it is the only surviving parent, solely responsible for raising the child, or there are serious and compelling reasons as exceptions.

For example, if one parent applies for permanent residency, while the other still needs to renew the visa, the child's arrangement cannot be decided solely based on the former. Exceptions depend on family circumstances, which require supporting evidence.

The child has already reached adulthood, and the previous dependent status still needs to be checked; it cannot be determined solely by the birth date. Appendix CHI 1.2 allows those who meet the criteria and have recently been approved as dependents to continue applying after turning 18; requirements such as not being independent still apply. For a child studying at a university elsewhere, you can prepare documents such as proof of enrollment, semester accommodation details, and family address information to explain the relationship between living on campus and family life. Home Office The child guidance clearly states that boarding or residing in a school during full-time education is an exception to the cohabitation requirement. Adult children must also verify the English language and Life in the UK requirements and exemptions; the parents' test certificates cannot replace the child's own certificate.

Already approved: Check the identity at that time

The main applicant has already obtained permanent residency, and family members can apply later. Here, we need to go back and verify what permits each family member held when the main applicant was approved, and whether the family members currently meet the requirements.

SW 39.1(b) requires the main applicant to have held a Skilled Worker visa when obtaining permanent residency, and family members to have held their dependent spouse or child visa at that time; children born in the UK before the main applicant obtained permanent residency have separate entry provisions. SW 39.2 also requires that the family member's most recently approved status meets the corresponding dependent relationship, with corresponding exceptions for UK-born children. Therefore, marriage certificates and birth certificates can prove family relationships, but cannot alone prove these identity transition conditions; old approval letters and the main applicant's permanent residency approval records need to be checked together.

The permanent residency approval of the main applicant will not automatically change the temporary permit of family members to permanent residency. Those who have not yet met the application criteria should still check their permit expiration dates.

There is a boundary that significantly affects family arrangements: the principal applicant obtains permanent residency through ten years of continuous residence, and it is not necessarily required for the original work permit family members to switch to the spouse family route. Home Office The 20th edition of the "Work Path Dependent Guidelines" updated on August 3, 2026, clearly states in the partner eligibility period section that if the principal applicant is approved for permanent residency while holding the relevant work path permit, eligible partners can still renew or apply for permanent residency through the dependent route. Specifically for work permit families, they must also meet the conditions of the dependent status at the time of approval.

This connection has a scope of application. It is crucial which permit the main applicant holds when obtaining permanent residency; just because "ten-year permanent residency has been obtained," it cannot be determined whether the entire family can still continue to use the work visa family route.

The order of application is also reflected in the specific section numbers. SW 37.2(e)(i) allows dependent pending applications, clearly limited to the permanent residency application under the Skilled Worker route. Even if the principal applicant currently holds a work permit, if the application is for Long Residence (ten-year residency), family members cannot use this simultaneous submission entry based on that. After the principal applicant is approved, check the conditions for established residents in SW 37.2(e)(ii). This step relates to whether the application is valid, and one should not just rely on submitting a letter of approval from the principal application during the case review.

If the family member's consent may expire during the waiting period, a feasible extension application should be assessed in advance. The main applicant's long-term residence application pending approval cannot replace the spouse or child's own identity continuation.

When actually organizing, you can list for each family member the current permit, expiration date, the permanent residency route taken, and the remaining conditions. Then write the main applicant's application route in the header. Commonly prepared documents include relationship proof, old permits, and family address information; individual parts should be separated by spouse's qualification period, exam or exemption certificate, and evidence of children's enrollment and living arrangements. For the main applicant who is approved first, add the approval record later, and check the applicable provisions for each family member. This way, it will be clear who can submit the application, who needs to wait, and who should renew first.

If the family member themselves already has the qualification for permanent residency, they can also apply according to their own route, without needing to change to a dependent application just for the purpose of family sponsorship.

[Data Source] Home Office Current Immigration Rules' Work Visa Appendix, Child Appendix, and "Guidance on Dependent Family Members for Work Route". The order mentioned in this article is based on the work visa family provisions; the original text of the pending application entry is found in SW 37.2(e)(i).

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

"has made a valid application for settlement in the UK on the Skilled Worker route and that application has not been decided"
means: has effectively submitted an application for settlement under the Skilled Worker route, and the application has not yet been decided.

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