The main applicant has obtained ILR, how much longer do the family members have to wait?

A family's arrangement for permanent residency is the most headache-inducing, as it's always hard to get everyone's schedule to align.

This article discusses how the dependant partner and children can catch up after the main applicant obtains permanent residency with a Skilled Worker (Skilled Worker) visa, according to the current rules verified on October 8, 2026. Other routes need to refer to the corresponding rules. My judgment is: before the family members prepare to renew their visas, they should first check all old visas under the same partner's name that can be combined, and then determine how much time is still needed; calculating only from the most recent work visa family member's permit may result in a longer waiting period.

Family of ILR is calculated separately for five years

The current Immigration Rules, Appendix Skilled Worker, SW 42.1 requires dependant partners to complete five years of continuous qualifying residence. After the main applicant is approved, the existing qualifying time of family members continues to be accumulated, and the remaining years still need to be made up.

Therefore, the approval date of the main applicant alone cannot determine the submission date of the spouse.

The old license may be more useful than imagined

Home Office in the "5-year permission requirement: partners" section of the updated "Guidance for Dependants on the Work Route" on August 3, 2026, clearly states that the time spent as a spouse on a family route visa can also be counted. Combined with the UK government's explanation for applying for settlement under a work visa, the time of a dependent partner under another visa category under the same main applicant can be combined. The condition is that the entire period of status and continuous residence meets the requirements, and the current situation also meets the settlement conditions for a work visa dependent. When calculating, it is necessary to connect the entire visa record, not just read the start date displayed on the current e-visa; this step is particularly useful for families who have changed categories.

Similarly, when living in the UK, the period of time with one's own student visa or work visa is not counted towards this five-year dependent partner period. The UK government's guidance on applying for permanent residency under a work visa also explicitly excludes the time of one's own independent visa, and it cannot be automatically counted just because they were married at that time.

Count the submission and renewal separately.

Scheduling can start from a piece of paper: list each type of visa, start and end dates, corresponding partners, and overseas stays in chronological order. If the two consecutive years and three consecutive years are both considered as dependent partner periods, the duration should be assessed whether it has reached five years; if the first two years were on your own student visa, and the following three years were transferred to dependent partner, then only three years would be accumulated. This example only shows the difference in duration, while the actual submission date also needs to consider continuous residence, English language, Life in the UK, and other conditions.

If the current permit covers the eligible submission date, you can apply at that time; if the permit expires first, you need to handle the renewal in advance. The permanent residency of the main applicant will not extend the permit of family members.

Children often have to wait for the other parent.

Children need to be processed separately. Dependent children under a work visa do not have the independent five-year qualifying period if they have no partner. Common reasons for delay are that another parent has not yet met the settlement requirements. Paragraph CHI 4.3 of Appendix Children in the Immigration Rules usually requires that the other parent has settled, is a British citizen, or has been granted settlement at the same time as the child. If one parent has been granted settlement and the other is still accumulating the required period, the child is generally scheduled for a dependent visa. Exceptions exist in cases where there is only one surviving parent, who alone bears the responsibility of raising the child, or where there are serious and convincing reasons, which require supporting evidence.

The child's birth certificate, current permit, and the other parent's identity documents are suitable for verification together.

It's not necessarily closed even when eighteen.

等候期间孩子接近十八岁，也未必需要为生日抢递。按《Immigration Rules》Appendix Children第CHI 1.2及CHI 1A.1条，最近获批的是受养子女许可、递交时仍有效且未独立生活的申请人，成年后仍可符合年龄条件；其他定居要求仍须满足。达到相应年龄后，英语与Life in the UK也要按本人情况准备。全家的安排可以分批完成，十八岁生日并不自动终止这条通道。

本文仅供参考，具体问题请咨询持牌律师。

[数据来源] Home Office《移民规则：技术工人附录》《工作路线受养家属指引》《移民规则：儿童附录》。

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