Private Life ILR

If you have a visa based on your private life or you were born in the UK and lived in the UK continuously up until 7 years old minimum, this may be relevant to you.
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Private Life ILR

You can apply for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) if you either: have a visa on the basis of your private life, or you were born in the UK and have lived in the UK continuously until the age of 7 (at a minimum).

How we can help 

Herrington Carmichael’s Immigration team can provide in-depth understanding of ILR requirements and achieve an incredibly high success rate for our clients.

You can be assured that your application process will be managed in a professional and organised manner.

Applying for Private Life ILR

Indefinite leave to remain (ILR) is also known as settlement in the UK. It gives you the right to study, work,  and live for as long as you would like. If you are eligible, you can apply for benefits.

Key contact

Usof Shah PNG
Usof Shah
Legal Director

What our clients say about us

Liz Hailey has been my primary point of contact at Herrington Carmichael and has become a trusted adviser to me and my clients. Liz possesses unparalleled legal knowledge and offers a unique approach to issues, thinking outside the box to come up with solutions. The collaborative approach within the business ensures that we have access to a variety of different legal departments offering an end-to-end service. The communication has been a primary factor in my continuing use and recommendation of Liz and HC.

Rachel Duncan, Anna Svensson, Charlotte Keeper, and Jed Temple are working as a team with both extensive and developing skill sets to collectively deliver a valued leasehold acquisition and advisory service to our in-house team of property professionals. Trusted advice and guidance are always available and quick to respond.

A dedicated, commercially minded team at all levels, with direct communication to principals is a real benefit to us.

I deal with many law firms and in recent years I have noticed a 'shift' toward an 'over' emphasis on ensuring boxes are ticked rather than being solution-led. Jamie Lynch and his team struck the right balance and never forgot that the client actually wants the best outcome!

A strong real estate team with London experience in transactions while also located in the regions. Good communication and sufficient cover when anyone in the team is away from the business. Adapts to client requirements and maintains open communication throughout transactions.

Liz Hailey - huge depth of range, knowledge, and experience in the real estate sector. Liz has picked up our requirements very quickly and has accommodated these where needed. Liz explains things in a simple but knowledgeable manner, and we are confident she is acting in the best interests of her client at all times.

They are genuinely engaged and thoughtful people to work with through a variety of transactions. The key from my perspective is that all challenges are put into relevant context with thorough recommendations made.

The breadth of experience across a wide range of challenging assets is absolutely clear. Expectations and time scales are well managed proactively. Picking up the phone to discuss is of key value; thank you.

We have also greatly benefited from the excellent work of Usof Shah, Immigration Director, whose expertise has been instrumental in helping our members address critical skills shortages in the construction industry. Usof has provided clear, actionable guidance on immigration laws, empowering our members to legally employ skilled foreign workers and sustain their businesses. His commitment extends beyond traditional legal services - he has delivered live webinars and offered free advice to some of our SME members, which was highly valued and, in several cases, helped save their companies. This combination of deep legal expertise, accessibility, and genuine care for clients' success sets him apart from others in the field.

Throughout my UK career, I came across many solicitors and solicitor firms. But Herrington Carmichael is the best so far. Their quick response, wider knowledge, and straightforward decisions come with a very competitive advisory fee. I can easily recommend them, and I did. Their success rate for me is 100%. In a nutshell, they are brilliant.

The individual deals with my requirements and makes sure I fully understand what he is advising and what the best way to proceed is.

Responsive, commercial, and able to explain immigration requirements in clear, simple terms.

The individuals we work with stand out for being approachable, knowledgeable, and responsive. Usof Shah, in particular, has been extremely professional, helpful, and practical in his advice.

Usof Shah stands out for his strong combination of technical expertise, commercial awareness, and responsiveness. He is able to explain complex immigration matters in a clear and practical way while remaining highly approachable and solutions-oriented throughout the process. What differentiates him from competitors is the level of personal attention and ownership he brings to matters. He is proactive, detail-oriented, and demonstrates a strong understanding of the operational and business needs of his clients rather than approaching matters from a purely technical perspective. I have particularly valued his responsiveness, clear communication, and ability to manage matters efficiently under tight timelines. He consistently provides pragmatic advice and maintains a high level of professionalism, which creates a strong sense of confidence and reliability throughout the engagement.

Usof Shah and his team stood out for their professionalism, responsiveness, and clear communication.

Herrington Carmichael’s team stands out for its strong expertise in immigration matters, combined with a highly personalized and responsive service. Over the past few years, they supported me and three members of my family, managing each of our individual cases efficiently and professionally. Compared to other firms, they are notably more organized and responsive.

Dedicated family law team with a passion for the area and a strong commitment to client service. Technically excellent lawyers with good legal judgment. Pragmatic and solutions-focused, providing realistic advice enabling clients to make informed decisions from an early stage.

I have always been impressed with how strong the team's commitment is to client outcomes and how well they balance each other in pushing forward for an outcome while also exploring settlement.

Personalised service - understood requirements. Work lasted several years and through several partners and associates, but the practice was able to ensure a seamless handover of information. Billing was clearly supported.

Herrington Carmichael punches above its weight. For a relatively small firm, it provides excellent service for high-net-worth individuals.

Sarah Speed is an outstanding family lawyer who is a joy to work with. She is very bright as well as being a calm and reassuring presence for her clients. Her down-to-earth and pragmatic advice means that she is not distracted in a case from the issues that matter. She is no pushover, and her clients can rest easy in the knowledge that she will skillfully argue their case for them when necessary, but also find a compromise when contested litigation is not the best way forward for her client.

I am not familiar with the team, but rather with one of the partners, Sarah Speed. However, it seems to me that the breadth of work that the firm covers provides good cross-pollination of legal expertise across various sectors, which may be enormously helpful in some cases.

A lovely team. All very professional and, importantly, friendly.

Graeme Black comes with a host of experience delivered in a manner that is simple to understand. He is friendly, supportive, and a great asset to the firm.

They are extremely knowledgeable about their field and genuinely care about the clients. They are honest and transparent.

Stephen Baker is exceptionally well-experienced, has a steadfast, logical mind, and an incredible ability to pinpoint real issues.

Very knowledgeable team, highly client-focused and with generally quick turnaround of any requests. Very professional approach and very open and honest with their respective areas of expertise.

Stephen conducted complex and challenging litigation and responded to the demands of a demanding client with great patience, determination, and tactical astuteness, while also developing a strong and positive relationship with the other members of the legal team, including counsel. He is a seasoned and highly skilled litigator.

From the first person I spoke to, then to all of the team, they were all polite, precise, and knew exactly what service I was going to need.

Jed was brilliant and really compassionate about my tough situation. He was calming and reassuring when I was quite stressed about my situation. This alone was a real quality that helped me out and one that made him stand out. The whole team was brilliant, very clear on what needed to be done and what the process would look like.

I have now met several partners across a number of disciplines and find them all most accommodating. Mostly, we deal with the litigation team, who are very good, provide sound advice (even when it is not what you want to hear), and are personable and professional. The conveyancing team is also very efficient and seems to look to reserve costs where they can, which is very impressive. HC's billing is also good, quick, and easy to understand.

I have done a lot personally and with my firm over the years with Ed Jones, who is especially effective and with whom we have had a number of wins. He is also a very effective mediator. Jed Temple too has provided excellent advice, and Michelle Lambeth has also been helpful and accommodating.

The whole team was brilliant. They were great at listening and understanding my problem, with the main thing being reassuring about my situation. They explained clearly the different approaches to take and what the outcomes could be.

Friendly service with a clear understanding of what services are involved in a complex legal environment.

The personal touch made me feel like a normal person who made a mistake. They were always quick in responding to my emails and didn’t make me feel like just another case. They related to me in my scenario.

The team's strengths were being very knowledgeable and being able to explain to me the process we would go through with the possible outcomes.

We were very happy with our service. Being first-time buyers and brand new to the property world, Annari & Mary-Jayne relieved all of our worries and made our journey very stress-free and relatively easy. Thank you.

We received excellent support in reviewing and modifying our Wills to our latest needs. The communication has always been straightforward and very effective and we achieved the objectives we set at the beginning of the process. Strong expertise and legal knowledge have been key to the successful completion.

It was a very straightforward process & Charlotte explained everything clearly to us in a very friendly way & answered any queries we had. It was a pleasure to have her deal with this matter, and I would certainly come to your firm of solicitors on that basis. Thank you so much.

Paul provided calm, helpful, constructive and thorough advice on my matter and I will be in touch again to progress.

Aadil has been representing my son through a very challenging child custody/recovery case. His help and knowledge has been fantastic. He went above and beyond working on his day off too make sure court papers were delivered on time. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Aadil.

I just wanted to write a huge thank you for all your help and support during my recent divorce proceedings There were times when it seemed things would never get resolved but thankfully with your guidance everything went relatively smoothly in the end.

Annari is an excellent Solicitor. We have always used her services for all of our property conveyancing jobs. She is a valuable asset to your company.

We had the pleasure of working with Annari on buying our very first house. We would like to take this opportunity to let you know how efficient Annari was throughout the entire process. Annari really helped to make buying our first home an easy process! She absolutely went above and beyond her call of duty.

The service we received was exceptional. We were always updated and Annari would answer any questions I had immediately. Keep doing what you do Annari. Thank you so much for everything, and Amy too.

Thanks again, we’ve always felt in good hands. It is for this reason we’d highly recommend Herrington Carmichael and especially Annari.

Annari is an excellent Solicitor. We have always used her services for all of our property conveyancing jobs. She is a valuable asset to your company.

We had the pleasure of working with Annari on buying our very first house. We would like to take this opportunity to let you know how efficient Annari was throughout the enitre process. Annari really helped to make buying our first home an easy process! She absolutely went above and beyond her call of duty.

Both Holly Bray & Jessica Brooke were fantastic from start to finish on the purchase of my new build property. Nothing was an issues for them and I didn’t need to chase them for anything at all. I was kept well informed all the way through the process to completion and everything was dealt with in a very pleasant and professional manner. I would happily recommend Herrington Carmichael to anyone looking for a conveyancer for the purchase of their property. 5 stars.

From start to finish Herrington Carmichael staff have been excellent. Communication has been second to none and cannot fault them for everything. Would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone looking for a reliable, friendly and very efficient service.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to your most pressing questions about our services and processes.

Eligibility depends on whether you are applying as an adult or a child.

Child Eligibility:

If you were born in the UK and have already lived in the UK for 7 continuous years since your birth, you can immediately apply for Private Life ILR.

If the above is not applicable, you can apply for Private Life ILR on the basis of:

  • You received a visa on the basis of your private life between the ages of 18 and 24
  • You arrived in the UK as a child
  • You lived in the UK as a child for 5 continuous years with a visa

You can include time spent on any qualifying visa that leads to ILR on your application. You will need to have had a visa on the basis of your private life for at least one year on the day that you apply.

Adults

To be eligible, you need to:

  • Be over 18 years old
  • Have been given a visa on the basis of your private life in the UK
  • Have lived continuously in the UK for a minimum of 10 years with a qualifying visa

You can include time spent on any qualifying visa that leads to ILR on your application. You will need to have had a visa on the basis of your private life for at least one year on the day that you apply.

You can apply as soon as you meet all of the eligibility requirements, you do not need to wait for your visa to expire. However, you must do it before your visa expires otherwise you will need to apply to extend your visa before you can apply for ILR.

The fees charged by Home Office can be found on their official website here.

It takes an average of 6 months to get a decision using the standard service.

You will need to provide:

  • Your current passport or another valid form of travel identification
  • Previous passports
  • A recent passport-sized colour photograph
  • Supporting evidence and documents that prove you have ties to the UK. For example: income earned in the UK, rented or owned property, close family.

Situation dependent, you may need to provide other documents.

You can pay an extra £1,000 for super priority service. You will get your decision:

  • If your biometric information appointment is on a week day, you will get your answer at the end of the next working day.
  • If your biometric information appointment is over the weekend, you will get your answer 2 working days after your appointment.

Yes. You will need to make an appointment to give your fingerprints and have a new photograph taken. This will be stipulated during your application process. There is no fee for this.

Your appointment will be made at a UK Visa and Citizenship Application Services (UKVCAS) service point.

Yes. If you are aged 18 to 64 years old, you will need to pass the Life in the UK Test. If you do not pass, you will need to apply to extend your visa instead. You can reapply for ILR.

You do not need to prove that you meet the English Language requirements if you apply to settle as an adult on the basis of your private life.

No. You will no longer need to pay the healthcare surcharge once you have settled status (ILR).

You will be able to:

  • Work
  • Run your own business
  • Study
  • Use public services without paying a surcharge, such healthcare and schools
  • Apply for the use of public funds (benefits) and pensions
  • Apply for British citizenships, after a minimum of 12 months

If you leave the UK for more than 2 continuous years once you have ILR, you will lose it and will need to apply for a Returning Resident Visa.

Yes, an individual who has ILR can live and work in the UK for an unlimited period of time, without needing to apply to extend their visa.

There is no time limit on the amount of time you can spend in the UK with ILR. You should, however, be cautious that your indefinite leave will lapse if you spend more than 2 years outside the UK (or 5 years if settled under the EUSS).

Yes. Once you have had ILR for (usually) a minimum of 12 months, you will be able to apply for British citizenship.