Accredited official statistics

How many Indefinite Leave to Remain (Settlement and EUSS settled status) and Citizenship grants have been issued in the UK?

Published 26 February 2026

Back to ‘Immigration system statistics, year ending December 2025’ contents page

This release goes up to the year ending (YE) December 2025. The “year ending” period includes the 12 months up to and including the YE month. For example, YE December 2025 includes the 12 months between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2025. All comparisons are with the YE December 2024 (unless indicated otherwise).

1. Indefinite Leave

Indefinite Leave is an immigration status that allows a person to live, work and study in the UK without any time limit on their stay.

Indefinite Leave to Enter or Remain (ILE/R) is also known as ‘settlement’. Most settlement grants are typically issued to individuals who have completed the required qualifying period on an eligible immigration route and meet the relevant eligibility criteria (for example, 5 years under many work or family routes, or 10 years under the long residence route). Indefinite Leave is also granted to individuals under the EU Settlement Scheme, where it is referred to as ‘settled status’.

Section 2: Settlement focuses on grants of ILE/ILR, excluding grants made under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS). Section 2 also incorporates an ‘Immediate Settlement’ subsection, which includes individuals who are granted ILE/ILR at the point of application, based on their relationship to a person who is already settled in the UK or is a British citizen.

Section 3: EU Settlement Scheme focuses on grants of ‘settled status’ issued under the scheme, typically granted to individuals who have completed 5 years of continuous residence in the UK.

Table 1: Number of grants issued for Settlement, EUSS settled status and Immediate settlement, YE December 2016 to YE December 2025

Indefinite Leave	Settlement	EUSS settled status	Immediate settlement (Family)	Total
2016	60,670	z	3,480	64,150
2017	65,102	z	2,712	67,814
2018	91,298	18,541	2,227	112,066
2019	91,439	1,416,300	2,783	1,510,522
2020	85,457	998,022	1,295	1,084,774
2021	106,123	694,186	1,668	801,977
2022	131,627	294,465	1,853	427,945
2023	119,501	317,917	2,461	439,879
2024	163,242	348,292	3,377	514,911
2025	146,405	354,647	2,581	503,633

Source: Table EUSS_QTR, EU Settlement Scheme summary tables, YE December 2025, Settlement dataset - Se_D02 and Entry Clearance dataset - Vis_D02.

Notes:

1. EUSS was launched on 28 August 2018 and became fully operational on 30 March 2019. The 2025 figure includes an estimate of automated EUSS settled status grants of 86,670.
2. Z = not applicable

In the YE December 2025, there were a total of 503,633 grants of indefinite leave, a 2% decrease compared with the YE December 2024. Of these, 70% (354,647) were settled status grants under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), 29% (146,405) were settlement grants under other immigration routes, and fewer than 1% were immediate settlement (family) grants.

The 2% decrease from the YE December 2024 was driven by a fall in family and refugee (or other protection-based) settlement. This reflected lower family arrivals and protection grants in 2020. This was partially offset within the overall Indefinite Leave total by continued, stable volumes of EUSS settled status grants and increases in work-related settlement.

Figure 1: Grants of Indefinite Leave in the UK, YE December 2011 to YE December 2025

Source: Table EUSS_QTR, EU Settlement Scheme summary tables, YE December 2025, Settlement dataset - Se_D02 and Entry Clearance dataset - Vis_D02.

2. Settlement

‘Settlement’ is the general term for being granted indefinite leave to enter or remain (ILE/R) in the UK. It gives people the right to stay in the UK permanently and, where eligible, apply for citizenship. Statistics on the EUSS are reported separately in Section 3 due to the distinct rights, conditions and legislative framework of the route. The number of people granted settlement each year will reflect the number of migrants coming to the UK in earlier years, and the policies regarding the qualifying period required to live in the UK before becoming eligible.

Grants of settlement have fallen in the YE December 2025, following lower arrival volumes in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Figure 2: Grants of ‘settlement’ (ILE/ILR) in the UK, by leave type 1,2,3, YE December 2011 to YE December 2025

Source: Settlement - Se_D02

Notes:

1. ‘Leave type’ relates to type of leave to enter or remain in the UK held immediately prior to being granted ‘settlement’.
2. The category ‘Other’ includes grants based on Long Residence, Private Life, BN(O) routes and grants on a discretionary basis. It also includes a few cases where the category of leave immediately prior to the grant of settlement has not been recorded.
3. The ‘Refugee’ category refers to individuals granted ‘settlement’ in the UK following a period of residence after being recognised as refugees or receiving another form of protection, such as exceptional leave, humanitarian protection, or discretionary leave.

In the YE December 2025, there were 146,405 settlement grants, a 10% decrease from the YE December 2024. While settlement grants generally increased between 2018 and 2024, the decline in the YE December 2025 reflects fewer people with leave on family routes and fewer individuals holding refugee status (or other protection-based leave) being granted settlement.

Family-related settlement decreased by 19% to 37,351 in the YE December 2025, with most grants issued to individuals who held a Partner visa as their most recent leave. The Migrant Journey: 2024 report shows that a high proportion of individuals arriving in the UK on a family visa are granted settlement after 5 years, with around half of those arriving in 2019 having been granted settlement in 2024. Entry clearance grants for family visas declined by around a third in 2020, largely associated with the operational impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic that led to reduced volumes in the early months of the year. Reflecting a 5-year route to settlement for many family migrants, the fall in the number of individuals granted settlement in 2025 is consistent with the decline in entry clearance volumes 5 years earlier.

Settlement granted to individuals with Refugee status (or other protection-based leave) also declined in the YE December 2025, with 26,832 grants representing a 35% decrease from the YE December 2024. The Migrant Journey: 2024 report indicates that a high proportion of individuals with refugee permission are subsequently granted settlement. Current settlement volumes for individuals previously granted refugee status (or other protection-based leave) broadly reflect protection grant volumes in earlier years. In 2020, the number of people granted refugee status or other forms of protection fell during the COVID-19 pandemic.

By contrast, Work-related settlement grants increased by 9% to 63,309 in the YE December 2025. The Skilled Worker route remained the most common previous work-related leave among those granted settlement, comprising almost three-quarters of all work-related grants. The 47,354 grants in the YE December 2025 represent a 5% increase from the YE December 2024. Growth of Work-related settlement also reflected a higher volume of grants to individuals whose leave prior to settlement was as a Work Permit holder or under a High-Value work route. Settlement grants for Work Permit holders increased by 72% to 6,367. This category largely comprises individuals granted leave under the European Community Association Agreement (ECAA), which allows people, largely Turkish nationals, to work or establish businesses in the UK. Following the UK’s exit from the EU, the ECAA was closed to new entry clearance applications on 31 December 2020. Settlement granted to individuals whose latest leave was on a High-Value work route increased by 13% to 6,294 grants, with the Global Talent route accounting for the most grants within this category.

Other-related settlement grants to individuals whose most recent leave type did not fall under Work, Asylum, or Family-related increased by 7% to 18,913 in the YE December 2025. Most grants were issued to individuals under the Long Residence route, which enables individuals who have spent a sustained period lawfully living in the UK, generally (for) at least 10 years, to apply for settlement. A further 2,269 settlement grants were issued under the Private Life route, which allows individuals to remain in the UK based on (evidence of their) long-term residence or compelling personal circumstances, where removal would disproportionately interfere with their rights under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. Overall, settlement volumes within the ‘Other’ category are less likely to have been affected by COVID-19-related operational disruption, as individuals granted settlement through routes such as Long Residence and Private Life were typically resident in the UK prior to 2020.

Immediate Settlement (Family)

Individuals may be granted immediate ILE/ILR under the Family route, typically where an applicant is applying from outside the UK based on their relationship to a person who is already settled in the UK or is a British citizen, with the intention of settling in the UK. In the YE December 2025, there were 2,581 immediate settlement grants, nearly a quarter decrease from the YE December 2024, and of which 84% (2,168) were issued to children.

Further information about immediate settlement can be found in the ‘Why do people come to the UK – Family?’ topic, and table Vis_D02, Entry Clearance dataset.

3. EU Settlement Scheme

The EUSS enables EU, other European Economic Area (EEA) and Swiss citizens who were resident in the UK before the end of the post-EU exit transition period at 11pm on 31 December 2020, as well as their family members, to obtain permission to remain in the UK. The scheme was launched on 28 August 2018 and became fully operational on 30 March 2019.

The deadline for most people to apply to the EUSS was 30 June 2021, but certain family members can apply after that to join an EU, other EEA or Swiss citizen in the UK. The deadline for joining family members is generally 3 months after their arrival. In both cases, late applications may be accepted where there are reasonable grounds for the delay.

Individuals who were resident in the UK by 31 December 2020 but had not yet lived here for 5 years are generally granted pre-settled status (leave to enter or remain). Pre-settled status may also be granted to joining family members. Individuals granted pre-settled status can apply for settled status once they have completed the relevant qualifying period of residence, usually 5 years. There is no deadline for such applications. Further data on pre-settled status grants can also be found in the published data tables. More information on the scheme can be found on the EU Settlement Scheme webpage.

Overview

Since the scheme was launched in 2018, 4.4 million settled status grants have been issued.

Two-thirds of grants were issued before the 30 June 2021 deadline. Since the YE December 2022, the number of grants has averaged 307,000 each year, mostly to those who previously held pre-settled status. From January 2025, some pre-settled status holders meeting relevant criteria may be granted settled status automatically, without submitting a further application. These are reported as automated grants of settled status and are included in the total.

As of 31 December 2025, an estimated 1.4 million people held pre-settled status, though this figure does not necessarily reflect the current resident population, as some may have left the UK. For further information, refer to the ‘Note on the difference between ONS population estimates by nationality and Home Office EU Settlement Scheme statistics’

3.1 How many EUSS settled status grants have there been in the YE December 2025?

EUSS settled status grants have remained stable over the past 4 years, and remain lower than previous years.

Figure 3: Total number of EUSS settled status grants, 28 August 2018 to 31 December 2025

Source: Table EUSS_QTR, EU Settlement Scheme summary tables, YE December 2025

In the YE December 2025, there were 354,647 grants of EUSS settled status, up 2% from the YE December 2024. Numbers have remained broadly stable over the past 4 years, and much lower than those observed earlier in the scheme.

3.2 What types of application have been granted settled status since the 30 June 2021 deadline?

Figure 4: Total proportion of EUSS settled status grants by application type, YE December 2022 to YE December 2025

Source: Table EUSS_POST_30_JUNE, EU Settlement Scheme summary tables, YE December 2025

Notes:

1. Derivative rights conclusions account for less than 1% of all settled status grants per year.

The deadline to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) for those who were resident in the UK by the end of the EU exit transition period (31 December 2020) was 30 June 2021. Certain applications can be made beyond the 30 June 2021 deadline. Since that date, there have been just under 1.4 million grants of settled status.

Repeat applications: In the YE December 2025, 230,330 settled status grants were issued to repeat applicants (individuals who have applied to the scheme more than once), a fall of over a quarter from the YE December 2024. Most grants categorised as ‘repeat applications’ are issued to people switching from pre-settled status to settled status. In part, the fall in repeat applications for settled status reflects the introduction of EUSS automation, where some eligible pre-settled status holders may be granted settled status automatically, without needing to submit a further application.

Automated grants of settled status: From January 2025, pre-settled status holders meeting relevant criteria may be granted settled status automatically, without submitting a further application. These are reported as automated grants of settled status. Since the introduction of automated grants, an estimated 86,670 individuals have been granted settled status automatically.

Late applications: Late applications may be accepted where there are reasonable grounds for the delay in applying. This includes some applicants who have made a repeat application post-deadline and subsequently gained pre-settled or settled status. In the YE December 2025, 24,409 late applications resulted in a grant of settled status; however, decisions made in the YE December 2025 will also include applications submitted in earlier years.

Joining family members: Close family members are eligible to apply to the EUSS as the relevant family member of an EU, other EEA, or Swiss citizen who was resident in the UK before the end of the transition period (and who generally holds EUSS status), provided the relationship existed on 31 December 2020 (unless the person is a child, and born or adopted since then) and the relationship continues to exist at the date of application.

In the YE December 2025, there were 11,072 grants of settled status for joining family members, an increase of 40% compared to the YE December 2024, but lower than the peak of 14,787 in the YE March 2023. Further information regarding joining family members can be found in the EUSS section of the Immigration System Statistics user guide.

Derivative Rights: This refers to applicants who did not qualify for a right of residence under the Free Movement Directive but may have had a right to reside in the UK under other provisions of EU law prior to the end of the transition period.

In the YE December 2025, there were 1,594 settled status grants issued to those with a derivative right to reside in the UK, a 17% increase from the YE December 2024. Further information regarding derivative rights can be found in the EUSS section of the Immigration System Statistics user guide and the EUSS data tables.

Figure 5: Applicants transitioning from EUSS pre-settled to settled status, 28 August 2018 to 31 December 2025

Source: Table EUSS_QTR, EU Settlement Scheme summary tables, YE December 2025

Figure 5 shows that 1.4 million individuals have transitioned from pre-settled to settled status since the scheme began. This includes individuals who have applied for settled status and those who have been automatically converted without an application. Transitions from pre‑settled to settled status have generally risen since the scheme’s launch.

4. Citizenship

People with British citizenship have the right to live and work in the UK without any immigration control and can apply for a British passport. British citizenship is defined by the British Nationality Act 1981. People may be eligible for British citizenship (or ‘naturalisation’) for several reasons. Further details on the eligibility to apply for British citizenship can be found on GOV.UK.

Whilst citizenship grants have decreased in the YE December 2025, they remain high, mainly comprising of individuals naturalising following a previous grant of indefinite leave to remain.

Figure 6: Grants of citizenship in the UK, by application type, YE December 2011 to YE December 2025

Source: Citizenship detailed datasets - Cit_D02

In the YE December 2025, there were 235,782 grants of British citizenship, representing a 13% decrease compared with the YE December 2024. Despite this fall, the total remained at the second highest annual level recorded within the data since 2005 (when the time-series began).

Naturalisation is the process by which a non-British adult may acquire British citizenship following a qualifying period of lawful residence in the UK, and after being granted indefinite leave. It also provides a route to British citizenship for individuals granted settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme and individuals granted pre-settled status who have automatically acquired a permanent right of residence.

In the YE December 2025, there were 166,482 grants of citizenship through naturalisation, a decrease of 13% compared with the YE December 2024, but almost three-quarters more than the number recorded 5 years earlier (95,623). The longer-term increase reflects higher numbers of individuals granted indefinite leave to remain who subsequently went on to apply for British citizenship.

There were 69,300 grants of British citizenship through registration in the YE December 2025, an 11% fall from the YE December 2024. Registration enables individuals, through either a legal entitlement or a discretionary process, to acquire British citizenship. This route is most frequently used by children, or those with a defined connection to the United Kingdom, or its overseas territories.

Figure 7: Citizenship grants, YE December 2011 to YE December 2025, by EU and non-EU applicants

Source: Citizenship detailed datasets - Cit_D02

In the YE December 2025, there were 182,778 grants to non-EU nationals, a 13% fall. Despite the decline in the YE December 2025, grants to non-EU nationals have followed an upward trend since 2020. India, Pakistan and South Africa are consistently among the highest nationalities for British citizenship grants, but all recorded falls. Declines for Indian and Pakistan nationals were driven by lower naturalisation grants, whilst the fall for South African nationals reflected fewer registrations.

There were 53,004 grants to EU nationals, a 13% decrease from the YE December 2024, despite numbers remaining higher than pre-2016 levels (see Figure 7). Italian nationals were the most common EU nationality granted British citizenship in the YE December 2025 (10,455). Romanian and Polish nationals, along with Italians, form the top 3 European nationalities granted British citizenship (in the latest year) and have accounted for over 40% of all grants of citizenship to EU nationals since 2012.

EU nationals benefited from free movement when the United Kingdom was a member of the European Union, which reduced the incentive to acquire British citizenship during that time. The subsequent rise in grants to EU nationals followed the announcement of the UK’s departure from the EU in 2016, and later, the introduction of the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) from 2018. The scheme enables eligible EU nationals to obtain settled status or to automatically acquire a permanent right to reside whilst holding pre-settled status and, after typically holding that status or right for 12 months, qualify for citizenship.

Figure 8: Top 10 nationalities for citizenship grants, by application type group, YE December 2025

Source: Citizenship detailed datasets - Cit_D02

British citizenship was granted to individuals originating from over 200 countries in the YE December 2025. Figure 8 shows that the top 3 nationalities were India, Pakistan and Nigeria. Grants to these nationalities accounted for almost a quarter of all grants of citizenship during this period. .

Grants by reason and refusals of British citizenship can be found in the Citizenship summary tables.

5. About these statistics

The underlying casework systems on which this data is based are undergoing a process of change and therefore the published numbers may change in future quarters. In some cases, data will be unavailable. For more information see section 2.7 of the user guide.

Since May 2022, EUSS statistics have been classified as Official Statistics. Most figures are unrounded, except for estimated repeat applications.

From November 2025, the ‘How many people are granted settlement or citizenship?’ and ‘How many grants of settlement are made via the EU Settlement Scheme?’ topics have been consolidated, to bring together the account of indefinite leave in the UK.

Indefinite leave to enter or remain can be granted to individuals – subject to immigration control – to allow them to live, work, study and travel into and out of the UK without restriction. To be granted indefinite leave to remain, individuals generally must have lived in the UK for a certain length of time in a qualifying category. Those granted indefinite leave to enter or remain can access state benefits and register their UK-born children as British citizens. It does not entitle the individual to a British passport (which requires British citizenship) or to vote in a general election (which requires British, Commonwealth, or Irish Republic citizenship).

5.1 Settlement

Settlement is the general term for a person being granted indefinite leave to enter or remain (ILE/R) in the UK. It applies across a range of immigration routes, including Work, Family, Protection and Long Residence, and means the individual no longer has time limits on their stay, can access services on the same basis as British citizens, and may be eligible to apply for citizenship. In Section 2, settlement under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) is excluded, as the EUSS operates as a distinct route with its own rights, instead, allotted its own focus in Section 3.

The statistics in this section show the number of grants and refusals on applications for indefinite leave to enter or remain in the UK. They take account of the outcomes of reconsiderations and appeals.

5.2 EU Settlement Scheme

The publication includes all EUSS applications from 28 August 2018 to 31 December 2025, including repeat applications as individuals move from pre-settled to settled status. Each application is recorded separately, as casework systems do not contain a single identifier to track individuals across multiple applications. Probabilistic data matching has been developed to estimate the total number of unique applicants and their outcomes.

While most applicants are EU, other EEA, or Swiss nationals, some non-EEA national family members are also included. Applications may also be made by eligible individuals living outside the UK, and individuals may still hold EUSS status despite having left the UK. Therefore, these figures are not directly comparable with UK resident population estimates, which do not reflect migration intentions.

Provisional data on 86,670 automated grants of settled status up to 31 December 2025 is included in the topic narrative and charts but is not yet included in the published data tables. Work is ongoing to integrate these grants into future revisions of the summary and detailed tables.

5.3 Citizenship

British citizens can live and work in the UK free of any immigration controls. They can apply for a British passport, register to vote in all forms of election and referenda, and share in all the other rights and responsibilities of their status.

Naturalisation and Registration are legal processes through which an adult or a child can become a British citizen and obtain the same rights and privileges as someone who was born a British national. Dual citizenship (also known as dual nationality) is allowed in the UK. This means people can be both a British citizen and a citizen of other countries. Further details on these legal processes can be found in the user guide.

If someone is not already a British citizen based on where and when they were born, or their parents’ circumstances, they can apply to become one.

The statistics in this section show the number of applications and grants for British citizenship.

In May 2025, the Home Office published the Migrant Journey: 2024 report, which explores changes in migrants’ visa and leave status as they journey through the UK’s immigration system.

6. Data tables

Data referred to here can be found in the following tables:

• Settlement summary tables
• Detailed settlement datasets
• Citizenship summary tables
• Detailed citizenship datasets
• Entry clearance summary tables
• Entry clearance datasets
• EU Settlement Scheme – summary tables
• EU Settlement Scheme – local authority summary tables
• EU Settlement Scheme – detailed tables

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