ILR Application Fee 2026 | How Much Does It Cost?

Last updated: July 2026

The ILR application fee is £3,226 per applicant, effective from 8 April 2026 under the Home Office’s official fee schedule, up from the previous ILR fee of £3,029 per person. 

Indefinite Leave to Remain, often just called settlement, is decided by UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), a directorate of the Home Office. It applies to the main applicant and every dependant, including children, so it scales directly with family size. 

There’s no Immigration Healthcare Surcharge on ILR, but biometrics (£19.20) and optional priority processing fee (£500–£1,000) are charged on top. A single applicant using standard processing pays £3,245.20 as per home office application fee charges. A family of four pays £12,904 before any optional services or extras. 

Let Axis Solicitors guide you on the complete fee structure, and how much ILR fees UK-wide actually add up to once dependants are included.

ILR Application Fee at a Glance

These are the core figures behind every “ILR cost UK” search, the headline fee plus the smaller mandatory and optional charges that sit around it.

Important: The ILR fee is generally non-refundable once the Home Office begins processing your application even if your application is refused. Fees are reviewed annually and always confirm the current rate on GOV.UK before you pay.

Reviewed by: Axis Solicitors Immigration Team

Priority and Super Priority ILR Fees

Priority processing and super priority processing are both classed by the Home Office as premium service for faster processing of your application. Premium biometric appointments booked through some UKVCAS centres can add a further £50–£200 on top of the standard priority processing fee, so check what’s included before you book. 

Decision times are the Home Office’s published service standard, not a guarantee. Complex cases, requests for further evidence, or interviews can extend the standard timeline.

Priority services aren’t guaranteed availability depends on your UKVCAS centre and route, and paying more speeds up the decision, not the outcome. If your case involves long absences, gaps in evidence, or a previous refusal, it’s worth having your documents reviewed before you book a priority slot, since a refused priority application still loses the full fee.

What is the Family Cost of ILR?

Every dependant, spouse, partner, or child, pays the full ILR fees UK individually as part of the application process. There’s no discount for applying together. 

Moreover, some applicants assume there’ll be a discounted ILR application fee for child. In reality, a child pays exactly the same £3,226 fee as an adult; there is no reduced children’s rate anywhere in the current fee schedule. 

Example: A family of four choosing Super Priority for a fast decision pays £16,904 in Home Office fees alone, before biometrics, tests, or any solicitor costs.

Who Needs to Pay the ILR Application Fee?

Every person included in a settlement application pays the fee in full, there’s no reduced rate for dependants, and no exemption based on age.

Each applicant also submits their own evidence and, where required, their own biometrics at UKVCAS a joint family visa application doesn’t mean joint paperwork. Each family member must submit their own application, supporting documents and biometrics, even when applying as part of the same household.

Applicants must also show they have sufficient funds to cover the fee in full before starting the online application form. The Home Office will not begin processing a settlement application until payment clears, so it’s worth confirming funds are available before your biometric appointment is booked.

How ILR Compares to Other Home Office Fees

ILR remains the single most expensive standard Home Office application. Naturalisation fees are the next major cost most applicants face after settlement, since becoming a British citizen is the natural next step once you hold permanent residency. If citizenship is your eventual goal, budget for both see our guide on moving from ILR to British citizenship.

Who Qualifies to Pay the ILR Application Fees ? Residency, English and Age Requirements

Before you reach the point of paying the ILR application fee, you need to meet the underlying eligibility rules that the Home Office checks alongside your payment. 

• Continuous Residence: Most routes require five years of continuous residence in the UK, and applicants generally must not have spent more than 180 days outside the UK in any 12-month period during that time. Extended absences can reset your qualifying period or raise questions about your immigration status.
• Age & Language Requirements: Applicants between 18 and 65 must normally pass the Life in the UK test, and most routes also require English language proficiency at CEFR level B1 or above. 

These requirements sit outside the fee itself, but they directly affect whether your ILR application fees are well spent. An application submitted before you meet the residence or language rules is likely to be refused, and refused fees are not returned.

What Happens After Settlement?

It’s also worth understanding what happens after settlement is granted: ILR can be revoked if the holder then lives outside the UK continuously for two years, since the status is meant for people settling in the UK indefinitely rather than those living abroad. 

Some routes based on private life or humanitarian protection have different continuous residence rules, so it’s worth checking your specific route rather than assuming the standard five-year timeline applies.

Is the ILR Application Fee Refundable in Case of Refusal?

No, in almost all cases. ILR application fees are generally non-refundable once the Home Office has started processing your application including where it’s refused, or where you withdraw after biometrics. The only realistic route to a refund is withdrawing before your application has been logged as received. 

A few narrower refund scenarios do exist. If you’ve overpaid the ILR fee, for example, by submitting payment twice or paying at the wrong rate, the overpaid amount can generally be refunded on request. Duplicate applications can also qualify for a refund if the second submission hasn’t yet entered processing.

If your application is declared invalid before it enters processing for example, because payment could not be completed you may be asked to submit a new application rather than receive a refusal, and this is treated differently from a refusal on the merits. 

What to Do After Receiving ILR Refusal?

If you’re refused, you can: 

• Request an administrative review for £80, reapply and pay the full fee again.
• If you have a statutory right of appeal, such as in some human rights or humanitarian protection cases, appeal the decision. 
• In rare cases involving a disputed legal issue rather than the facts of the case, applicants may also consider judicial review, though this is a separate legal process from an administrative review and isn’t a routine option for a straightforward application rejected on evidential grounds.  

See our guide to common ILR refusal reasons before you submit, since most refusals come down to avoidable evidence gaps rather than genuine ineligibility.

Fee Waivers and Exceptional Circumstances

There is no general fee waiver for standard ILR applications. The vast majority of settlement applicants, including those applying under Skilled Worker, partner and Long Residence routes, must pay the full fee regardless of their financial situation. This is a common point of confusion, since fee waivers are well publicised for other Home Office routes.

Where a fee waiver does exist is in a narrow category of human rights-based applications, including some private life claims, where an applicant can show exceptional circumstances and provide evidence that they cannot afford the fee without being pushed into hardship. 

If you believe you may qualify, you’ll usually need to submit financial evidence covering your income, savings and essential outgoings as part of your fee waiver request.

Outside that narrow group, there are no general ILR fee exemptions, and no reduction is available simply because paying the fee would be difficult. Read our guide on fee waivers for human rights applications if you think you may qualify.

Additional ILR Costs to Budget For

Beyond the Home Office fee, most applicants also pay for:

• Life in the UK Test: £50 see our Life in the UK Test guide for ILR
• English language test (if required): roughly £150–£200 check the English language requirement
• Certified translations: £30–£100+ per document
• Document handling and courier services (optional, some legal providers): typically £50–£100 (not a mandatory Home Office charge, but common where supporting evidence needs to be couriered or professionally bundled for the online application) 
• Solicitor fees: typically £1,200–£4,000 depending on complexity, see Axis Solicitors Fees

A realistic single-applicant budget, including tests and standard processing, is £3,450–£3,600. Add a solicitor and that rises to roughly £4,500–£7,500.

Does the Long Residence (SET(LR)) Route Pay a Different ILR Fee?

No, the SET(LR) Long Residence route uses the same £3,226 ILR application fee as every other settlement route. 

Long Residence applicants are people who have built up the required continuous residence in the UK on a lawful basis over an extended period, rather than qualifying through a specific work or family visa route, but the Home Office does not charge a different fee guide rate for this category. 

Whatever your qualifying period, the fee for indefinite leave to remain is set by application type category, not by route name, so SET(LR) applicants budget the same £3,226 as SET(O) or SET(M) applicants, plus the same biometrics and optional priority costs.

ILR UK Fees History: Changes Over Years

The fee has risen every year since 2022. Applicants who budgeted for the ILR fees 2025 and delayed in preparing application have to face a sharp increase of £197. There has been a 6.5% increase from the indefinite leave to remain fee 2025 to 2026, a figure that can affect your financial planning significantly.

Why Fees for ILR Keep Increasing?

The Home Office typically reviews immigration and nationality fees annually, with changes often taking effect in April following legislative updates, and has stated that the increases are intended to move the cost of running the immigration system onto applicants rather than general taxation.

Settlement and citizenship fees have consistently risen faster than most visa categories, reflecting this cost-recovery policy. Based on this pattern, a further increase in the April 2027 ILR fee review is likely if you’re close to your qualifying date, applying as soon as you’re eligible avoids paying more later.

The ILR Application Process, Step by Step

Step 1: Confirm You Meet the Qualifying Period 

Most settlement applications require five years of continuous residence in the UK on a qualifying visa route, or ten years under Long Residence. Confirm your dates and any absences before you start the ilr application process. Under general uk immigration rules, unexplained gaps or time restrictions on your stay can push back eligibility.

If you’re unsure which route applies to you, our ILR eligibility guide sets out the requirements for each visa category.

Step 2: Pass the Life in the UK Test and English Test 

Applicants aged 18–65 normally need to pass the Life in the UK Test (£50) and meet the required English level before their settlement applications can be submitted.

Step 3: Apply Online and Pay the ILR Fee 

You apply online through the same portal used across UK government services, and fees apply per applicant. The core ILR fee must be paid upfront, and any additional fee for priority processing is also paid upfront at the same time, the Home Office won’t begin the ILR application process until payment clears.

Step 4: Complete Biometric Enrolment 

After payment, ilr applicants book a biometric enrolment appointment at a UKVCAS centre (£19.20 per person). Biometric enrolment confirms your identity through photographs and fingerprints and is a mandatory step in every settlement application, regardless of route.

Step 5: Choose Your Processing Speed 

Standard processing carries no additional fees beyond the core rate. Priority and super priority service are optional premium services: priority processing adds £500 for a 5-working-day decision, while super priority service adds £1,000 for a decision within 24 hours of biometric enrolment. 

Both are classed by the Home Office as premium services rather than mandatory charges.

Step 6: Receive Your Decision 

Most standard remain applications are decided within six months, in line with published UK government service standards. If granted, you’ll hold indefinite leave to remain status with no further time restrictions on how long you can stay.

Get Expert Help With Your ILR Application Fee and Settlement Application

Home Office fees are subject to change without prior notice. For this reason, it is strongly advised that you confirm the latest ILR fees with our solicitors before making any decision.

At Axis Solicitors, our regulated immigration solicitors have supported clients through 8,000+ cases over 20+ years, helping applicants across our Manchester, Birmingham, and London offices navigate the process with confidence, from calculating your total ILR fees to preparing a fully compliant application.

Whether you need help budgeting for your ILR application fee, avoiding costly refusals, or planning for British citizenship after settlement, our team is ready to guide you every step of the way. Call us today on 0800 404 5655 or book a consultation with Axis Solicitors to get tailored advice on your ILR application fee.

FAQs About ILR Application Fees