Settlement

Refugee Settlement

This route is for refugees and those granted with humanitarian protection to obtain settlement further to holding the status for 5 years and living in the UK. The dependants who were part of the original asylum claim and were granted leave in line may also apply for settlement at the same time.

Refugee Settlement Eligibility Requirements

In order to qualify for Settlement under the protection route, the applicants need to satisfy the below requirements.

• Held a residence permit as a refugee or person granted humanitarian protection leave (or their dependant), for a continuous period of five years in the UK
• Residence permit is still valid and has not been revoked
• Do not have a criminal history or evidence of any extremist behaviour that runs contrary to the British value
• No changes of a significant nature to the circumstances in the home country that lead to grant of refugee leave
• Not returned to the country of origin or habitual residence for long periods of time or on several occasions
• Not obtained a national passport of the country from which claimed asylum or Humanitarian Protection.

The applicants must make the application for Settlement under protection route and may include any family members who were originally granted leave in line with the refugee or any children born in the UK. Once the application is submitted, Home Office will then process the application further to biometric enrolment and receipt of supporting documentation. Home Office operates a Safe Returns policy and will consider if grant of Settlement is no longer appropriate and whether the individual no longer needs the protection originally sought and given. The reasons requiring cessation (revoking refugee status) must be compelling and is in fact a high threshold to achieve. Applicants are therefore encouraged to submit detailed evidence that demonstrates current risk, based on country background evidence. If the settlement application is refused, but refugee status is not revoked, then a limited leave to remain for 3 years will be granted which can be renewed.

How can we assist?

Our Immigration Lawyers at City Legal are highly experienced in advising clients on settlement under refugee protection route. We are a multi award winning law firm and pride ourselves in being approachable, innovative and always going that extra mile to make sure our clients receive the individual attention they deserve. Our Immigration team maintains a high reputation and is committed to provide clear, transparent and reliable advice to our clients.