United Kingdom — Settled Status Criteria (How to Qualify)

Summary

Requirement

5 years' continuous residence

30-in-60 test

Absences ≤ 30 months in the most recent 60 (≈913 days present)

Original test

Absences ≤ 6 months in any 12-month period

Grants

Settled status (indefinite leave to remain)

Authority

GOV.UK — Appendix EU

A pre-settled status holder qualifies for settled status by completing 5 years' continuous residence in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man. Since 16 July 2025 there are two ways to show it: absences of no more than 30 months in the most recent 60 months — about 30 months, or roughly 913 days, of presence — or the original test of no more than 6 months' absence in any 12-month period. Meeting either is enough, as set out in GOV.UK guidance on converting to settled status. Already hold settled status? The rules for not losing it are different — see keeping settled status.

Who it applies to

This matters most if you are:

• A pre-settled status holder under the EU Settlement Scheme working toward full settled status.
• An EU, EEA, or Swiss citizen (or their family member) who has been building up UK residence but travels or lives abroad for part of the year.
• Someone who left the UK for a long stretch and wants to know whether their absences in the last 60 months still fit within 30 months.

It is about physical presence, not citizenship of any particular country — the test asks how much time you have actually spent in the UK, not what passport you hold.

The rule — and why it exists

Since 16 July 2025 (Statement of Changes HC 836), Appendix EU gives pre-settled status holders two ways to complete the 5-year continuous qualifying period:

• The 30-in-60 test. At the date of application, your absences from the UK and Islands total no more than 30 months in the most recent 60 months — so at least about half of the period, roughly 913 days, is spent in the UK. How the absences are spread does not matter, and no reason for them is needed.
• The original 6-in-12 test. Your absences must not exceed a total of 6 months in any 12-month period, except for one absence of up to 12 months for an important reason, compulsory military service, or Crown service.

Why it exists: settled status is meant for people who have genuinely made the UK their home. The 30-in-60 alternative was added so that pre-settled holders whose travel broke the stricter 6-in-12 test can still qualify if they have spent at least half of the last five years in the UK.

Counting the days

1. 1Take the date you apply, or the date the Home Office considers converting you automatically.
2. 2Look back 60 months from that date.
3. 3Add up all the time you spent outside the UK, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man in that period. The total must not exceed 30 months — about 913 days or more of presence.
4. 4If you are over, check the original test instead: no 12-month period within your 5 years with more than 6 months away, other than the permitted exceptions.

The legal basis is the definition of “continuous qualifying period” in Annex 1 of Immigration Rules Appendix EU, as amended from 16 July 2025.

Examples

Example 1 — steady presence, clearly qualifies

Over the last five years you have lived in the UK for roughly 10 months each year, spending the remaining time visiting family abroad. That is about 10 months of absence in the 60-month window — well within 30 — and no 12-month period has more than 6 months away, so you can apply for settled status.

Example 2 — a long absence, but still enough

You spent 14 continuous months abroad on an overseas posting three years ago. That single absence is longer than the 12 months the original test allows even for an important reason. But across the full 60-month window you were away for about 27 months in total, under the 30-month allowance, so you still qualify under the 30-in-60 test.

Example 3 — falls short for now

You got pre-settled status in 2021 but have spent long stretches abroad: in the 60 months before today you were away for about 32 months. That is over the 30-month allowance, and several 12-month periods include more than 6 months away, so you do not qualify yet. As older absences drop out of the window and you stay in the UK, you will cross the line.

Exceptions & edge cases

• The original 6-in-12 test. Still available to everyone: absences totalling no more than 6 months in any 12-month period. If you rely on it, the free UK ILR calculator checks your trips against a 180-days-in-any-12-months limit, a close proxy for 6 months.
• Qualifying is not keeping. Once settled status is granted, a different rule governs keeping it: it lapses only after more than 5 consecutive years outside the UK (4 years for Swiss nationals), and any return resets that clock.
• Permitted longer absences. Under the 6-in-12 test, one absence of up to 12 months for an important reason — such as pregnancy, childbirth, serious illness, study, vocational training or an overseas posting — does not break continuity, and nor does compulsory military service or Crown service.
• 913 days is an approximation. The rule is written as a cap of 30 months of absence, not a day count, so treat 913 days of presence as a guide and keep a margin.

Common misconceptions

• “I must be in the UK continuously.” False — under the 30-in-60 test your absences can be spread across the window however you like, as long as they total 30 months or less.
• “One long absence disqualifies me forever.” Not under the 30-in-60 test. The window moves, so old absences drop out and can be offset by more recent presence.
• “The 6-months-in-12 rule was abolished in 2025.” False — it still applies. The 30-in-60 test was added alongside it for pre-settled status holders, and you only need to meet one.
• “Qualifying means I can never lose it.” Granted settled status can still lapse after more than 5 consecutive years abroad — qualifying and keeping are two separate rules.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• GOV.UK — Settled and pre-settled status for EU citizens and their families
• GOV.UK — Convert pre-settled status to settled status
• GOV.UK — Immigration Rules Appendix EU