ILR Documents Required: Complete 2026 Checklist

What documents do you need for an ILR application?

Gathering the right documents is one of the most time-consuming parts of applying for indefinite leave to remain. The Home Office requires evidence covering your identity, your residence and employment history, your absences from the UK, your English language ability, and your route-specific circumstances. Getting this wrong is one of the most common reasons indefinite leave to remain applications are delayed or refused.

This guide provides a comprehensive checklist of every document you are likely to need for an indefinite leave to remain application in 2026. It is organised by category so you can gather documents systematically. Use it alongside our interactive ILR Document Checklist, which lets you tick off documents as you collect them and shows you your overall application readiness.

The documents you need for your indefinite leave to remain application will vary depending on your visa route, your employment status, your personal circumstances, and any complications in your immigration history. However, the core categories are the same for almost all applicants. We have broken them down below, starting with the documents every applicant needs and finishing with the route-specific additions.

Before you start collecting documents, it is worth reading our full ILR Application Guide and our ILR Application Process guide so you understand the full context in which each document will be used. Documents are not submitted in isolation; they tell a coherent story about your life in the UK, and understanding what the Home Office is looking for helps you present that story clearly.

Identity documents

Identity documents are the foundation of your indefinite leave to remain application. Without these, the Home Office cannot establish who you are, what your current immigration status is, or whether you are the same person who held the qualifying visa.

Current valid passport

You must provide your current valid passport. For an indefinite leave to remain application, you are required to scan or upload all pages of your passport, not just the photo page. This includes blank pages. The reason is that blank pages can provide evidence of absences: a page with no stamps does not mean you were in the UK, and the Home Office wants to see the full document.

If your passport is expiring soon or has already expired, you should renew it before submitting your indefinite leave to remain application. Applying on an expired passport is technically possible but strongly inadvisable. Any indefinite leave to remain you are granted will be tied to the passport details on file, and an expired passport is harder to use for travel and proving status.

All previous passports held during the qualifying period

If you renewed your passport at any point during your qualifying period, you must also submit your previous passport or passports. This is essential for two reasons. First, your old passport may contain visa stamps, entry and exit stamps, or previous Biometric Residence Permits that form part of the evidence chain for your immigration history. Second, the Home Office wants to see the complete picture of your time in the UK, and that picture may span multiple passports.

If you have lost a previous passport, report this to the Home Office and explain the circumstances when submitting your indefinite leave to remain application. Do not simply omit old passports without explanation.

Current Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) or eVisa record

If you currently hold a BRP card, you must include a copy of both sides with your indefinite leave to remain application. The BRP shows your current visa category, the expiry date of your current leave, and your biometric data. If your visa was granted as a digital eVisa rather than a physical BRP (which is increasingly the case following the 2025 transition), you will need to provide your eVisa reference number and a screenshot or print of your current eVisa status from your UKVI account.

For more on the BRP-to-eVisa transition and what it means for your indefinite leave to remain application, see our dedicated ILR BRP Card and eVisa guide.

Previous BRPs from your qualifying period

If you held earlier BRP cards during your qualifying period (for example, a Tier 2 BRP from before 2020, or a Skilled Worker BRP from an earlier visa grant), include copies of these too. They provide additional evidence of your continuous lawful residence in the UK during the qualifying period and confirm the visa categories under which you were living and working.

Residence and employment documents

For applicants on work routes such as the Skilled Worker visa, employment documents form the core of the substantive evidence you provide with your indefinite leave to remain application. These documents prove that you have been continuously employed by a licensed sponsor at a qualifying salary throughout your qualifying period.

Payslips for the last 12 months

You need to provide payslips covering at least the last 12 months of employment. These must be consecutive, with no gaps. Each payslip should clearly show:

• Your full name
• Your employer's name
• The pay period or date
• Your gross and net pay
• Your National Insurance number
• Any deductions

If you receive electronic payslips, download and save them in PDF format. Many employers use payroll portals that may not retain records indefinitely, so it is good practice to save each payslip as it is issued rather than trying to retrieve them all at once when your indefinite leave to remain application date approaches.

Employer letter confirming ongoing employment

As well as payslips, you need a letter from your employer confirming that you are still employed and still being sponsored under the Skilled Worker route (or whichever work route you are on). This letter must be on official company headed paper and must include:

• Your name and job title
• Your current salary
• Confirmation that your employment is ongoing (not just up to a specific date)
• The CoS (Certificate of Sponsorship) reference number
• The name and signature of an authorised HR or senior staff member
• The date of the letter (it should be recent, ideally within the last month)

For detailed guidance on exactly what this letter should contain, and a template you can share with your HR department, see our dedicated ILR Employer Letter guide.

P60 for the last complete tax year

Your P60 is an annual summary of your earnings and tax paid, issued by your employer at the end of each tax year (usually in April or May). For your indefinite leave to remain application, provide the P60 for the most recent complete tax year. This corroborates your payslips and gives the Home Office a clear summary of your annual earnings.

If you have been with multiple employers during the last tax year, you will have a P60 from each employer. Include all of them. If you cannot obtain a P60 (for example, if your employer has gone out of business), you may be able to obtain equivalent evidence from HMRC via your personal tax account.

Bank statements showing salary deposits (last 3 months)

Provide 3 consecutive months of personal bank statements showing your salary being deposited each month. The amounts on the bank statements should match the net pay figures on your payslips. The statements must show your full name and account number (you can redact the sort code if you wish, but it is not necessary).

Online bank statements printed from your banking app are generally accepted, but they must be in a standard format showing all transactions in the relevant months. Some applicants also provide official bank statements (the type issued by the bank on request) for additional credibility, but this is not strictly required.

Absence history documents

The Home Office requires evidence of your travel history during your qualifying period to verify that you have not exceeded the 180-day absence limit in any rolling 12-month window. This is one of the most document-intensive parts of the indefinite leave to remain application for people who have travelled frequently.

Passport stamps and entry/exit records

Your passport is the primary source of evidence for your travel history. All pages of your passport that contain stamps should be included. Entry and exit stamps from countries you visited during your qualifying period help reconstruct your travel history and demonstrate the dates you were outside the UK.

Be aware that the UK does not stamp passports on exit, so UK departure dates are not directly evidenced by stamps. Entry stamps from destination countries (or eGate records where available) are used instead to infer departure dates. For a detailed explanation of how the Home Office counts absence days from passport evidence, see our ILR Absence Rules guide.

UKVI travel history letter

You can request a letter from UKVI setting out their record of your entry and exit dates for the UK. This is useful because it reflects the Home Office's own data rather than relying entirely on passport stamps (which can be incomplete, for example if you travelled within the EU before Brexit or through countries that do not stamp passports).

The important caveat is that requesting a UKVI travel history letter takes approximately 40 working days. If you plan to use this letter in your indefinite leave to remain application, you must request it well in advance, ideally 3 months before you intend to apply. Log into your UKVI account or contact the Home Office to make the request. Do not leave this until the last minute.

Employer records of overseas work trips

If any of your absences from the UK were for work purposes (for example, overseas client visits, secondments, or conference attendance), your employer can confirm these in writing. A letter from your employer listing the dates and destinations of work-related overseas travel helps contextualise your absence record and supports your overall application.

Flight bookings and itineraries

Keep records of all international travel: flight confirmations, booking references, e-ticket records, or travel booking printouts. These supplement passport stamps, especially for travel to countries that do not issue stamps, and provide additional corroboration if there are any questions about specific dates.

English language documents

Most applicants for indefinite leave to remain must demonstrate that they meet the English language requirement. The level required depends on your route and your personal circumstances.

Secure English Language Test (SELT) certificate

If you are required to take an English language test, it must be a Secure English Language Test (SELT) approved by the Home Office. For most work routes, the required level is CEFR B1 (independent user). Approved test providers include IELTS for UKVI, Trinity College London, and LanguageCert. Your test certificate will be in the form of an official document issued by the test provider. You must upload this as part of your indefinite leave to remain application.

SELT certificates do not expire for immigration purposes in the same way they do for academic purposes. A certificate from your initial visa application may still be valid for your indefinite leave to remain application, provided it was a Home Office approved test at the required level. Check with an adviser if you are unsure whether your existing certificate is accepted.

Evidence of exemption

You may be exempt from the English language requirement if:

• You are a national of a majority English-speaking country (Australia, Belize, Canada, the Falkland Islands, Ireland, Malta, New Zealand, the United States, and others)
• You have a degree-level qualification that was taught and assessed in English, from an institution in a majority English-speaking country
• You are aged 65 or over at the time of application
• You have a physical or mental disability that prevents you from meeting the requirement

For the degree-based exemption, you need to provide your degree certificate and a letter from the institution confirming the language of instruction. For age-based exemption, your passport provides sufficient evidence of age. For disability-based exemption, medical evidence will be required.

For work routes, if you met the English language requirement when your original Skilled Worker visa was granted, you generally do not need to prove it again at the indefinite leave to remain stage. Your previous application on record satisfies this requirement. However, it is worth confirming this applies to your specific case, as rules can change.

Life in the UK test documents

The Life in the UK test is a mandatory requirement for most indefinite leave to remain applicants. You must pass the test before you apply for indefinite leave to remain, and you must include evidence of passing with your application.

Life in the UK test pass certificate

When you pass the Life in the UK test, you receive a pass notification. You should print and save this, as it is the evidence you submit with your indefinite leave to remain application. There is no formal certificate mailed to you; the pass notification from the test centre is what you use. Make sure you save a copy when you pass, as the test booking system may not retain your result indefinitely.

If you passed the test a long time ago and cannot locate your pass notification, you can request a replacement confirmation from the test booking portal. Keep the reference number from your test booking as a backup.

Evidence of exemption from the Life in the UK test

You are exempt from the Life in the UK test if:

• You are aged 65 or over at the time of your indefinite leave to remain application
• You have a long-term physical or mental illness or disability that prevents you from taking the test

For age exemption, your passport proves your date of birth. For medical exemption, you will need a letter from a qualified medical professional explaining the condition and why it prevents you from taking the test. The Home Office takes medical exemptions seriously but requires clear and specific evidence.

Passport-style photos

You need to provide two recent passport-style photographs with your indefinite leave to remain application. These must meet the biometric photo standard, which is the same standard used for UK passports.

Biometric photo requirements

Your photos must meet the following requirements to be accepted:

• 45mm high and 35mm wide (standard passport photo dimensions)
• Taken within the last month
• Plain light grey or cream background
• Full face visible, looking straight at the camera
• Neutral expression with mouth closed
• Eyes open and clearly visible
• No glasses (glasses are no longer accepted in UK biometric photos)
• Head coverings only if worn for religious beliefs, with the full facial features still clearly visible
• Printed on high-quality photo paper, not ordinary printer paper

Photos taken at a high street photo booth or by a professional photographer are the safest option. Many high street chemists, post offices, and supermarkets offer photo booth services. If you take your own photos, use the official HMPO photo guidance to check they meet the standard before submitting.

Route-specific documents

In addition to the universal documents listed above, the specific documents you need for your indefinite leave to remain application depend on the visa route you are applying under. Below are the key route-specific document requirements.

Skilled Worker route documents

Applicants on the Skilled Worker route (or former Tier 2 General route) need to provide evidence of their sponsored employment throughout the qualifying period. Key documents include:

• Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) history: Your CoS reference numbers for every CoS assigned during your qualifying period. Each CoS corresponds to a specific sponsored job. If you changed employer or role during the qualifying period, you will have multiple CoS references. Include all of them.
• Salary evidence at the going rate: Your current salary must meet the going rate for your Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code at the time of your indefinite leave to remain application. This is assessed using the current Immigration Rules salary thresholds, not the thresholds that applied when your visa was granted. For current thresholds and how to check your SOC code, see our ILR Salary Requirement guide.
• Employment history for the full qualifying period: Payslips going back to the start of your qualifying period (or as far back as 5 years), not just the last 12 months. This is especially important if you changed employer during the period, as you need to demonstrate there were no gaps in sponsored employment.

Spouse or partner route documents

Applicants on the spouse or partner route applying for indefinite leave to remain must show that their relationship is genuine, subsisting, and ongoing. Key documents include:

• Relationship evidence: Marriage certificate or civil partnership certificate, or evidence of a genuine cohabiting relationship for unmarried partners.
• Cohabitation evidence: Evidence that you and your partner live together at the same address. This can include joint tenancy agreements, joint utility bills, joint bank account statements, or letters addressed to both partners at the same address from official bodies (HMRC, local council, NHS).
• Financial requirement evidence: Evidence that the sponsoring British citizen or settled person continues to meet the minimum income threshold. For a spouse or partner application at the indefinite leave to remain stage, the minimum is currently set in the Immigration Rules. Bank statements, payslips, and employer letters for the sponsor are typically required.
• Evidence of ongoing relationship: Photos together (especially from different points over the 5 years), messages, shared social media posts, or other personal evidence that the relationship has continued throughout the qualifying period.

Long Residence route documents

Applicants on the Long Residence route (10 years of continuous lawful residence) face a particularly document-intensive application, as they must evidence a continuous chain of lawful leave spanning a decade. Key documents include:

• Full visa history: All passports held during the 10-year period, including all visa vignettes, BRP cards, and any other immigration documents issued.
• Evidence that there are no gaps in leave: The qualifying period must be entirely continuous. Any period without valid leave breaks the chain and can reset the clock. A table of your visa grants with dates is a useful document to prepare and submit alongside the original evidence.
• Leave to remain extension letters or decisions: If you have applied to extend your visa during the 10-year period, include any Home Office decision letters confirming your extensions.

Documents you do NOT need

There are several documents that applicants commonly believe they need for an indefinite leave to remain application but that are not actually required. Knowing what not to include can save you time and avoid cluttering your application with unnecessary material.

You do not need proof of NHS surcharge payment

Some applicants include receipts or payment records for the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) they paid when extending their visa. You do not need to include these with your indefinite leave to remain application. The Home Office has its own records of surcharge payments linked to your visa application reference. Including IHS receipts adds bulk to your application without adding value.

You do not need your original visa vignette

Your original visa vignette (the sticker in your passport when you first entered the UK) is already captured when you include your passport. You do not need to separately extract or highlight the vignette page. Simply including your full passport scans (all pages) is sufficient.

You do not need a criminal records check (unless specifically requested)

For most indefinite leave to remain applications, you do not need to obtain or submit a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check or an overseas criminal record certificate unless the Home Office specifically requests one. The Home Office conducts its own checks against UK criminal records databases as part of the good character assessment. If you have spent significant time in a country where you have worked or lived outside the UK during your qualifying period, the Home Office may request an overseas criminal record certificate from that country. This is requested on a case-by-case basis.

You do not need evidence of NHS registration

Being registered with a GP or dental practice in the UK is not a requirement for indefinite leave to remain, and you do not need to include NHS registration letters or medical records with your application.

How to organise and submit documents

Once you have gathered all the documents for your indefinite leave to remain application, you need to organise and upload them correctly. Poorly organised document submissions are a common cause of delays, as caseworkers struggle to identify which document corresponds to which requirement.

Online upload via the UKVCAS portal

Most indefinite leave to remain applications are submitted online through the Home Office online application portal, with supporting documents uploaded either before or at your UKVCAS biometrics appointment. You will be given specific instructions in your application about when and how to upload documents.

Accepted file formats and size limits

The Home Office accepts the following formats for uploaded documents:

• PDF: Preferred format for multi-page documents such as bank statements, payslips packages, and employer letters.
• JPEG or JPG: Accepted for photos, individual document scans, and passport pages.
• PNG: Accepted in some cases, but PDF and JPEG are more reliable.

Each uploaded file must not exceed 6MB. If a document is larger than this (for example, a package of 24 months of payslips scanned at high resolution), compress it or split it into multiple uploads. Clearly label each file so the caseworker can identify it immediately.

How to label your documents

Name your document files clearly before uploading. Use a consistent naming convention such as:

• Passport_Current_AllPages.pdf
• Payslips_Jan2025_Dec2025.pdf
• EmployerLetter_March2026.pdf
• BankStatements_Jan2026_Mar2026.pdf
• LifeInUKTest_PassCertificate.pdf

Clear naming makes it easier for the caseworker processing your indefinite leave to remain application and reduces the chance of a document being overlooked.

What happens if documents are missing

If the Home Office identifies a missing or insufficient document after you submit your indefinite leave to remain application, they may issue a Minded to Refuse letter giving you an opportunity to respond, or they may proceed to a refusal depending on the nature of the gap. In some cases, they contact you through the UKVCAS portal and give you a set number of working days to provide the missing item.

Avoiding missing documents entirely is far better than trying to rectify the situation after submission. Use our interactive ILR Document Checklist to verify that you have everything before you submit. You can also use our ILR Eligibility Calculator to confirm you are applying at the right time, so you are not rushing your document preparation.

For a complete walkthrough of the indefinite leave to remain application process from start to finish, including what happens after you submit, see our ILR Application Process guide and our step-by-step ILR Application Guide.