The Appendix Private Life route is developed on the basis of people who have successfully built a life in the UK. Moreover, a child born in the UK who has lived there for seven continuous years is eligible for an immediate settlement through a seven-year child route.
Amendments Introduced Within The Seven-Year Child Route
Previously, a child born in the UK who has spent seven continuous years in the country was able to apply for limited leave to remain. However, the new changes that became effective on 20 June 2022 under ‘appendix private life’ makes the child eligible for an immediate settlement through an indefinite leave to remain.
In addition to this, an individual who arrived in the UK as a child and has lived there as a resident for seven continuous years after being permitted to remain on the basis of their private life can seek settlement after five years. Don’t forget young adults between the ages of 18 and 25 years who came to the UK as children need to have lived half of their lives in the country to qualify for settlement.
Moreover, a child who has lived in the UK for seven continuous years but was born in another country will be able to go for settlement after five years instead of 10. However, the applicant is required to give proof that expecting the child to exit the UK would be unreasonable.
Requirements For Settlement Under The Seven-Year Child Private Life Route
Let’s talk about the requirements the applicant for the seven-year private life route to Indefinite Leave to Remain as a child needs to fulfill.
1. For starters, applicants are supposed to fulfill the continuous residence requirement by ensuring the following:
- The applicant should have been born in the UK while being below 18 years of age. Plus, the applicant must have lived in the UK for seven continuous years.
- Secondly, expecting the child to exit the country should be proven to be unreasonable.
- Lastly, the applicant must have arrived in the UK as a child.
Furthermore, the applicant must have obtained their first visa based on a private life between the ages of 18 and 24 years and must have spent five continuous years in the UK on a visa.
In case you are wondering, the reasonability test to decide if the child would be able to leave the UK is based on the following criteria;
- The age of the child
- The child’s ties to the UK
- The child’s family and friends settled in the UK
- The child’s friends and family living in the country where they are expected to return to
It’s also considered if the child has ever gone to the country where they are expected to return. If yes, then how much time did they spend there, and when did they go?
These questions often come up as the Home Office determines if it’s reasonable to think the child would leave the UK.
2. Secondly, the applicant should be the child of a parent with permission on the Private Life route, or the parent should have applied to obtain permission on the Private Life route at the same time. Otherwise, the parent should be settled or have British citizenship, along with the approval on the Private Life route at the time they settled. Most importantly, the applicant should have been born before their parent settled in the UK. Furthermore, the other parent of the applicant should also have permission to remain in the UK on a valid visa, except for a visitor visa.
3. Thirdly, the applicant aged between 18 and 24 has to pass the ‘Life in the UK’ test.
4. Lastly, the applicant is supposed to fulfill the English language criteria. Applicants who have an English language qualification of CEFR level B1 in listening and speaking or a degree in the English language can easily meet this requirement.
In the end, it should be noted that the child will be able to apply for British citizenship after 12 months of securing an indefinite leave to remain, regardless of where they were born.
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