Asked by: Steve Witherden (Labour - Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of lengthening the qualifying period for settlement from five years to ten years for young adults and children under Appendix Private Life to the Immigration Rules.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The earned settlement model, proposed in A Fairer Pathway to Settlement, is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.
The consultation directly seeks views on retaining the current arrangement, whereby children and young adults who grew up in the UK without immigration status my settle five years after regularising that status.
Details of the earned settlement scheme will be finalised following that consultation. The final model will also be subject to economic and equality impact assessment, which we have committed to publish in due course.
Asked by: Richard Tice (Reform UK - Boston and Skegness)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many immigration cases have been delayed due to legal challenges under the Human Rights Act in the past five years.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether changes to immigration rules will apply retrospectively to BNO visa holders in the UK.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government remains steadfast in its support for members of the Hong Kong community in the UK.
BN(O) visa holders will attract a 5-year reduction in the qualifying period for settlement, meaning they will continue to be able to settle in the UK after 5 years’ residence, subject to meeting the mandatory requirements.
We are seeking views on earned settlement through the public consultation A Fairer Pathway to Settlement and will continue to listen to the views of Hong Kongers. Details of the earned settlement model will be finalised following that consultation, including when the Rules will apply from and any transitional arrangements that will apply.
In the meantime, the current rules for settlement under the BN(O) route will continue to apply.
Asked by: Luke Taylor (Liberal Democrat - Sutton and Cheam)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what transitional support will be provided to the families who are already on Indefinite Leave to Remain.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We are not changing the rules for those who have already gained settled status. Similarly, no reforms are planned that would remove settlement from those people already holding that status legitimately.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the number of visa applicants whose applications were denied due to criminal records relating to sex offences since 2020.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We take the issue of preventing foreign criminals entering the UK extremely seriously, and we continue to strengthen our borders so that we can prevent crime and protect the public, delivering on this Government’s commitment to tackle foreign criminality. For example, those required to obtain a visa to enter the UK are checked against a range of police, security and immigration databases for details of any UK or overseas criminal record. All applicants are required to provide details of their criminal history. Where it is found that they failed to declare relevant offences/convictions, their application will be refused and they will be subject to a ten-year ban from applying to enter the UK.
We do not hold information on the specific offences relating to refused applications.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what checks are carried out during visa applications to identify previous sexual offence convictions overseas.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We take the issue of preventing foreign criminals entering the UK extremely seriously, and we continue to strengthen our borders so that we can prevent crime and protect the public, delivering on this Government’s commitment to tackle foreign criminality. For example, those required to obtain a visa to enter the UK are checked against a range of police, security and immigration databases for details of any UK or overseas criminal record. All applicants are required to provide details of their criminal history. Where it is found that they failed to declare relevant offences/convictions, their application will be refused and they will be subject to a ten-year ban from applying to enter the UK.
We do not hold information on the specific offences relating to refused applications.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that applicants whose visa cases take longer than service standards are provided with timely updates.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
UKVI are currently processing applications on the overwhelming majority of its visa routes within their published customer service standards. Visa processing times are published on the UKVI website at Visa processing times: Visa processing times: applications inside the UK - GOV.UK
It may take longer to process an application if:
Customers are informed if their application will take longer to process.
Asked by: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what process will her Department follow in order to set the visa allocations under the Seasonal Worker Scheme beyond 2026; and what factors will be considered when tapering the allocation.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The UK Government is committed to supporting the UK Horticulture sector, but it is also important that the sector reduces its ongoing reliance on significant numbers of seasonal workers from overseas. Decisions on future allocations will take into account a broad range of factors including, current usage, steps taken to reduce ongoing reliance, such as the adoption of automative technology, and the ongoing costs of operating the route, including compliance and asylum costs.
The Home Office will work closely with the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs to determine future scheme allocations.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has assessed the impact of COVID-19 border restrictions on the ability of spouse visa holders to meet the five-year qualifying period for Indefinite Leave to Remain.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the department considered the impact on people qualifying for settlement and, as a result, concessions were put in place, including where discretion will be exercised regarding the qualifying period for settlement. These are set out in the Family Life guidance: Family life and exceptional circumstances: caseworker guidance - GOV.UK
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department operates any concession or discretionary process for partner visa holders whose entry to the UK was delayed due to government-mandated COVID-19 travel restrictions and red-list hotel quarantine.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the department considered the impact on people qualifying for settlement and, as a result, concessions were put in place, including where discretion will be exercised regarding the qualifying period for settlement. These are set out in the Family Life guidance: Family life and exceptional circumstances: caseworker guidance - GOV.UK