How to Speed up your ILR Decision

Reviewed by: Paul Gulbenkian , Senior Consultant & Former Tribunal Judge

Last updated: March 18, 2026

The Indefinite Leave to Remain Priority and Super Priority Service for faster ILR application processing.

With all the planned changes to the UK settlement application process and the talk of earned settlement with an extended UK residence requirement, visa holders are keen to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain as soon as they meet the eligibility criteria. They want to know if you can switch ILR to priority or super priority service.

UK Immigration Solicitors know that the Home Office does not normally move at pace. That’s why our Immigration Lawyers in London will explain how to upgrade an ILR application to priority service UK.

Contact OTS Solicitors today if you are in the UK on a visa and want advice on a speedy ILR application.

The ILR Priority and ILR Super Priority Service

When you choose OTS Solicitors to prepare your Indefinite Leave to Remain application, we ensure that your application is well-written and supported by all the necessary paperwork. Despite our attention to detail, the Home Office will still take several months to process your application if you choose its standard processing service.

The Home Office provides two other service options, which, for an additional Home Office fee, allow ILR applicants to jump the ILR processing queue and have their settlement applications processed quickly.

Standard ILR application – takes up to six months for the Home Office to decide on the application.
Priority service ILR application – takes the Home Office five working days to make an ILR decision.
Super priority application – takes the Home Office to the end of the next working day to decide your ILR application.

However, if you use the ID Check app, you cannot get a decision on your ILR application by the end of the next working day, and Immigration Solicitors warn that not all visa routes allow you to use either the priority or the super priority service.

Calculating priority and super-priority processing times

If you decide to pay for a premium service, it can be disappointing to find that the expedited processing timeframe is not as speedy as you anticipated, so here is what you need to know about the expedited timeframes:

Priority processing time is calculated from either the day of your scheduled appointment, if you are required to prove your identity in person, or the working day after you have completed uploading your documents using the UK Immigration: ID Check app.
When you apply for priority service ILR, you are told whether you can prove your identity by using the app to scan your identity documents or if you must attend an appointment at a UKVCAS centre.
The super priority service means that you should get a decision by the end of the next working day or soon after, but this timescale is not guaranteed. The time starts to run from the end of the next working day after your in-person appointment if the appointment is on a weekday, or from two working days after an appointment held on a bank holiday, Saturday, or Sunday.
If you use the ID Check app, you will not be able to get an ILR decision by the end of the next working day and probably won't get a decision within five working days unless you are applying on your own and have met the ILR requirements as an Innovator Founder Visa holder.

If you are unsure about how quickly the fast-tracked service will work, it's best to check with your ILR Lawyer.

Standard Indefinite Leave to Remain processing times

The standard ILR processing time is around six months, but it could be shorter or longer. The standard processing timeframe depends on several factors: the complexity of your application, the supporting paperwork, ILR processing backlogs, and an element of luck.

It's normal for your visa to expire while you wait for your ILR application to be processed by the Home Office. That’s not a problem for most ILR applicants because the immigration rules say that if you have a pending settlement application, you have the right to remain in the UK and to work in the UK under the same terms as your visa until the Home Office decides your settlement application.

Paying the Home Office extra in processing fees should provide you with a faster turnaround service (five working days for priority and end of the next working day for super priority), but the Home Office is careful to say that it does not guarantee these fast-track service times if your application is deemed by it to be complicated.

Home Office processing delays in priority or super-priority service timeframes may be due to reasons such as:

Additional identity checking.
The Home Office decide an ILR interview is necessary.
The Home Office decides additional information is required. For example, about a conviction or about whether you meet the residence requirement because of overseas travel.

Our specialist ILR Lawyers can advise you on whether the Home Office is likely to consider the circumstances of your ILR application complex and how best to deal with those complexities.

Priority and super priority fees

The additional Home Office priority processing fees are:

Priority - £500.
Super priority - £1,000.

These fees are in addition to the Home Office ILR application fee.

If you are applying for ILR with family members, all the family members must choose the priority or super priority service- the main applicant cannot select it solely for their ILR application.

It's important to understand that:

The Home Office does not guarantee priority and super-priority timescales.
The fast-track options are not always available.
The priority and super-priority service does not increase your chance of getting Indefinite Leave to Remain; it just speeds up the decision-making.
If your application for ILR is refused, the Home Office won't refund the fees paid to them.

How to upgrade an ILR application to priority service UK

When your ILR Solicitor completes your ILR application online, they can select the priority or super priority service if:

You are a suitable applicant for either service, and
You have paid the additional Home Office fees for a fast-tracked service, and
Priority service options are available.

Priority service options are not always available because:

The Home Office only provides a limited number of priority slots.
Technical issues can mean the Home Office is not operating the expedited service or has suspended it.
Your route to ILR may mean you are not eligible to use the fast-track service.

Your Immigration Solicitor can advise on the latest updates regarding priority service availability and whether it is best to use the standard service or upgrade to priority processing.

Potential problems with waiting for standard ILR application processing

Our UK Immigration Solicitors find that some applicants experience the following problems if they face a six-month wait for a decision on their ILR application:

You cannot travel outside of the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man until your ILR application is decided. If you travel, the Home Office will treat your application as withdrawn, and you will have to start the process again.
You must continue to comply with your visa conditions. This may be an issue for you if you find the conditions onerous.
If you want to change employment, you may find it difficult to do so if you are in the UK on a Skilled Worker Visa.
You won't be able to claim state benefits until you have secured Indefinite Leave to Remain.
If you want to sponsor a family member to come to the UK on a Spouse Visa or Unmarried Partner Visa, you won't be able to sponsor them until you have Indefinite Leave to Remain.
The delay in securing ILR will affect the timing of any future British citizenship application.
You may not meet the relevant ILR financial or general ILR criteria in six months if your ILR application is refused and you need to make a further application.

There may be other reasons why a six-month wait for your ILR application to be processed would be disadvantageous to you, such as the stress of being in limbo while you wait for a decision. Our UK Immigration Lawyers can help you assess whether it is in your interests to pay extra Home Office fees for the priority or super priority service.

How to speed up the ILR decision

Whether you use the fast-tracked priority service to speed up the ILR processing time or not, the other way you can expedite the processing of your application is to ensure that you instruct specialist Indefinite Leave to Remain Lawyers to:

Advise on whether you meet the ILR eligibility criteria and the best time to submit the application.
Address any complexities in a well-prepared statement, such as significant absences from the UK, a prior conviction, a complicated family relationship or complex financial circumstances.
Ensure that the best evidence is presented and uploaded in support of your Indefinite Leave to Remain application.

At OTS Solicitors, our team of Immigration Lawyers understand the importance of your ILR application to you and your family. Whether you choose the priority or super priority Home Office processing service or not, our ILR Solicitors will do their utmost to ensure that the Home Office progresses and approves your application as quickly as possible.

Our immigration law expertise is recognised by our inclusion in the 2026 editions of the Legal 500 and the Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession.

Contact OTS Solicitors Today.

Contact us by phone or complete our online form to schedule an appointment at our London offices or arrange a phone or online consultation.

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