Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring Control over the Immigration System, published on 12 May 2025, whether British National (Overseas) visa holders will be required to meet new earned settlement criteria.

Settlement in the UK is a prerequisite for becoming a British citizen and brings lifelong benefits. Settlement is also an important step in integrating and contributing to local communities and the wider country. We will therefore reform the current rules around settlement so that individuals must earn their right to privileged immigration status in the UK through the long-term contribution they bring to our country. We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and will provide details of how the scheme will work after that, including which immigration routes it will apply to.