Guides

The UK 180-day rule for ILR, explained from the rules

Most UK settlement routes require continuous residence, and absences are the usual worry. This guide quotes the rule, then explains the three details that change the count: rolling periods, whole days and the date you count back from.

The rule

To meet the continuous residence requirement, the applicant must not have been outside the UK for more than 180 days in any 12- month period (unless CR 3.2., CR 3.3., CR 5.1. or CR 5.2. applies, and subject to CR 3.4.).

Source: GOV.UK, Immigration Rules: Appendix Continuous Residence (checked 2026-10-31)

Note "any 12-month period". It is not calendar years and not years from your visa date.

Rolling 12-month periods

Absences from the UK during a period of permission granted on or after 11 January 2018 are considered on a rolling basis over any 12-month period. This means that absences should not be considered solely in fixed consecutive 12-month periods, as they are for those with permission granted before 11 January 2018. Instead, absences are considered in any 12-month period they may fall within.

Source: Home Office, Continuous residence caseworker guidance (version 10.0, published 8 October 2026) (checked 2026-10-31)

The counter applies this by checking every 12-month period that ends on each day of your qualifying period and reporting the highest total. If any period is over 180 days, it lists the end dates of those periods.

For permission granted before 11 January 2018, CR 3.2 instead uses consecutive 12-month periods ending on the same date as the current application. The counter does not apply CR 3.2; work those years out separately.

Whole days only

You must only include whole days when calculating an applicant’s absences. Part day absences, less than 24 hours are not counted.

The guidance gives an example: if the applicant was absent for 180 days during the 12-month period and started the journey back on day 180 but arrived on day 181, day 181 would not be a day of absence. The counter therefore counts the days strictly between your departure date and your return date.

Which date to count back from

The qualifying period for continuous residence will be calculated by counting back from whichever of the following dates is the most beneficial to the applicant, taking periods of absence into account: (a) the date of application; or (b) any date up to 28 days after the date of application; or (c) the date of decision; or (d) [a UK Ancestry case, omitted here]

Because the rules use whichever date is most beneficial, you can test several reference dates in the counter, for example your planned application date and the date 28 days later.

Absences that are not counted

CR 3.4 lists absences that do not count, including assisting with a humanitarian or environmental crisis overseas, travel disruption due to natural disaster, military conflict or pandemic, and compelling and compassionate personal circumstances such as the life-threatening illness of the applicant or the life-threatening illness or death of a close family member. There are also research and family-life cases. The counter cannot see reasons, so remove such trips yourself only after checking CR 3.4 and keep the evidence.

Source: GOV.UK, Immigration Rules: Appendix Continuous Residence (checked 2026-10-31)