Families who moved to the UK on long-term visas say planned changes to the indefinite leave to remain (ILR) system will "tear our family apart," according to testimony reported by The i Paper.

The affected households relocated to Britain expecting a settled route to permanent residence. Under the government's overhaul of the settlement system, they now face uncertainty over whether they can remain together in the country they call home.

What is indefinite leave to remain?

Indefinite leave to remain is the UK's form of permanent residence. Migrants who hold it can live, work and study in Britain without time limits on their stay. It is typically the final step before naturalisation as a British citizen.

Families affected by the changes say they planned their lives around the existing route: jobs, schools, mortgages and community ties built on the assumption that settlement would follow after a fixed qualifying period of lawful residence.

Who says the changes will split families?

The i Paper quoted migrants directly. One family told the paper: "We moved to the UK – indefinite leave to remain changes will tear our family apart."

Their concern is shared by others who fear the new rules will leave some family members eligible for settlement while others are not. If one spouse or a child fails to meet a new requirement, the family could face a choice between separating or leaving the UK together — abandoning years of work and integration.

Parents quoted in the report described children who have grown up British in every practical sense, attending local schools and speaking English as their first language. For those households, a forced departure would uproot young people with no memory of any other country.

What changes are families reacting to?

The UK government is reworking how migrants qualify for settlement, and the affected families say the new framework disrupts plans made in good faith under the previous rules. They argue that people who followed every requirement — visa renewals, fees, employment conditions — are now being asked to meet a different standard partway through their journey.

Campaigners and affected migrants say the changes create a two-tier outcome: those who already secured ILR keep it, while those mid-path face longer waits, new conditions, or the possibility that their route to settlement closes entirely.

What can affected families do now?

The official source of any change to settlement rules is the Home Office, which publishes immigration rules and policy statements on GOV.UK. Migrants worried about their status should check current guidance directly rather than rely on second-hand summaries, and immigration advisers registered with the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) can assess individual situations.

The families quoted in the report say they will continue pressing their case publicly, urging the government to honour the expectations created by the rules that were in force when they first moved to Britain.