A No Time Limit (NTL) application allows individuals who hold Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) in the form of an old-style vignette to apply for a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) to demonstrate their status. Individuals with an old-style ILR endorsement are required to make a No Time Limit application in order to obtain a BRP to be able to access their eVisa.
What is a No Time Limit application?
A successful NTL application will transfer ILR status onto a BRP. A BRP is a card, which looks similar to a UK driving licence, that holds the individual's personal details such as their name, date of birth, place of birth, and their biometric information – photograph and fingerprints. This card also provides limited information on the type of permission the person holds.
No Time Limit applications and eVisas
As the Home Office moves to digitalise the immigration system, all immigration statuses will be replaced by an online 'eVisa'. In order to apply for an eVisa, immigration status holders will be required to register for a UKVI account first. Once registered, individuals will be able to view and prove their status online.
If you have Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), also known as settlement, and your evidence of this is on a document other than a BRP, for example, a stamp or vignette in your passport, you will be required to first apply for a BRP before you can create a UKVI account and view and prove your status online.
Optional or mandatory?
The guidance on NTL applications sets out that 'It is not mandatory for a person to apply for an NTL BRP but there are benefits to doing so...'. Given that, as we move to a digitalised system, BRPs are a requirement to register for a UKVI account and access eVisas, the guidance is somewhat misleading.
In reality and in keeping with the digital changes, it would seem that NTL applications are mandatory, as without a BRP, individuals will not be able to apply for UKVI accounts, without which they cannot view and prove their immigration status.
When to consider making an NTL application
The Home Office is aiming to have a fully digitalised immigration system by 1 January 2025. Individuals who hold a BRP are now being advised to create a UKVI account in order to access their eVisa, and many individuals are receiving invites from UKVI requesting that they do so. Individuals who hold ILR in the form of an old-style endorsement are unlikely to receive such emails and are therefore at risk of being unaware of the new digitalised system. It is not yet known whether the Home Office will put in place protections for those who hold historic ILR endorsements in terms of being able to adequately prove their status.
We therefore strongly recommend that individuals who hold an old-style ILR endorsement make an NTL application sooner rather than later.
Who can make an NTL application?
An individual must hold valid ILR in the UK in order to make an NTL application. In addition to this, ILR status must not have been invalidated through deportation, revoked on the basis of being liable for deportation, or because permission was obtained by deception.
ILR will also lapse if an individual has been outside of the UK for a continuous two-year period. Therefore, it is important to check that this is not the case prior to making an NTL application. Individuals who have been outside the UK continuously for more than two years would instead need to make an application for a Returning Resident visa.
Who cannot make an NTL application?
Those who hold limited leave to remain in the UK can also make an application to transfer their leave to a BRP, however, they must use a different application process.
EEA nationals and their family members who have the right to permanent residence or settled status in the UK cannot transfer their leave to a BRP. An EEA national or family member who has resided in the UK for at least five years, having obtained a permanent residence permit or not, must apply for settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme.
EEA nationals who were granted ILR under the Immigration Rules in place prior to 30 April 2006, are eligible to make an NTL application.
Home Office fees and processing times
Once the application is submitted online, you will be required to attend an appointment in order to provide your biometric information at a UKVCAS centre.
There is no Home Office fee for this application and you should receive a decision within six months, although there is always the possibility for delays with any Home Office application.
Fortunately, however, NTL applicants can travel outside the Common Travel Area (United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and the Republic of Ireland) whilst their application is pending a decision.
eVisas
Once a BRP has been issued, an individual can then use this to apply for a UKVI account, in which they would be able to view their eVisa. We discussed in detail here, what an eVisa is, how to apply for one and also the advantages and disadvantages of this new system.
For more information on the Home Office's wider digitalisation strategy, you can find the latest developments and key information here.
This article was originally published in March 2020 and has been lightly updated. It is accurate as of the new date of publication shown.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.