Spouse Visa B2 English: Settlement Only, From 2027

What has become law

Appendix KoLL to the Immigration Rules governs the knowledge of English and of life in the UK required for indefinite leave to enter or remain. Since the statement of changes HC 1691, laid on 5 March 2026, it draws a line on one date:

• Application made before 26 March 2027: an English language test in speaking and listening at a minimum of level B1, approved by the Secretary of State and taken at an approved Secure English Language Test Centre no more than two years before the date of application.
• Application made on or after 26 March 2027: the same, at a minimum of level B2.

The same split appears in Appendix Settlement Family Life, which covers settlement as a partner or parent on the 10-year qualifying period. Its paragraph SETF 5.1 sets B1 before 26 March 2027 and B2 on or after it.

The Home Office announced the change on the day it was laid, under the heading "Higher standard of English now required to settle in the UK". It described the standard as "the new A-level equivalent standard, raised from the current GCSE level", and said applicants were being given "a full year's notice to prepare".

What has not

The stages before settlement are untouched. Appendix FM still says:

• Paragraph E-ECP.4.1 and E-LTRP.4.1: a test in speaking and listening at a minimum of level A1 at the first application as a partner.
• Paragraph E-LTRP.4.1A: a minimum of level A2 at the extension, for someone who met the requirement at A1 in a previous application.

Neither paragraph carries a future date. GOV.UK's own published table of English language requirement levels lists the family route as A1 for entry clearance and A2 for an extension, and shows no B2 at either stage.

So the position for someone applying today is A1, then A2 two and a half years later, then B1 or B2 at settlement depending on which side of 26 March 2027 the settlement application falls. Our English language requirement guide covers the tests and the evidence.

The six CEFR levels, for orientation

• A1 and A2 — basic user.
• B1 and B2 — independent user.
• C1 and C2 — proficient user.

The Immigration Rules test speaking and listening only, at whichever level applies. GOV.UK publishes no estimate of how many hours of study separate one level from the next, and any figure quoted for that comes from a test provider or a language school rather than from the Home Office.

One number the Rules do publish is worth knowing, because it sets the scale of what counts as serious study. 75 guided learning hours is the threshold in Appendix KoLL paragraph 4.14 for the qualified-teacher route described below, and paragraph 4.14(b) defines "guided learning hours" as "the time during which a person is taught or given instruction", excluding "any time spent on unsupervised preparation or study".

Who is exempt

At the first application, under Appendix FM

Paragraph E-ECP.4.1 treats a person as meeting the requirement if they are a national of a majority English-speaking country listed at paragraph GEN.1.6, or hold a degree taught or researched in English at the relevant level. Paragraph E-ECP.4.2 exempts an applicant who, at the date of application:

• is aged 65 or over;
• has a disability, physical or mental, which prevents them meeting the requirement; or
• faces exceptional circumstances which prevent them meeting it before entry to the UK.

The majority English-speaking list is fixed and shorter than people assume. English being an official language of a country does not put it on the list.

At settlement, under Appendix KoLL

Paragraph 3.1 removes the requirement — both the English element and the Life in the UK Test — where the applicant is under 18 at the date of application, is at least 65 at the date of application, or where the decision-maker considers that because of the applicant's mental or physical condition it would be unreasonable to expect them to fulfil either or both parts.

Paragraph 3.2(c) and 3.2(ca) provide a further route for someone who has tried and cannot reach the level. It needs a signed, dated letter from a qualified English language teacher, dated no more than 3 months before the application, confirming: the applicant's name; that they attended a class taught by that teacher for at least 75 guided learning hours in the 12 months before the application; that the teacher has assessed the applicant's speaking and listening level as below the required level; that the applicant is considered unlikely to attain it through further study; and the teacher's own qualifications. The required level in that assessment is B1 for an application before 26 March 2027 and B2 for one on or after it.

Earned settlement: decided, not yet in the Rules

A second and larger change to settlement has been decided but is not yet in the Rules. The earned settlement consultation ran from 20 November 2025 to 12 February 2026, and the government published its response (CP 1707) on 2 November 2026. For partners, it says:

• English: "B2 will be the standard English-language requirement for settlement", with the existing exemptions for children, people aged 65 and over, and people whose physical or mental condition prevents them meeting it (page 17). This matches the level already laid for 26 March 2027.
• Partners of British citizens: a 5-year path is kept for "eligible partners, parents and children of British citizens", provided the applicant meets the route requirements and the new minimum requirements (page 14).
• Other partners: the response makes 10 years the standard qualifying period for most people (page 5). Its estimates say partners on a family visa who are not sponsored by a British citizen move to a longer pathway (Annex A, page 46).
• Partners who come with a worker: a partner who arrives with the main applicant can settle at the same time; a partner who joins later serves the same qualifying period themselves (page 25).

None of this is law yet. No statement of changes has been laid and the response gives no start date. The Home Secretary told the House of Commons on 2 November 2026 that the changes "will begin to be laid from the December immigration rules" and "will be implemented over the course of 2027". Until then, the existing 5-year route to settlement applies. See our guide to partners and children under earned settlement and our guide to earned settlement.

Reading a change like this

Two dates do the work in the English rules, and they are worth separating. The date the change was laid was 5 March 2026 — that is when it stopped being a proposal. The date it bites is 26 March 2027, and it bites on the date the settlement application is made, not on the date permission was first granted. Someone whose five years end in early 2027 and someone whose five years end in late 2027 are on opposite sides of the same rule.

Our settlement entry sets out the rest of the settlement requirements, and our entry on the 2026 changes tracks what else has moved.

Related entries

• The English language requirement on the partner route
• B2 tests and what they cover
• Approved tests for UK visas
• English classes for adults
• The partner and spouse route

Questions and answers