“Suitability” in UK immigration law refers to the Home Office’s assessment of an applicant’s character and conduct. It’s a framework for refusing applications and cancelling permission, encompassing grounds like criminal history, previous immigration breaches and deception. Suitability checks apply to people applying for a visa to enter the UK, extend their current visa, switch to another type or apply for settlement. Falling foul of suitability rules can lead to refusal of a visa or the cancellation of existing permission.
From 11 November 2025, major changes have been introduced which significantly affect family and human rights applications. The old Part 9: Grounds for Refusal has been replaced by a new Part Suitability, and—crucially—all the suitability rules now apply fully to family and private life routes.
For the first time, Part Suitability applies in full to:
- Spouse, civil partner and unmarried partner applications under the family visa rules
- Parent of a child
- Applications as a child of a British or settled person (or other qualifying status)
- Private Life route applicants
- Adult Dependent Relatives
These categories previously benefited from exceptions or softer rules—those exceptions are now largely removed.
Key changes: Criminality rules
Any conviction resulting in a prison sentence of 12 months or more now leads to a mandatory refusal, regardless of:
- When or where the sentence occurred
- How long ago it was served
- That the person may have already disclosed it in previous successful applications.
This is a drastic tightening. Previously, a person with a 12–48-month sentence could still join their family in the UK if 10 years had passed since serving their sentence.
The grounds also require the Home Office to cancel (also known as “curtail”) permission where someone has been sentenced to more than 12 months’ imprisonment. This is a mandatory ground which appears to apply to old convictions as well as new ones.
There is also a discretionary ground that allows the Home Office to refuse an application where the applicant has been convicted of any offence at any time, as well as cancel someone’s permission on the same basis. As this is a discretionary ground, whether an application would be refused will depend on the specific circumstances of the case, including the strength of their Article 8 human rights claim to a family and private life.
There are also provisions for refusing an application or cancelling permission where an applicant is a “persistent offender” or where their offending has caused serious harm, though these rules already applied to these categories. These were mandatory refusals and they remain so.
Other suitability grounds now applying to family/child/parent/private life routes
There is a provision for refusing an application for entry clearance where the applicant previously breached immigration law, which is defined as:
- Overstaying (with some exceptions)
- Entering the UK illegally
- Breaching conditions of their permission (unless permission was subsequently granted in knowledge of the breach)
- Using deception in a previous application
Where this applies, a re-entry ban will apply, during which time any application lodged to enter the UK will be refused. The length of the re-entry ban will depend on the circumstances but where the applicant left the UK at their own expense, this will usually be 12 months. This is a mandatory ground for refusal.
There is also a discretionary ground for refusing an application for permission to stay where there has been a current or previous breach of immigration law.
Do these suitability changes apply to people already in the UK?
Yes. There are no transitional arrangements. This is one of the most controversial impacts of the reforms.
Are there any exceptions?
Where the relevant ground for refusal is criminality, there is a general exception for anyone who was convicted of an offence overseas for conduct which is not criminalised in the UK, such as trade union membership or homosexuality. In such cases, the conviction would typically not be considered when deciding your application or whether to cancel your leave.
Each of these categories contain some limited exceptions to an applicant being refused on suitability grounds, as long as it’s not one of the following “unwaivable” grounds for refusal:
- The Secretary of State personally directed the exclusion of the applicant
- The applicant is subject to an exclusion order
- The applicant is subject to a deportation order
- The applicant is an excluded person under section 8B(4) of the 1971 Act (which deals with resolutions by the UN or EU that the applicant should not be admitted into the UK)
- The applicant is excluded from the Refugee Convention (this has a very specific meaning beyond a simple refusal)
- The applicant was convicted of an offence for which he was given a sentence of 12 months or more
- The applicant is a persistent offender
- The applicant has committed an offence which caused serious harm
Where the reason for the refusal is not one of these grounds, each of the above-mentioned application categories has provisions for permission to be granted despite the suitability issue, which either require the passage of time or exceptional circumstances, which in the context of these applications, usually means a strong family or private life. Depending on the ground for refusal, the application and your individual circumstances, you may need to put in significant evidence for why discretion should be exercised in your favour.
We would recommend seeking expert advice on this matter because of the complexity involved.
Can someone still succeed even if an unwaivable ground applies?
Technically, yes. Although the Rules mandate refusal, the Home Office (and the courts/tribunals) must still assess proportionality. If their Article 8 right to a family / private life outweighs the suitability issue.
In practice, this will mean building the strongest possible case for why you should be granted leave despite the fact that your circumstances mandate a refusal under the Immigration Rules. Such applications would typically take into account not only your circumstances but also those of any family in the UK that you might have, as the effect that a refusal would have on them is something that would be looked at closely, particularly where the family member in question is a partner or minor child. These applications would fall outside the Immigration Rules, so the threshold for showing that refusing you permission would be a breach of Article 8 despite the state’s interest in excluding you from the UK would consequently be very high.
If you think you may face a refusal because of the new suitability rules, we recommend obtaining expert immigration legal advice.
What should applicants do?
- Seek expert immigration advice early—especially if you have any convictions or a past immigration breach.
- Prepare detailed evidence of family life, rehabilitation, vulnerability, and impact on children.
These changes significantly raise the stakes for many applicants, including those already lawfully in long-term routes to settlement.
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