What is the habitual residence test?

What is the test for?

The test is designed to stop someone who has a right to enter the UK from claiming social benefits immediately after their arrival.

In each case the test requires the claimant/applicant to be ‘habitually resident’ in the ‘common travel area’.

Habitual residence and welfare benefits

A person is not eligible for universal credit (UC), state pension credit (SPC) or housing benefit (HB) unless s/he is habitually resident. This rule applies to the claimant regardless of his/her immigration status (e.g. it includes British citizens) but some claimants are exempt from this requirement and so are entitled to benefit immediately on their arrival.

A person cannot be habitually resident unless they have a ‘right to reside’. But from 1 January 2021, the practical effect is that a person is only disqualified by it if s/he has EU pre-settled status. Anyone else who passes the immigration control test has a right to reside and is eligible if they can show they are habitually resident.

For UC and SPC, both members of a couple must be habitually resident (or exempt), but if only one is then that member can claim as a single person. For HB, only the claimant (not their partner) must be habitually resident (or exempt).

Who is exempt: welfare benefits

A person who claims UC/SPC/HB does not need to be habitually resident if s/he:

• has refugee status
• has humanitarian protection
• has exceptional leave outside the rules (LOTR) with access to public funds (e.g. discretionary leave or leave under the under the migrant victims of domestic abuse concession)
• is a person who, as part of a safe and legal humanitarian route, has leave under the immigration rules or leave outside the rules (LOTR)
• is a person who is in the United Kingdom because of their deportation, expulsion or other removal by compulsion of law from another country
• for HB only, is a person who is in receipt of universal credit or state pension credit
• is a person who left Afghanistan who was previously employed by the British armed forces and who has leave under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) or the Afghan Locally Employed Staff ex-gratia scheme (ALES)
• is person who does not require leave or who has leave under the immigration rules with access to public funds and who:
• left Afghanistan in connection with the collapse of the Afghan government that took place on 15 August 2021 (other than a person who has leave under the ARAP or ALES schemes above)
• was residing in Ukraine immediately before 1 January 2022 and left in connection with the Russian invasion which took place on 24 February 2022
• was residing in Sudan before 15 April 2023 and left in connection with the rapidly escalating violence
• was residing in Israel, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, the Golan Heights or Lebanon immediately before 7 October 2023, and left in connection with the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel or the rapidly violence across the region, or
• was residing in a country or territory when the UK government advised British nationals to leave or arranged an evacuation, but in this case the exemption only lasts for six months starting on the date the government published its advice or the evacuation started, whichever occurred first.

The last category applied during the relevant six-month window period to a person who arrived from: Niger (1 August 2023 – 31 January 2024); South Sudan (27 March 2025 – 26 September 2025); Israel or the Occupied Territories (23 June 2025 – 22 December 2025) (see SI 2025/884, Explanatory Memo).

Other exemptions: people with EU pre-settled status or an EUSS family permit

In addition, for benefit purposes, a person who has EU pre-settled status or an EUSS family permit is exempt from the test if they are (or would be if they were an EEA national):

• a worker, frontier worker or self-employed person
• a person who has retained their worker/self-employed status during temporary unemployment or sickness, etc.
• a person who is a retired worker/self-employed person
• an EEA family member of any of the above, or
• a former EEA family member of deceased worker/self-employed person.

How decisions about habitual residence for benefit are made and notified

UC/SPC law says a person is not entitled to benefit unless s/he is ‘in Great Britain’ and that:

• s/he cannot be in Great Britain unless s/he is ‘habitually resident’; and
• s/he cannot be habitually resident unless s/he has a ‘right to reside’.

In Northern Ireland, the requirement is to be ‘in Northern Ireland'. Apart from that, the law in Northern Ireland is the same as the rest of the UK.

The requirement to be in Great Britain/Northern Ireland is administered as a two-stage test. The decision maker (DM) first decides if the person has a right to reside. If s/he does the DM will then decide if that person is habitually resident based on the facts in that case.

For UC/SPC, if benefit is refused the DM notifies the claimant (for UC, usually a message in the claimant's UC journal). The notice usually says the claimant is not entitled because they are ‘not in Great Britain/Northern Ireland’ without further explanation.

Decisions about HB are made in a similar way – except that a person who does not have a right to reside or who is not habitually resident is disqualified as being a ‘person from abroad’. The decision notice will usually say benefit is refused for that reason or because they are not habitually resident.

For UC, SPC and HB if the claimant has EU pre-settled status and benefit is refused it is advisable to ask for a full statement of reasons. Decisions about EEA rights to reside are complex and DMs often fail to consider all the options that might apply. If a statement of reasons is requested before the one-month time limit has expired the time limit is extended by 14 days. For more information see: how to appeal.

Habitual residence and housing/homelessness assistance

A British citizen, Irish citizen or Commonwealth citizen with the right of abode is not eligible for housing or homelessness assistance in England, Wales or Northern Ireland unless they are habitually resident.

A person with EU pre-settled status, or who has an on-time application to the EU Settlement Scheme that has not yet been finally decided, is not eligible for housing or homelessness assistance in England, Wales or Northern Ireland unless one of the following applies:

• they are an EEA national who is a worker, self-employed person or frontier worker, including someone who has retained worker or self-employed status, or
• they are an EEA national who is a retired worker with a right of permanent residence, or
• they are an EEA family member of one of the people listed above, or have a right of permanent residence because the EEA national they accompanied has died, or
• they are habitually resident and have a right to reside other than as a jobseeker, Zambrano carer, or family member of either.

In Scotland, British citizens and people with EU pre-settled status are eligible because they are not subject to immigration control, so habitual residence is not required.

Across the UK, a person who is subject to immigration control and has indefinite leave, stateless leave or leave as a British national from Hong Kong is eligible for housing and homelessness assistance only if they are habitually resident, as required by the relevant eligible class.

Who is exempt: housing and homelessness assistance

A person applying for housing or homelessness assistance does not need to be habitually resident if they:

• are in the United Kingdom because they have been deported, expelled or otherwise removed from another country, or
• left Afghanistan in connection with the collapse of the Afghan government on 15 August 2021, or
• were resident in Ukraine before 1 January 2022 and left in connection with the Russian invasion on 24 February 2022, or
• were resident in Sudan before 15 April 2023 and left because of the escalating violence, or
• were resident in Israel, Palestine, Lebanon or the occupied territories before 7 October 2023 and left in connection with the Hamas terror attack or the violence that followed, or
• are an applicant in Wales who was resident in Israel, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip or East Jerusalem on 23 June 2025, left because of the escalating conflict, and applied for housing or homelessness assistance on or before 22 December 2025 (see Welsh guidance), or
• are an applicant in England or Northern Ireland who was resident in a country or territory when the UK government advised British nationals to leave or arranged their evacuation, and applied for housing or homelessness assistance within six months of the later of that advice or evacuation.

The final category applies to someone who arrived from South Sudan on or after 27 March 2025, or from Israel or the Occupied Territories on or after 23 June 2025, provided they applied within the six-month window (see SI 2025/891, Explanatory Memo).

What is 'habitual residence'?

The term ‘habitual residence’ is not defined. It is decided by looking at all the facts of the case, but no single list can be drawn up to govern all cases. However, good general guidance is provided by the relevant government departments: see other information.

To be habitually resident a person must have taken up residence and lived here for a period. It is not sufficient that the person arrived voluntarily with the intention to settle. S/he must be resident for an appropriate period which demonstrates that their residence has become, and is likely to remain, habitual in nature.

It is generally accepted that the period to establish habitual residence lies between one and three months and compelling reasons must be given to justify a significantly longer period.

The period required to establish habitual residence will vary according to the facts of the case taking account of the length, continuity and nature of the residence. For example, a shorter period is usually required for someone who is returning to the UK to resume their residence than for a person who is entering the UK for the first time.

Once habitual residence has been established it resumes immediately on return from a short single absence (e.g. a holiday).

How habitual residence is lost and established

Habitual residence can be lost in a single day. For example, a person who leaves intending to take up long-term residence in another country. But a person does not become habitually resident immediately on arrival – even if they have an intention to settle. A person must be resident for an ‘appreciable period’ and there must be an intention to settle. There is no fixed period that amounts to an appreciable period. When assessing the nature and quality of the residence the guidance suggests that the main factors to be considered are:

• length and continuity of residence
• reasons for coming to the UK
• future intentions
• employment prospects, and
• centre of interest.

A person’s education and qualifications are likely to be a significant factor to their employment prospects. An offer of work is also good evidence of an intention to settle. If a person has stable employment, it is usually presumed that they reside there, even if their family ties are abroad.

A person’s centre of interest is concerned with the strength of their ties here and their intention to settle. It can be shown by the presence of close relatives; the location of a family’s personal possessions (clothing, furniture, transport); substantial purchases such as furnishings that demonstrate a long-term commitment; and membership of any clubs or organisations in connection with that person’s hobbies and interests.

The guidance stresses that no one of the above factors is more important than another and that the weighting given to each will depend on the particular facts of each case.

A good example is Olokunboro v Croydon LBC (Croydon County Court 31 October 2002 - see Legal Action February 2003, page 37). The applicant had spent most of her life outside the UK, which was the country of her birth and citizenship. As a child, she did not decide where she lived and so could not establish habitual residence then. She returned to the UK after a relationship breakdown and applied for accommodation. The court reversed the local authority’s decision that she was not habitually resident because the authority had placed undue emphasis on the fact that she had arrived with no accommodation and little money (that her residence was “not viable”) compared with the weight given to other factors like her citizenship and her ties to the UK. All factors should be given consideration and appropriate weight, which will vary from case to case according to the particular facts. The failure to give appropriate weight to her very close ties to the UK created a risk that some people would be excluded on the grounds of income alone.

Other information: official guidance

The relevant guidance on habitual residence for each country can be found in the following sources:

• Department for Work and Pensions (Great Britain): Advice for Decision Makers (ADM) Chapter C1 (pdf), paras C1946-75; Decision Makers’ Guide (DMG) Chapter 7, Part 3 (pdf), paras 073707-745; Housing Benefit Guidance Manual (HBGM) part C4 (pdf), paras C4.80-88 and C4.92-112).
• Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Homelessness code of guidance for local authorities, Annex 1
• Welsh Government: Allocation of accommodation and homelessness: guidance for local authorities (pdf) paras 2.18-24
• Department for Communities (Northern Ireland): Advice for Decision Making Chapter C1: Universal Credit (pdf), paras C1946-75; Decision Makers’ Guide Chapter 7, Part 3 (pdf) paras 073707-29; Housing Benefit Decision Makers' Guide Chapter 7 paras 7020-27.