British Citizenship

British citizenship is often considered the final step towards permanent settlement in the UK.

Having this status allows you to apply for a British passport and gives you the full rights of a UK citizen. It provides the freedom to enter and exit the UK without being subjected to immigration control.

Owning a British passport also grants access to a number of countries across the globe without requiring a visa.

Additionally, gaining UK naturalisation gives you the right to vote in elections and referendums and stand for public office.

Who Can Apply For British Citizenship?

Those who wish to apply for citizenship through naturalisation must first meet the eligibility criteria:

• You must be aged 18 or above
• You must have passed the Life in the UK Test
• You must have held Indefinite Leave to Remain (settlement) status for 12 months
• You must meet the residency requirements: You must not have spent more than 90 days outside the UK in any 12 month period. Additionally, you must have been a continuous resident for at least 5 years, with no more than 450 days spent outside the UK during that time
• You must satisfy the B1 CEFR English language requirements (unless exempt)
• You must be ‘of good character’

A key requirement for people who wish to submit their British citizenship registration is to be “of good character.”

You must prove that you will be a law-abiding, upstanding member of British society. This means that your criminal history will be examined and you must not hold a recent or severe criminal record.

This applies to offences committed both overseas and/or in relation to violating immigration rules.

The ‘good character’ requirement is a very important element of your application and previous criminal offences may result in your application being rejected.

The requirement applies to anyone over the age of 10 who applies for either registration or naturalisation as a British citizen.

However, as well as evaluating any past criminal convictions or breaches of immigration laws, UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) will also consider positive contributions to society.

This includes good behaviour such as charity work and those who have served in the armed forces.

There is not one set path to securing British Citizenship, it depends entirely on your personal circumstances. The most common, however, is British Citizenship through naturalisation.

• British Citizenship by Birth/Descent: This is for those who were born in the UK after 1983, as it is no longer automatically granted upon birth. It depends on the circumstances of both you and your parents. However, the majority of those born in the UK will have British citizenship.
• British Citizenship by Marriage: This is for those who are married to a British citizen, however to qualify for citizenship via this route, you must have spent at least three years in the UK with Indefinite Leave to Remain or EU Settled Status.
• British Citizenship by Naturalisation: This is for those who have settled in the UK for a period of at least three years (but in most cases five years) and who have held Indefinite Leave to Remain (non-EU/EEA nationals) or Permanent Residence Status (EU nationals) for at least 12 months.

These are the key routes to British citizenship – which route you take is dependent on factors such as your ancestry, place of birth, the nationality of your partner, and your time spent in the UK. To determine which route you ought to take, our team of immigration lawyers in Birmingham are here to assist via telephone, Skype/video call, in person and online. Call us today on 0121 667 6530.

Once you have met the eligibility criteria, you must be able to provide the relevant documentation to support your citizenship application.

Some key documents are:

• Proof of your identity: This can take the form of your passport, birth certificate, national identity card, driving licence or other specific travel documents
• Life in the UK Test confirmation letter
• UKVI-approved qualification in English: This must be at B1 CEFR or higher, proving that you meet the English language requirement
• Confirmation of lawful residence: Showing that you were lawfully resident in the UK during the qualifying period
• Proof of Indefinite Leave to Remain or Settled Status: Your passport which shows permission to remain permanently in the UK and a letter from UKVI
• Proof of your previous immigration status: Including prior to settling in the UK)
• Any additional travel details: Which may account for absences outside the UK
• Proof that you have been exercising your Treaty Rights: This may have been in the last 3 or 5 years (if you are an EU national). This may take the form of bank statements, confirmation of employment or confirmation of studies from your educational institution.

What English test is needed for British citizenship?

You must provide a certificate that demonstrates that you have an English language qualification of at least Level B1 on the CEFR scale. You may take one of the UKVI- approved Secure English Language Tests (e.g., the IELTS for UKVI exam).

Those who have already passed the test under their settled status do not need to re-sit the exam, however, you must present your certificate within your application.

Life in the UK Test

The test consists of 24 questions that aim to assess the individual’s understanding of British values, customs, traditions, and history. The test can be taken in English, Welsh or Scottish Gaelic.

Fortunately, the test only needs to be passed once, and a successful result is valid for life.

Since 1983, citizenship is no longer automatically granted to those born in the UK.

To be granted British citizenship by birth, children must have at least one parent living in the UK who is either a British national or holds settled status.

This means that UK-born children who have non-British parents will be classed as dependants and will be subject to immigration controls.

It is possible for children born in Britain to non-British parents to acquire citizenship via a different route once they have qualified. However, they will not be eligible to acquire British citizenship by birth.

British Citizenship by Descent applies to those who were born outside the UK to parents (either one or both of them) who were British citizens at the time of birth. Those with Citizenship by Descent are not able to automatically pass on citizenship to their child if they are also born outside the UK.

If you were born outside the UK on or after 1st July 2006 to a parent who was a British citizen at the time of your birth and had the right to pass on their citizenship to you, you will automatically be a British citizen.

However, for your British parent to be able to pass on citizenship to you, they must have either been born/adopted in the UK or have acquired citizenship after applying for it themselves

Alternatively, they must have been working as a Crown servant at the time of your birth.

The primary differences between citizenship and ILR include:

• Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) allows you to live and work in the UK without visa restrictions
• if you spend over two years outside of the United Kingdom whilst holding ILR, you may have your settled status revoked
• Citizenship is very rarely revoked and you have the right to work, live, enter and exit the UK freely forever
• Citizenship also gives you the right to vote in elections and referendums
• Citizenship gives you access to a British passport

Generally, you’re eligible for British citizenship if you’ve had Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK for a minimum of one year.

This also applies to those with Indefinite Leave to Enter and EU and EEA citizens with settled status for a specified period.

However, if you’re married to a British national, you can seek Naturalisation right after acquiring Indefinite Leave to Remain. During the one-year eligibility period, you must not be absent from the UK for over 90 days.

You might need to account for any previous absences when you apply. If you possess Indefinite Leave to Remain but are out of the UK for over two years, you’ll lose this status and must spend additional qualifying time in the UK to become a British national.

For EU citizens with settled status, leaving the UK for more than five years will result in the loss of your right to settle. To regain your status, a new application is necessary.

When Can I Apply For British Citizenship?

If you want to apply for UK Citizenship, you must have first acquired settlement in the UK (Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), Permanent Residence or Settled Status).

You must have held settled status for at least 12 months before being eligible to apply for citizenship, unless you are married to a British national. In this case, it is possible to naturalise as soon as ILR is obtained.

If you have spent more than 90 days outside of the UK during the 12-month qualifying period, you will not be granted citizenship. Similarly, if you are an EU citizen who holds Settled Status, you will not be eligible to naturalise as a British Citizen if you have spent more than five years abroad.

Those with ILR will not be able to acquire nationality if they have spent more than two years outside of the UK.

You will be required to provide details of any absences from the UK within your application.

Naturalisation is simply the name given to the process when non-citizens acquire citizenship.

To apply for UK naturalisation, you must be over the age of 18 to apply and hold settled status for 12 months.

It also applies to those who are married to a British citizen and wish to become British citizens themselves. Those with a British spouse are eligible to apply for Naturalisation after three years of continuous residence as a settled person.

To naturalise as a UK citizen, you must submit Form AN to UKVI, as well as all your supporting documentation showing your eligibility.

Failure to provide any of these documents might result in an unsuccessful application.

Another reason your application may be refused is if you have spent too much time outside of the UK within a specific timeframe (more than 90 days outside of the UK in the final year of your qualifying period)

Once you have completed and submitted your application for Naturalisation to the Home Office, it usually takes between three and six months to be processed.

If your citizenship application is successful, you will be invited to a citizenship ceremony.

Under the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002, all applicants over 18 years of age who are accepted as naturalised citizens in the UK must attend a Citizenship ceremony.

You must book your ceremony within three months of the date of receiving your invitation from the Home Office.

When you attend your ceremony, you must bring both written confirmation from the Register Office and your Home Office letter of invitation.

During the ceremony, you will take an Oath of Allegiance and pledge of loyalty to the United Kingdom.

After this, you will receive your British nationality certificate and information on your new status and rights as a British citizen.

For those living outside of the UK, you may ask the embassy or consulate in your country of residence to hold your ceremony there.

Under UK immigration rules, you can hold dual nationality, meaning that you are not obliged to renounce any other citizenship.

UK law also permits multiple citizenships meaning that it is in fact possible to acquire UK nationality even if you already hold dual citizenship.

From the UK’s perspective, you can acquire dual nationality without having to apply for this separately. You can simply apply for foreign citizenship while maintaining your UK citizenship. However, the same rule may not apply to other nations.

You can find out whether a particular country allows for you to retain citizenship by contacting the country’s embassy or consulate.

A key condition of dual nationality in the UK is that once you have been granted citizenship of a different country, you cannot receive any diplomatic assistance whilst in a different nation whereby you hold permanent residence.

Another important condition to consider is that if you apply to become a citizen of a country that does not allow dual citizenship, you will be required to give up your status as a British citizen.

You should inform the country from which you first obtained nationality that you intend to apply for citizenship in a different country.

You can renounce your status as a British national if you wish. This is an option if you wish to apply for the nationality of a country that does not permit dual citizenship.

However, you should note that it is not necessary to renounce your citizenship if you are applying to become a national of a country that allows dual citizenship.

Applying to renounce your British nationality will have no impact on the nationality of your family members. However, it may affect the status of any future children you may have.

You are only eligible to renounce your status as a British national if:

• You already have another citizenship/nationality
• You are going to acquire another citizenship or nationality after renouncing your citizenship
• You are over the age of 18
• You meet the ‘sound mind’ requirement

If your application for the renouncement of your status in the UK is accepted, you will receive a ‘Declaration of Renunciation’. This certificate can then be used as evidence that you are no longer a citizen of the United Kingdom.

After you have renounced your nationality, it may be possible for you to apply for the resumption of your status if you change your mind in the future.

There are some circumstances where you are cannot automatically pass on UK citizenship to your child. For example, if you have acquired citizenship by descent.

The rules surrounding citizenship by descent are extremely complex and change depending on when you were born.

Your spouse may be eligible to qualify for Citizenship through Marriage, but they must meet all the criteria and specific requirements.

For example, they must have lived in the UK for at least three years before applying for citizenship through marriage, and must have secured settled status.