Foreign nationals living and working in the UK can apply for British citizenship. There are 2 commonly known routes to British citizenship application.
Firstly, you can apply for British citizenship through the process of naturalisation after 3 years and secondly, through the process of naturalisation after 5 years.
The first step towards citizenship is to secure Indefinite Leave to remain and Settled status under EU scheme
What are the requirements after 5 years residence?
The British Nationality Law allows overseas nationals to naturalise as British citizens with the following conditions
- Age of 18 years or above
- Show that they meet the Good Character requirement.
- Have spent at least 5 years of continuous residence in the UK,
- Have not stayed outside the UK for more than 450 days.
- Had a valid Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) in the UK for at least 12 months.
- Have the English language proficiency of B1( CEFR level) in listening and speaking
- Pass the Life in the UK Test, to prove that you are aware of the basics of the British traditions,customs and culture.
- Have no history of criminal conviction or breach of the UK immigration rules.
What are the requirements after 3 years residence as a spouse of a British citizen?
- Both spouses should be aged 18 years or above
- You are married to, or in a civil partnership with a UK citizen
- You both have lived in the UK for at least 3 years before starting with the British citizenship application process.
- Both partners must have a good character
- Show proof that you have passed the English language Proficiency test
- Show evidence that you have passed the life in the UK test
- No history of criminal convictions as per the UK law.
Immigration routes to British citizenship
- British Citizenship by Birth or Descent. You will be naturally recognized as a British citizen if you were born in the UK after 01.01.1983. However, you may also be eligible if you were born abroad, and at least one parent is a British citizen or a settled person in the UK.
- British Citizenship by Marriage. As the spouse or civil partner of a UK citizen, you must first have resided at least 3 years in the UK as a settled person, either holding Indefinite Leave to Remain or EU Settled Status.
- 5-year route. After 5 years of continuous residence in the UK, you may apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain. After another 12-month period as a settled person in the UK, you are eligible to submit your British citizenship application .
- Citizenship for “stateless” individuals. Under the humanitarian grounds, If you are a “stateless” person and have not been recognized as a citizen of any country, you may be eligible to be a British citizen. Both your eligibility and the application process depends on the country where you were born.
- Renounced nationality . If you have given up your British Citizenship, you may in due course be allowed to resume your nationality status.
Documents needed to register British citizenship through Indefinite leave to remain(5 year)
- Furnish document to evidence that you were in the UK exactly 3 years before the Home Office received your application
- Have not stayed outside the UK for more than 450 days during the ILR period
- Had a valid Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) in the UK for at least 12 months
- Prove that you have passed the English language test with B1 level of Proficiency
- Showing proof that you have passed the life in the UK test
- You must have a good character
- Document to show no history of criminal convictions as per the British law.
Where do you begin?
You need to make an online application, submit documents and pay fees (including fee for biometric)
The Home Office fee for the naturalisation process is £1,330 (including the £80 citizenship fee). The biometric fee is £19.20.
You can either apply yourself or apply through the best immigration lawyers in London. A Y & J Solicitors are industry experts for over 10 years now, when it comes to representing you. Their bespoke solutions to UK visa applicants has the highest success rate.
Time taken?
The British citizenship application processing time is usually 6 months.
