What are the Requirements for Naturalisation?



If the applicant is not married to, or in a civil partnership with, a British citizen, the requirements for naturalisation are that the applicant:

 

1. Must have been settled for at least 1 year before the application;
2. Must have been living in the UK legally for 5 years continuously before making the application;
3. Must have been physically present in the UK on the date five years before the application is received by the Home Office;
4. Must not have been absent for more than 450 days in total during the 5 year qualifying period, and not more than 90 days in the year immediately before the application is made;
5. Must have sufficient knowledge of the English language and sufficient knowledge about life in the UK;
6. Must show good character, and
7. Must show an intention to live in the UK.

 

Naturalisation Home Office Fees

Naturalisation Case Scenario Example

Esther is a Ghanaian citizen. She has been living in the UK for 6 years in total. For the first five years, she has had a spouse visa (initially granted for 33 months, then extended for a further 30 months), then she applied for Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR)/settlement, which was granted by the Home Office.

She has had ILR for 11 months. For the past year, she has been on holiday, but for a total of 2 months. For the past 5 years, she has been on holiday every year, but again for no more than 2 months a year at a time. This means that she has been outside of the UK for 10 months in total, or 304 days, for the last 5 years.

She does not have any criminal convictions, and has never been the subject of bankruptcy. She is a law-abiding citizen and prior to obtaining her spouse visa, has never been in the UK and has never been in breach of UK immigration laws.

She now wants to apply for naturalisation. She has passed the Life in the UK test and she rents a house in the UK. She has a husband and children who live with her in the UK. Her husband also works in the UK and her children attend school.

In this scenario, Esther appears to satisfy all of the requirements for naturalisation. Providing that she submits supporting documents with her application, which support her contention that she meets all of the requirements, it would seem that she has a very good chance of being granted with a naturalisation certificate.

Why you need a legal expert to advise and assist you with naturalisation application

As you will note from above, there are many requirements that need to be met in order to be granted with a certificate of naturalisation. One of the most important requirements mentioned above is that of the “good character” requirement. There is no legal definition of what constitutes “good character,” rather, there is a set guideline to caseworkers as to factors that constitute, and do not constitute, an applicant’s good character. (The test of “good character is discussed in a further article, see here for more details).

A costly matter, especially if refused

If one or more of the above requirements are not met, this could result in the application being refused, and the payment is lost.

What can I do if I get refused?

The only remedy for refusal of naturalisation application is to ask the Home Office to reconsider their decision. Reconsideration of a decision to refuse is difficult and could result in a stress-inducing situation.

Get Your Application Approved at the First Attempt

It is therefore vital that such an application is made correctly, right from the first attempt, since failure to do so could mean losing a lot of money, as well as losing time and adding stress. 

We can help you with taking the stress away as well as saving you valuable time. We will help ensure that you are granted with British citizenship at the first attempt, thus saving you money, too.