December 17, 2023
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Explore our comprehensive guide, tailored to assist you in assembling the essential documents for your British citizenship application. This detailed checklist ensures you cover all requirements, eliminating any oversights in your Citizenship Application Checklist.
British citizenship is legal status in the UK granted to persons that meet certain eligibility criteria. Citizenship allows you to live and work in the UK free from any immigration restrictions. You may also apply for a British passport allowing you to come in and out of the country at any time.
There are many ways of acquiring British citizenship which are discussed in various Henleaze Law blogs. Some include birthright, naturalisation, or descent.
There are many benefits to gaining British citizenship:
As your status will be ‘permanently settled’ you are free of any restrictions, such as time spent abroad and there is also no need to apply for any more visas to stay in the UK.
The National Health Service (NHS) is the UK’s publicly funded healthcare system which means citizens can access free medical care.
There are no restrictions on gaining permission to work or study through applying for any more UK visas. You may freely do both as a British citizen.
The ability to partake in democratic UK elections (whether that be local, national or referendums) is open to all British citizens. Additionally, you may put yourself forward to be a candidate in an election.
Gaining a British passport allows citizens to travel to around 190 countries without a visa.
Citizens can freely claim state benefits which include anything from Child Benefit and a Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) to a UK State Pension. For more information on other state benefits that you can claim as a British citizen follow this link: https://www.gov.uk/income-tax/taxfree-and-taxable-state-benefits.
Note that these documents must be translated into English or Welsh if they are not already in those languages.
| Evidence | Accompanying Documents |
| Proof of identity | Passport.Birth certificate – especially necessary if you are applying for British citizenship by birthright.Driving license.BRP Card.Home Office travel document or entitlement or ARC Card.Note that if you booked the ‘Life in the UK Test’ using certain documents as proof of identity than you must use these same documents when making your British citizenship application. |
| Proof of residency | To make sure an applicant has not exceeded the permitted number of days outside the UK you must provide details of any travel outside the UK including the country, reason for trip and entry/exit dates. For those married to a British national you must include details of travel to prove that you have not spent more than 90 days outside the UK in the last 12 months before the date of application AND no more than 270 days in the last 3 years.For the rest of applicants this include details of travel in the last 5 years to prove that you have not spent more than 90 days outside the UK in the last 12 month AND no more than 450 days in the last 5 years.Recent pay slips or P60s must be provided which include your tax reference.A letter from either your educational establishment or employer stating when you began your studies/work. |
| Proof of status | Marriage or civil partnership certificate if you are married to a British citizen. |
| Mandatory tests | Following your successful completion of the ‘Life in the UK Test’ you will receive a pass notification letter from the Home Office which you must submit.An applicant needs to show ONE of the below as part of the English language requirement:English language certificates from Home Office approved list here: Prove your English language abilities with a secure English language test (SELT) – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). The qualification must be at least level B1 CEFR from this SELT list.If you already have this qualification that was accepted as part of an application for ILR you must provide this previous certificate.UK Degree certificate.Degree certificate that was either taught or researched in a majority English speaking country. There must also be an Academic Qualification Level Statement from UK NARIC confirming that this degree is equivalent to a UK qualification.Degree certificate that was NOT taught or researched in a majority English speaking country. The same proof as discussed above is required. You may be exempt from the above English language requirement either if you:Are a national of the Home Office’s list of English-speaking countries. A passport is needed to prove this; orOver the age of 65 and suffers from a long term mental or physical health condition then a doctor must complete a Home Office form to confirm this. |
| Referee Information | Referees are people that can verify your identity. You will need both of their full names, dates of birth, job title, addresses for the past 3 years, contact number, email address and passport number. |
| Other key documents | Proof that you hold ILR when applying under the naturalisation route.As part of the ‘Good Character’ requirement you may produce evidence that you have never breached any immigration laws and not broken any laws or gone bankrupt. The latter can be proved through bank statements.National insurance number.Any previous applications made to the Home Office regarding immigration matters or previous refused citizenship applications. |
You need supporting documents because this is what the Home Office bases your suitability and credibility on when applying for British citizenship. They are evidence that applicants meet the criteria discussed in previous blogs. Submitting the correct documents are key because if you fail to do this your application may be rejected or returned unprocessed, costing you time and money. With this checklist you will receive successful results quickly.
Home Office processing times for British citizenship by naturalisation applications are estimated on their guidance to take 6 months.
Some of the benefits to acquiring British citizenship include the right to live in the UK permanently, access to free medical care through the NHS, right to work and study, right to vote, a British passport and the right to claim state benefits.
Yes, you can travel overseas once submitting your application for British citizenship. But ensure that you are meeting the continuous residence requirement discussed above. Also, you must provide biometric information within 45 days from submitting your application so ensure that you are able to be in the UK to undertake this task.
It costs £1,330 and a fee of £80 must also be paid for a citizenship ceremony if your application is successful.
Henleaze Law can tell you which necessary documents you have forgotten to include and how the Home Office will exercise its discretion when examining your application.
Yes, you may be exempt if you are over the age of 65 and suffer from a long term physical or mental health condition.
In this blog readers have acquired knowledge on what British citizenship is and the many benefits it brings. Additionally, a document checklist has been provided which will ease the application process.
Please contact our expert team of immigration lawyers at Henleaze Law on 0117 908 4625 for legal assistance with British citizenship applications. We will discuss what is the best citizenship application for you, and what documents we need from you as part of compiling your evidence bundle.
