Immigration Corner | Correcting a mistake on my British citizenship certificate

Dear Mr Bassie,

I have noticed that my British citizenship certificate has a mistake on it. Please advise me on how I can have this corrected.

JV

 

Dear JV,

Persons must pay a fee to order a replacement registration or naturalisation certificate, or to correct mistakes on a certificate. How a person orders a certificate will depend on when he/she became a citizen.

If a person became a citizen after September 30, 1986, to it costs £250 to replace a lost or damaged certificate. Persons should fill in the form online at visas-immigration.services.gov.uk. Persons will usually be able to keep their documents while the application is being processed. Please note that persons can get help with completing the online form if they do not feel confident using a computer or mobile device, and/or they do not have Internet access. Also, this service can only be accessed if applying in the United Kingdom.

Persons who reside in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or a British overseas territory will have to apply in person or by post instead. Those persons should check which they can do with the governor’s office. If living elsewhere, persons should check online what other ways can be used to apply. The police must be told if the certificate has been stolen.

Persons who would like to correct mistakes on a certificate should download and complete an application for a correction of a registration or naturalisation certificate and then send the form and their original certificate to the United Kingdom Visas & Immigration (UKVI).

Department 201

UKVI

The Capital

New Hall Place

Liverpool

L3 9PP

Persons should be aware that they will need to pay a £250 fee if the mistake on the certificate was their fault. The UKVI will send out a letter advising the applicant if he/she will need to pay.

BE AWARE

Persons should be aware that if they became a citizen on or before September 30, 1986, they can search the National Archives and order a certified copy for a:

n Registration certificate issued between January 1, 1949, and September 30, 1986;

n Naturalisation certificate issued between January 1, 1844, and September 30, 1986.

Persons should note that they cannot get a replacement certificate from UKVI if they became a British citizen before October 1986, and they should contact UKVI for additional help.

All the best.

John S. Bassie is a barrister/attorney-at-law who practises law in Jamaica. He is a justice of the peace, a Supreme Court-appointed mediator, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, a chartered arbitrator and a member of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association (UK). Email: lawbassie@yahoo.com