Immigration Corner | Applying for UK citizenship with indefinite leave to remain status

Dear Mr Bassie,

Please explain how someone can apply for citizenship in the United Kingdom (UK) if the individual has indefinite leave to remain status.

WW

Dear WW,

Persons can apply for citizenship if they have lived in the United Kingdom (UK) for five years and have had one of the following for 12 months:

• Indefinite leave to remain in the UK

• ‘Settled status’. This is also known as ‘indefinite leave to remain under the EU Settlement Scheme’.

• Indefinite leave to enter the UK. That is permission to move to the UK permanently from abroad.

Please note that persons do not need to wait 12 months to apply if they are married to a British citizen.

The applicant must also be over 18 years old and prove that he/she was in the UK exactly five years before the day the home office receives the application. Applicants must also prove their knowledge of English, Welsh, or Scottish Gaelic and have passed the life in the UK test. They should also show that they intend to continue living in the UK and be of good character. Potential applicants should read the naturalisation guidance online.

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

As previously stated, persons must have lived in the UK for at least five years before the date of the application and should not have broken any UK immigration laws. Persons who have indefinite leave to enter or remain should note that the home office will not usually check if they have broken any immigration laws before then.

Applicants cannot include any time spent in the UK when they are exempt from immigration control as a diplomat, member of a diplomat’s staff or household, or a member of visiting armed forces.

TIME SPENT OUTSIDE THE UK

Applicants should not have

• Spent more than 450 days outside of the UK during the five years before their application.

• Spent more than 90 days outside of the UK in the last 12 months.

• Broken any UK immigration laws (for example, living illegally in the UK).

Please note that persons may have lost their indefinite leave to remain or enter if they have been away from the UK for

• More than two years at any time since they received it. Those persons will need to apply for a Returning Resident visa.

• More than five years if they have settled status.

• More than four years if you are a Swiss citizen, or the family member of a Swiss citizen, and they have settled status

WHEN TO APPLY

A person’s application may be rejected if he/she was not in the UK exactly five years before the home office received it. However, this will depend on the reason why that person was not over there. The home office will consider if there are special circumstances, for example:

• The person was not able to live in the UK at the start of the five-year period because of health reasons or travel restrictions; or

• The person was told to leave the UK during the five years but this decision was later overturned.

Please note that the cost to apply is £1,630. Applicants will also need to have their biometric information (fingerprints and a photo) taken, and there is no fee for this. Persons will be told how to do this after they have applied.

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, the past global president of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and a member of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association (UK). Email: lawbassie@yahoo.com