Naturalisation as a British Citizen

You may apply for British citizenship by naturalisation if you meet the requirements below:

• You are 18 years old or over

• You are of full capacity or ‘not of unsound mind’. This just means that you understand your actions in applying for citizenship. This requirement, however, can be waived if the Secretary of State thinks it is in the applicant’s best interests to do so

• You meet the residency requirement:

  • If you are NOT the spouse or a civil partner of a British citizen:

    • You were in the UK at the beginning of the period of 5 years ending with the date of the application

    • You spent no more than 450 days outside the UK during those 5 years

    • You spent no more than 90 days outside the UK in the last 12 months

    • You had settlement (‘indefinite leave to remain’) or permanent residence status in the UK for the last 12 months

    • You have not been in breach of the UK immigration laws during those 5 years

  • If you are the spouse or or civil partner of a British citizen:

    • You were in the UK at the beginning of the period of 3 years ending with the date of application

    • You spent no more than 270 days outside the UK in those 3 years

    • You spent no more than 90 days outside the UK in the last 12 months

    • You had settlement (‘indefinite leave to remain’) or permanent residence status in the UK for the last 12 months

    • You have not been in breach of the UK immigration laws during those 5 years

• You are of good character

• You have passed an approved Secure English Language Test (SELT) with at least CEFR level B1 in speaking and listening. Please refer to the Approved English Tests Providers List.

• You have passed the Life in the UK Test

• You intend to have your main home in the UK if your citizenship application is successful

We have had the privilege to assist many of our clients successfully obtaining their UK citizenship. You are most welcome to contact us at +44 (0)20 3371 0606 for answers to your questions.