British Citizenship Basics

[7by7]

This guidance is based upon my interpretation of the official guidance issued by the UKBA and should be read in conjunction with that guidance. Any errors are mine.

The main purpose of this post is to explain how someone may become British through naturalisation. But first, for the benefit of those Thai/British couples who have children, a brief explanation of whether those children are already British.

There are basically two forms of British citizenship; British by descent or British otherwise than by descent.

British by descent means that you inherited your British nationality from one or both of your parents; usually because you were born outside the UK or a qualifying territory.

British nationality can only descend one generation, so if you are British by descent then your children will only be British if they qualify in their own right by being born in the UK or a qualifying territory; unless their other parent is British otherwise than by descent, in which case see below.

British otherwise than by descent means that you are British in your own right; usually because you were born in the UK or a qualifying territory and at least one of your parents is British or is legally settled in the UK or the qualifying territory where you were born, or by some other means such as naturalisation.

If you are British otherwise than by descent then your children will be British no matter where they are born and no matter the nationality of the other parent.

That is the basics, there are variations depending on when you were born etc. For the full picture see Who already has British citizenship?

If your child is born in Thailand and is British you may wish to register the birth at the British embassy. This is not compulsory and does not replace registration in Thailand nor their Thai birth certificate. Their Thai certificate, plus a notarised translation, should be used whenever their birth certificate is required in the UK; including in British passport applications. See How to register a birth.

To obtain your child's first British passport, see How to apply from Thailand (First time applications) and Steps to apply for a child passport

Naturalisation

The requirements for this can be found at Standard requirements for naturalisation. Note that these are the standard requirements. Those for the spouse or civil partner of a British citizen are slightly different and can be found at Requirements for naturalisation if you are married to or the civil partner of a British citizen.

You will see that the main differences are the free from immigration time restrictions and the residential requirements.

The standard requirements are that the applicant must have been free from immigration time restrictions, i.e. held ILR or the equivalent, for at least the last 12 months prior to applying, must have been legally present in the UK on the exact day 5 years prior to applying (the type of visa held at that time doesn't matter) and during the past 5 years have spent no more than 450 days out of the UK with no more than 90 days in the final year.

The requirements as a spouse or civil partner of a British citizen are that the applicant must be free from immigration time restrictions, i.e. hold ILR or the equivalent (how long they have held it doesn't matter), must have been legally present in the UK on the exact day 3 years prior to applying (the type of visa held at that time doesn't matter) and during the past 3 years have spent no more than 270 days out of the UK with no more than 90 days in the final year.

Note that only spouses and civil partners can apply as such; unmarried partners etc. have to apply under the standard requirements.

One of the other requirements for naturalisation is that the applicant has demonstrated sufficient knowledge of life and language in the UK (KOL). However, if the applicant has already done this to obtain ILR or ILE then they do not need to do so again for naturalisation.

Applying

See How do I apply for British citizenship or another form of British nationality?

Once a decision has been made you will receive notification of same and your documents will be returned; unless you applied through the Nationality Checking Service in which case they would have been copied and the originals returned at the time of applying.

For more, see Chapter 18: Naturalisation at discretion

Registration of a child

Children under the age of 18 cannot be naturalised as British; they can, however, be registered as such.

From Can I register a child aged under 18 as a British citizen? you will see that this can be a complicated matter.

However, for most of the members here it is relatively simple. The child has a British step-parent and a Thai natural parent. The child lives in the UK with them. The Thai parent already has British nationality or is applying for it at the same time as the child.

In such cases registration of the child will be at the Home Secretary's discretion (in reality at the UKBA's discretion!). See Other cases where it is considered to be in the child's best interests to be granted British citizenship. I have never heard of a case where parent and child live together in the UK and the parent has been granted British citizenship but the child refused.

In most circumstances, the child should be free of immigration time restrictions and if over 13 have been living in the UK for at least 2 years.

Once a child has been registered as British that is it; they are British. They do not apply again for naturalisation when they reach 18.

Children aged 18 or over are classed as adults and so apply for naturalisation as above, even if they were under 18 when they first entered the UK to live.

For more on child registration, see Chapter 9: Registration of minors at discretion

Citizenship Ceremonies.

If your application is successful then you will receive an invitation to arrange a citizenship ceremony. Here you will either swear an oath or make an affirmation of allegiance and receive your citizenship certificate. Children under 18 do not have to swear or affirm, but may do so if they wish.

See Citizenship ceremonies.

Passport

Once you have your citizenship certificate you can apply for your first British passport. Note that all adult first time passport applicants have to attend an identity interview, whether they are British by birth, naturalisation or some other means. Therefore it can take up to 6 weeks to obtain the passport.

See Applying for your first adult passport.

Children do not need an identity interview, but until they are 16 their passports will be valid for only 5 years not 10. See Applying for a new or renewed child passport

Finally

This can be a lengthy process. The naturalisation application may take at least 3 months to be decided, possibly 6 or even longer. Once naturalised you may have to wait up to three months for a citizenship ceremony, though usually less, and then up to 6 weeks for a passport interview.
Both Thailand and the UK allow dual nationality and have for many years. Therefore obtaining British citizenship will not affect someone's Thai nationality nor their rights as a Thai citizen in any way.

Updated in August 2014, to include advice on the use of passports where UK Citizenship has been granted and the holder holds two passports.

Once you have your British passport, then you can use either that or your Thai one; whichever is the most beneficial according to the circumstances.
For travel between the UK and Thailand, the following is the usual procedure:
The airline will need to know that you have permission to enter your destination.
Immigration when leaving will want to know whether or not you have been in the country legally; e.g. not overstayed.
Immigration on arrival will want to know whether or not you have permission to enter the country.

So:-

UK to Thailand;

•At check in show the airline your Thai passport.
•The UK does not routinely check the passports of those leaving; but if asked show UK immigration your British passport.
•On arrival show Thai immigration your Thai passport.

Thailand to UK;

•At check in show the airline your British passport.
•Show Thai immigration your Thai passport.
•On arrival show UK immigration your British passport.

In the unlikely event of anyone asking why the passport shown does not contain any visas or entry/exit stamps for the other country, explain you are a dual national and show the other passport.

Both the UK and Thailand allow dual nationality, so doing the above is perfectly legal and should not cause any difficulties."

Updated in January 2014, to include an email regarding language certificates.

Thank you for your email correspondence of 30 December regarding the English language requirements for leave to remain and settlement applications.

I am sorry about the conflicting and incorrect information you have received regarding the expiry of English language tests. Our email of 16 December was incorrect. I can confirm that an expired A1 English language certificate can be provided for further leave to remain (LTR) in the UK as a spouse but not for LTR under the points based system.

An expired A1 or B1 certificate can also be provided for settlement and naturalisation applications. All certificates must be originals and issued by a valid provider as given on our list of providers which is subject to change.
(my emphasis)

As ever, E&OE.

Comments and questions on the process are welcome, but if you have specific questions on an individual case please do not post here but start a new topic instead. Thanks.

Edited August 17, 2014 by theoldgit
Updated 17 August 2014

[7by7]

One more thing; is naturalisation worth doing?

The advantages?

• Far more countries allow visa free or visa on arrival entry to British passport holders than do to Thai passport holders. (I make no comment on the rights and wrongs of this.)
  
• ILR will lapse if the holder spends a continuous period of 2 or more years out of the UK. Even if an ILR holder makes regular trips to the UK their ILR can be canceled by an immigration officer at their port of entry if it is apparent that they are not a UK resident; although they will be allowed in as a visitor on that occasion. Citizenship once granted will never lapse and a British citizen can leave the UK for as long and as often as they wish in the certain knowledge that they will always be allowed back in.
  
• Children born after their parent has been naturalised as British will automatically be British, wherever they are born. Children born to an ILR holder will only be British if they are born in the UK or a qualifying territory; unless the other parent is British otherwise than by descent.
  
• ILR can be removed and the holder deported from the UK if they are convicted of any criminal offence which results in imprisonment. A naturalised British citizen can have their citizenship removed, but only if it is deemed to be in the public interest. That basically means being convicted of an extremely serious offence such as terrorism. Even then it would not be removed if the person would be made stateless by doing so. Obviously both ILR and citizenship can be removed if either were obtained by fraud or deception.
  
• A naturalised British citizen can take a full part in their adopted home; vote, stand for elected office etc. An ILR holder cannot do this.
  

The disadvantages?

As both Thailand and the UK allow dual nationality then other than the filling in of the forms and providing the required documents, and the fee of course, I can't think of any.

[7by7]

when you say you have too pass the kol for citzianship will the esol be enough too ?

Yes, like ILR, KOL can be satisfied either by passing the LitUK test or making progress on an ESOL with citizenship course.

Note that this will change in October 2013.

From then an ESOL with citizenship course will no longer be acceptable and KOL can only be satisfied by

• Passing the Life in the UK test. and
  
• Obtaining level B1 of the CEFR in speaking and listening, or better.
  

Remember, though, that if KOL has previously been satisfied to obtain ILR you do not have to do so again for citizenship.

[7by7]

when you say you have too pass the kol for citzianship will the esol be enough too ?

>Yes, like ILR, KOL can be satisfied either by passing the LitUK test or making progress on an ESOL with citizenship course.

Note that this will change in October 2013.

From then an ESOL with citizenship course will no longer be acceptable and KOL can only be satisfied by

• Passing the Life in the UK test. and
• Obtaining level B1 of the CEFR in speaking and listening, or better.

Remember, though, that if KOL has previously been satisfied to obtain ILR you do not have to do so again for citizenship.

The date has now been officially announced; 28th October 2013.

All applications made on or after 28th October will have to meet the new language requirement; even if the old one was met previously in order to obtain ILR.

See the statement of intent and this topic.

A migrant who fulfils the Life in the UK requirement for settlement as it applies on or after 28 October 2013 will not be required to retake any elements in a later application for naturalisation but will be deemed automatically to satisfy KoLL at that later stage.

The situation is different for those who applied or apply for settlement* before 28 October 2013. They will have satisfied the KoLL requirement by either passing the Life in the UK test or by taking an ESOL qualification (probably at a level below B1) and this by itself will not be sufficient should they later apply for naturalisation. They will need to satisfy the new KoLL requirement but if they have already passed the Life in the UK test will not need to retake it. For some people this will mean passing a relevant speaking and listening qualification for the first time. Others will need to pass a speaking and listening qualification at a higher level than they had to demonstrate to be granted leave to enter or leave to remain in the UK.

* By 'settlement' they mean ILR.

[vinny]

Note that a British citizen has the Right of Abode and cannot be subject to leave (46).

Edited November 8, 2014 by vinny

[Richard W]

Note that a British citizen has the Right of Abode and cannot be subject to leave (46).

I don't see anything in the judgement that says that a British citizen can't exercise the permissions granted by leave until such time as he demonstrates his citizenship. Are you suggesting that a British citizen without a passport seeking to enter the UK on the basis of apparently extant ILR should be denied entry on the grounds that he is now a British citizen? There was no such argument or ruling in or around paragraph 52 of the judgement.

Section 24A of the Immigration Act 1971 (as amended) leads me to believe it is not an offence to obtain entry to the UK by pretending not to be a British citizen. However, that latitude appears not to extend to foreign dependants of Britons pretending not to be British.

[vinny]

An Immigration Officer cannot deny entry to a British citizen because a British citizen has the right of abode.

See also British/EEA Passengers without a valid Passport.

If the visa holder had made no claims to being British, then the Immigration officer may not even realize that the holder is British. Then they will consider entry under the Immigration rules, as it applies to people without the right of abode.

If an ILR/ILE holder satisfies the Returning residents (18-19) provisions, then there shouldn't be a problem with entry.

However, the appropriate endorsement in a non-British passport to a British citizen without a British passport is the Certificate of Entitlement to the Right of Abode.

Edited November 8, 2014 by vinny

[Richard W]

An Immigration Officer cannot deny entry to a British citizen because a British citizen has the right of abode.

It hadn't been clear to me that one didn't need a British passport or certificate of entitlement to enter as a Briton if the immigration officer knew one was a British citizen. A claim to the right of abode has to be backed up by such a document (Immigration Act 1971 Section 3(9), as amended by IANA 2006). I had assumed that such cases were at the officer's discretion, and had envisioned an aged Abu Hamza being refused entry for not having any of his (expired) British passports.

However, the appropriate endorsement in a non-British passport to a British citizen without a British passport is the Certificate of Entitlement to the Right of Abode.

A certificate of entitlement costs a lot more than a visitor's visa. Also, does it not prevent one from getting a British passport in slower time? Finally, though generally not applicable to Thailand, isn't it a red flag alerting some countries to the illegal assertion of a second nationality.

[vinny]

In 1984, the fee for the initial certificate of entitlement was reasonably set at £10.

In 1991, it was £15.

In 1996, it was £20.

Then, transfers to new passports were also free!

Today, the fee is disproportionate, compared with the fee for a British passport.

Moreover, currently, you can't have both a certificate of entitlement and a British passport simultaneously.

Edited November 9, 2014 by vinny

[Tony M]

In my pinned topic above, I wrote this :

"A child who is a British citizen ( in this case, by descent) cannot be issued with a visit visa for the UK, even in a Thai passport. We know that applications for visit visas are made to the UKVI in Bangkok, and are accepted as valid applications. We also know that visit visas are sometimes issued by ECOs, but it is not legally possible. By saying “we” I mean the generic “we”, that is many of us here, as I’m sure a few of the members here have had visit visas issued to their British citizen children on their Thai passports.

The law does not allow an ECO ( or an immigration officer) to restrict admission to the UK to British citizens, or to impose a time limit on their stay, as British citizens automatically have the right of abode in the UK. Therefore, an ECO cannot issue a visa which restricts the child’s stay in the UK to 6 months. What should happen is that, firstly, VFS should refuse to accept the application ( but I doubt that they are even aware of the legalities involved). If the application gets past VFS, then the ECO should refuse to consider it. That, basically, is it.

What should actually happen is ( assuming the child holds only a Thai passport) that the applicant ( or parent) should be told to apply for either a British passport for the child, or for a Certificate of Entitlement to The Right of Abode. The visit visa application cannot be considered as it is unlawful to do so.

A CoE to the ROA costs 289 GBP.

If a child already holds a British passport, then a CoE cannot be issued, even into a Thai passport."

The UKVI in Bangkok maintain, quite rightly, that it is unlawful to issue a visa ( in this case a family visit visa) to an applicant who applies as a Thai citizen, if that applicant is a British citizen by descent, but they maintain that it is lawful to refuse such an application. I agree that it is unlawful to issue a visit visa to a British citizen ( as it puts a time limit on their stay in the UK), but I also think that it must be unlawful to refuse a visa to a British citizen ( as that surely denies entry to the UK to someone with the Right of Abode ?).

[Richard W]

The UKVI in Bangkok maintain, quite rightly, that it is unlawful to issue a visa ( in this case a family visit visa) to an applicant who applies as a Thai citizen, if that applicant is a British citizen by descent, but they maintain that it is lawful to refuse such an application.

That's clear, and that can only be overturned by judicial review or a political campaign. For a rational economic being, judicial review is not worth the financial risk for a single application to assert the rights available to a British citizen who has a current British passport.

I also think that it must be unlawful to refuse a visa to a British citizen ( as that surely denies entry to the UK to someone with the Right of Abode ?).

No, a British citizen without a passport or CoE has no right to enter the UK at a 'port'. We have all heard that British citizens do not have the right to a passport. However, as far as I can make out, a British citizen does have the right to buy an inflatable dinghy, hire a yacht to to take him and it to off a sandy beach, transfer to the beach by dinghy and then walk inland. Therefore the right to enter is not denied.

By your argument, it would be unlawful to fine the employer of an illegal immigrant who once held ILR and offered the ILR sticker in an expired passport to him as evidence of the right to accept employment. While such an old passport would normally suffice to enter the UK, because the passport has expired, the sticker does not provide the employer with an excuse against the fine. A fair few legally settled immigrants have had problems because of this threat against employers - they are being denied the right to accept employment because their evidence of the right is in an expired passport.

[Tony M]

The UKVI in Bangkok maintain, quite rightly, that it is unlawful to issue a visa ( in this case a family visit visa) to an applicant who applies as a Thai citizen, if that applicant is a British citizen by descent, but they maintain that it is lawful to refuse such an application.

That's clear, and that can only be overturned by judicial review or a political campaign. For a rational economic being, judicial review is not worth the financial risk for a single application to assert the rights available to a British citizen who has a current British passport.

I also think that it must be unlawful to refuse a visa to a British citizen ( as that surely denies entry to the UK to someone with the Right of Abode ?).

No, a British citizen without a passport or CoE has no right to enter the UK at a 'port'. We have all heard that British citizens do not have the right to a passport. However, as far as I can make out, a British citizen does have the right to buy an inflatable dinghy, hire a yacht to to take him and it to off a sandy beach, transfer to the beach by dinghy and then walk inland. Therefore the right to enter is not denied.

By your argument, it would be unlawful to fine the employer of an illegal immigrant who once held ILR and offered the ILR sticker in an expired passport to him as evidence of the right to accept employment. While such an old passport would normally suffice to enter the UK, because the passport has expired, the sticker does not provide the employer with an excuse against the fine. A fair few legally settled immigrants have had problems because of this threat against employers - they are being denied the right to accept employment because their evidence of the right is in an expired passport.

I can see what you are saying, but if that British citizen turned up at a "port" without a CoE or a British passport he would not be refused leave to enter the UK and removed. He would be given the opportunity to prove he is a british citizen. Similarly, a visa applicant should be given the opportunity to prove he is a British citizen ( and apply for a CoE) if there is no lawful mechanism for issuing a visa to him. It is surely disingenuous to say that "we have to refuse you a visa but we'll take your money anyway". That's not cricket.

What would the grounds be for judicial review if, as you say, it is not unlawful to refuse a visa to a British citizen ?

Edited November 9, 2014 by Tony M

[vinny]

See also Surprised Brits.

[Richard W]

I can see what you are saying, but if that British citizen turned up at a "port" without a CoE or a British passport he should not be refused leave to enter the UK and removed. He would be given the opportunity to prove he is a British citizen.

I've had a look at Chapter Section 1 of the Immigration Directorate Instructions, and it says he should be treated as subject to immigration control. As British nationals are not visa nationals, he would not be in need of a visa for a visit, so presumably then it would be appropriate to 'impose' leave to remain upon him if he could prove he was a British citizen and only intended to visit. The law requires a passport or CoE to prove right of abode, not nationality.

What would the grounds be for judicial review if, as you say, it is not unlawful to refuse a visa to a British citizen ?

I sad 'no' to your argument, not to your conclusion.

I'm not sure what happens financially in cases where one gets something different to what one applies to. The most striking one is where one applies for a settlement visa as a spouse but instead gets indefinite leave to enter as a returning resident. That happened to the Japanese wife of a colleague; she'd lived in England as a child. I've also heard of an ILR BRP card holder who applied for a BRP replacement visa (£72+) and instead got ILE as a returning resident (nominally £289).

[Tony M]

I can see what you are saying, but if that British citizen turned up at a "port" without a CoE or a British passport he should not be refused leave to enter the UK and removed. He would be given the opportunity to prove he is a British citizen.

I've had a look at Chapter Section 1 of the Immigration Directorate Instructions, and it says he should be treated as subject to immigration control. As British nationals are not visa nationals, he would not be in need of a visa for a visit, so presumably then it would be appropriate to 'impose' leave to remain upon him if he could prove he was a British citizen and only intended to visit. The law requires a passport or CoE to prove right of abode, not nationality.

What would the grounds be for judicial review if, as you say, it is not unlawful to refuse a visa to a British citizen ?

I sad 'no' to your argument, not to your conclusion.

I'm not sure what happens financially in cases where one gets something different to what one applies to. The most striking one is where one applies for a settlement visa as a spouse but instead gets indefinite leave to enter as a returning resident. That happened to the Japanese wife of a colleague; she'd lived in England as a child. I've also heard of an ILR BRP card holder who applied for a BRP replacement visa (£72+) and instead got ILE as a returning resident (nominally £289).

Again, I see what you are saying, but the scenario is somewhat different. It is not a "port" scenario, and the ECO had alternatives to consider, including informing the applicant that the only conclusion to such an application could be refusal. It was put to the UKVI Bangkok ( post refusal) that they could have issued a CoE as an alternative to refusal, but they declined to comment on that point.

[chogiekim]

Has anyone applied recently for their wife's Citizenship? The £1,005 naturalisation fee does that include the ceremony? My wife is applying and we are not sure because there is a fee of £80 for a ceremony only. Our local council office said if we do the ceremony in a group,then we don't have to pay! Just a bit unsure. Also sending off the documents obviously we will send by recorded delivery but there was no mention about paying for everything to return to us? Will the home office return our documents or do I need to pay to have them returned? Any help would be great cheers.

[7by7]

The fee does include the £80 for a standard citizenship ceremony; which she'll attend with others having their ceremony at the same time.

She'll be sent an invitation to book one once her naturalisation application has been approved.

If she wants a private, individual ceremony then she (you) will have to pay extra; your local authority will tell you how much they charge for this.

She will have to pay an extra £19.20 to have her biometrics taken. She'll be sent a letter about this when her application has been received. This is to ensure she is the same person as in previous visa and LTR applications.

If she applies by post then her supporting documents will be returned by post.

I recommend, though, applying via the Nationality Checking Service. It does cost a bit extra, how much depends on the local authority you use, but they will check her application for errors and copy her supporting documents, returning the originals there and then.

See Become a British citizen and the links from there for more details.

[Richard W]

I see there's a new twist in the hostile environment for most newly naturalised or registered resident British citizens. They lose most of their rights to travel out of the UK and back until they get their British passports, for their BRPs are now being promptly cancelled and have to be surrendered promptly upon becoming British. This makes it difficult to fly back to the UK.

[naruk86]

Wife due for ilr this year. It says if ilr obtained by SET(M)/spouse. Then citzenship/passport can be applied for immediately after receiving ilr.
12 months after ilr for all other cases.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[sayto2018]

Thank you for the Topic it was very useful.