THE British government has introduced a new law which will overhaul the current framework for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) and British Citizenship.
One of the major changes will be to support the concept of “earned citizenship” — setting out eligibility requirements for UK Citizenship.
In order to currently obtain British Citizenship, a person has to go through three stages:
- Spending a qualifying period of time in the UK in a temporary immigration category, for example a spouse migrant, Tier 1 general, Tier 2 Student, refugee etc.
- Applying for Indefinite leave to remain in the United Kingdom.
- Applying for naturalisation to become a fully fledged British Citizen (often a year after having obtained indefinite leave to remain)
Probationary Citizenship leave would mean that rather than applying for indefinite leave to remain at the second stage, a person would need to apply for probationary citizenship leave, essentially another temporary leave to remain.
Whilst indefinite leave to remain would remain, it would be an alternative to citizenship and take longer to obtain.
The exact period of time required as a probationary citizen will depend upon how active you are. For example volunteering in the community will speed up the process, whereas criminal conduct could slow down or even prevent a person from obtaining British Citizenship. This all ties in with the Government’s concept of migrants earning their entitlement to citizenship, and contributing positively in the community.
Another requirement is to be in continuous employment, throughout the probationary citizenship leave, granted for the purposes of taking employment to qualify for citizenship. Someone who has been made redundant from their jobs will find it difficult to meet this requirement. A person who is on benefits may also find it difficult to meet this requirement.
The Act will affect those already on their way to citizenship although some transitional provisions have been introduced for those with indefinite leave to remain. The UK Border Agency has confirmed that the new registration provisions will be commenced by early 2010. The earned citizenship provisions which will amend the requirements for naturalisation will be commenced in the summer of 2011.
The Points System
Initially 20 points will be required to move from “temporary residence” to “probationary citizenship” but the UK Border Agency (UKBA) has indicated that this points threshold may be increased at a future date.
The government believes that a points system will provide greater flexibility to take a decision to raise or lower the threshold for settlement depending upon the needs of the country and economy at any given time.
For those qualifying via the employment route, these points would initially be scored by meeting the Immigration Rules (10 points) and by passing the Life in the UK test or ESOL test (10 points). Meeting the Immigration Rules would mean in the case of a migrant worker being self-sufficient and still in work.
If it is decided to raise the points threshold for those using the employment route to move into probationary citizenship, ways of scoring the additional points required might be for instance on the basis of earnings level (£24,000 – £34,999 = 5 points, £35,000 – £49,000 = 10 points etc.) or academic qualifications obtained in the UK (Bachelor degree = 5 points, Masters = 10 points etc.) or other criteria such as working in a location in need of increased migration e.g. Scotland (5 points). The UKBA is currently seeking feedback on these proposals.
For those here on the basis of a family relationship, e.g. spouse or civil partner of settled person, the relationship would still have to be subsisting, in which case 20 points would be scored. Under the proposals, it appears that unmarried partners of settled persons, who are not eligible to naturalise as British citizens under the current arrangements will be able to qualify via the family route but we await further clarification on this point. It will also be necessary for those qualifying via the family route to score 10 points by passing either the Life in the UK or the ESOL test.
It will be mandatory to pass either the Life in the UK or the ESOL test to achieve probationary citizenship. Those who fail the test will be required to take it again. Those who are convicted of a crime attracting a custodial sentence will normally be refused probationary citizenship, permanent residence or citizenship and those who commit minor crimes will normally be unable to obtain citizenship until their convictions are spent (this is generally five years for offences which attract a fine, e.g. motoring offences).
Achieving Full Citizenship
It is proposed that it will be necessary to pass a further, more challenging Life in the UK test or ESOL test to achieve full British citizenship. The route to full citizenship will be accelerated for “Active Citizens” who may achieve full citizenship after only one year in the probationary citizenship stage by undertaking activities such as: formal volunteering; giving unpaid help to groups or clubs to benefit others or the environment; being a school governor or participating in trade union or party political activities etc.
It is proposed that local authorities would monitor these active citizenship activities and confirm to the UKBA that they had been performed. The types of activities which will count towards active citizenship have not yet been finalised.
Transitional Arrangements
Those who have already made an application for citizenship will have their application decided under the current arrangements. Additionally, those who currently have indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in the UK or who have been granted ILR by the date of commencement (a date in July 2011 yet to be announced) or who have applied for ILR before the date of commencement and are subsequently granted ILR will have their applications for citizenship decided under the current arrangements provided that they apply for citizenship within two years of commencement.
It is therefore advisable for individuals who qualify for British Citizenship to apply now before the rules change. It is advisable to seek legal advice before proceeding with the application for British Citizenship.
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