When can I apply for British Passport?

banku · Post by **banku** » Thu Jul 07, 2011 6:23 pm

Hi ,
I got my Permanent Residence Card in April 2011 , I have already passed life in UK test before applying for Permanent Residence Card.
I was just wondering when can I apply for a British Passport as its really a Pain in neck to get the Visas for the European Countries for Holidays.
Please Advise.
Many Thanks.

Post by **Casa** » Thu Jul 07, 2011 7:07 pm

Do you mean PR or ILR? How long have you been living legally in the UK and are you married to a British Citizen?

radi8 · Post by **radi8** » Thu Jul 07, 2011 9:31 pm

First, you can apply for naturalisation and then for British passport. To be eligible to apply for naturalisation, you must have 6 years lawful stay (5 +1year PR) starting from the date when you got PR automatically and not according to your PR date issued on your passport. If you choose this option you have to provide 6 years P60 (or whatever document your spouse has) to support your application. Otherwise you have to wait until April 2012 to apply by your own rights.

Hope this helps.

banku · Post by **banku** » Fri Jul 08, 2011 4:37 am

Hi thanks for your replies,
I've been living in U.K since Jan.2004 LEGALLY , and then I married my Girlfriend in 2005 ,who is German & I have got my PERMANENT RESIDENCE CARD (that is what it says on Visa Sticker) , in April 2011.
So I 've been living in U.K all together for about 7 Years .
Actually I heard some one saying that nowadays we can apply for citizenship straight after we have got the Permanent Residence. and just wanted to make sure.
Any Guidelines positive or negative would be highly appreciated.
(Many Thanks for reading & replying the previous post as well )

Post by **Casa** » Fri Jul 08, 2011 10:33 am

You're only able to apply immediately after being granted ILR as someone who is married to a British Citizen and has been in the UK legally for a minimum of 3 years. In your case, you don't qualify as your wife is a German citizen. You need to wait a further year after your PR was issued.

Post by **Jambo** » Fri Jul 08, 2011 12:24 pm

But the OP is under EU rules so his PR is just a confirmation of his status.

You should have gained PR status automatically after 5 years of your wife exercising treaty rights. You should be able to apply for naturalisation after 6 years (5 year +1 year) regardless of the date of your PR confirmation sticker.
For that, you will need to prove that you have been exercising treaty rights for five years (even though you have proven that already as this one is for the nationality team and not the European cases team....).
You might also find that you need to "convince" NCS that you are eligible to apply. Not all NCS are familiar with EU rules.

banku · Post by **banku** » Tue Jul 12, 2011 1:59 pm

Many Thanks for your Reply.. Much Appreciated.

Post by **JAJ** » Sun Jul 24, 2011 5:09 am

banku wrote:Hi thanks for your replies,
I've been living in U.K since Jan.2004 LEGALLY , and then I married my Girlfriend in 2005 ,who is German & I have got my PERMANENT RESIDENCE CARD (that is what it says on Visa Sticker) , in April 2011.

Does your German wife want to become a British citizen as well? Probably a good idea, since Germans don't lose nationality upon acquiring that of another EU state any longer, as far as I know.

banku · Post by **banku** » Tue Dec 06, 2011 12:44 pm

Many thanks to all of your kind replies & Especially to JAMBO..!!

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When can I apply for British Passport?

When can I apply for British Passport?