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General discussion after BC and Passport application

A section for posts relating to applications for Naturalisation or Registration as a British Citizen. Naturalisation

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dajumper
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Posts: 76
Joined: Tue Dec 20, 2005 4:08 pm
Location: London

Re: moving home

Post by dajumper » Fri Apr 20, 2012 2:20 pm

pittam wrote:hi to all
can any help me what to do if you move your address after you appiled citizenship?
i applied on 29th feb 2012 waiting for the approval, iam moving on may 1st i hope i get before that. if not please tell me what to do
as iam moving to different council as well

is it ok if i call them on 1st may? but still iam worried by the time i call if they have posted allready then how :?: ?
what if i put mail redirection? some letters or not supposed to redirect. anyone knows any thing about this :!:
please help me
thank you
Why not call them a couple of days before you are due to move?

Jambo
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Re: moving home

Post by Jambo » Fri Apr 20, 2012 2:28 pm

pittam wrote:what if i put mail redirection? some letters or not supposed to redirect. anyone knows any thing about this :!:
The HO letters can be redirected.

pittam
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Location: slough

Re: moving home

Post by pittam » Fri Apr 20, 2012 3:11 pm

dajumper wrote:
pittam wrote:hi to all
can any help me what to do if you move your address after you appiled citizenship?
i applied on 29th feb 2012 waiting for the approval, iam moving on may 1st i hope i get before that. if not please tell me what to do
as iam moving to different council as well

is it ok if i call them on 1st may? but still iam worried by the time i call if they have posted allready then how :?: ?
what if i put mail redirection? some letters or not supposed to redirect. anyone knows any thing about this :!:
please help me
thank you
Why not call them a couple of days before you are due to move?
thanks for your reply iam only worried moving address may delay the decision making i dont really want to tell them, but i think i have to now

pittam
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Location: slough

Re: moving home

Post by pittam » Fri Apr 20, 2012 3:13 pm

Jambo wrote:
pittam wrote:what if i put mail redirection? some letters or not supposed to redirect. anyone knows any thing about this :!:
The HO letters can be redirected.
thank you very much i am bit relax now,

dajumper
Junior Member
Posts: 76
Joined: Tue Dec 20, 2005 4:08 pm
Location: London

Re: moving home

Post by dajumper » Fri Apr 20, 2012 4:04 pm

pittam wrote:
dajumper wrote:
pittam wrote:hi to all
can any help me what to do if you move your address after you appiled citizenship?
i applied on 29th feb 2012 waiting for the approval, iam moving on may 1st i hope i get before that. if not please tell me what to do
as iam moving to different council as well

is it ok if i call them on 1st may? but still iam worried by the time i call if they have posted allready then how :?: ?
what if i put mail redirection? some letters or not supposed to redirect. anyone knows any thing about this :!:
please help me
thank you
Why not call them a couple of days before you are due to move?
thanks for your reply iam only worried moving address may delay the decision making i dont really want to tell them, but i think i have to now
I hardly think a change in your address with affect the application decision.

dajumper
Junior Member
Posts: 76
Joined: Tue Dec 20, 2005 4:08 pm
Location: London

Post by dajumper » Fri Apr 20, 2012 4:09 pm

Hi peeps

I actually sent in my AN form via NCS last week. What i want to know is if successful and approved. What kind of document will i receive to prove that i have become a British citizen? How and when is this usually given out, by post or at the ceremony?

Thanks

dajumper
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Location: London

Post by dajumper » Fri Apr 20, 2012 4:17 pm

bubbletea wrote::cry: I sent my application via NCS early January until now I haven't receive the approval letter. I got so many things planned and need to travel abroad for couple of months but the application is holding me back.

I called last week the gentleman only told me he can see my profile on the system but didn't tell me the status, I wonder if I should call again to check otherwise it will affect my May journey.
Serves you right. You were well full aware that it may take up to 6 months for approval if not longer. That is why the NCS is the option for people who want to travel whilst waiting. Anyway, good luck!

workingmama
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Post by workingmama » Fri Apr 20, 2012 5:13 pm

I am a British Citizen born and bred however my husband has applied for his naturalisation and I am actually quite amazed at the way they seem to process applications, it does not appear to be in a specific order such as being dealt with from date recieved.

I also work for a government department so I am also astounded at the lack of information that applicants are able to get about where their application stands. Considering its not a free service, applicants should be able to get updates.
The timeline they give of 6 months is normally put in place to cover periods where they are inundated with applications so you know the maximum length of time that it could take during busy times.
However when I see applicants for example who applied in January like my husband, with a straighforward case not hearing anything, when applicants in Feb have already been approved, it makes me wonder if when new applications come in they just get put ontop of whatever the caseworker already has, thus the application gets left behind so to speak.

If this is so I am amazed this is allowed to happen.
I plan to contact our local MP (who I deal with anyway in my own line of work) to ask her why the application for naturalisation is so hit and miss in regards to approval times. Why do some wait months and others get passed within a month. Why cant applicants get updates and why is the information given so incorrect at times.
I understand that being able to gain British Citizenship is an honor but considering the large fee of over £800 you would think applicants had the right to a slightly better service and not feel like a pest for phoning up when they see applicants who applied way after them being approved while they still wait and they want to know if some more info is needed.

Good luck to those who have been waiting a long time, it must be very stressful.

jms_uk
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Post by jms_uk » Fri Apr 20, 2012 8:47 pm

dajumper wrote: That is why the NCS is the option for people who want to travel whilst waiting
He/she has applied through NCS. Maybe he/she was planning travel on a basis of being British citizen [visa free etc]?

dajumper
Junior Member
Posts: 76
Joined: Tue Dec 20, 2005 4:08 pm
Location: London

Post by dajumper » Sat Apr 21, 2012 1:47 pm

jms_uk wrote:
dajumper wrote: That is why the NCS is the option for people who want to travel whilst waiting
He/she has applied through NCS. Maybe he/she was planning travel on a basis of being British citizen [visa free etc]?
Apologies, my bad.

joh118
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Post by joh118 » Sun Apr 22, 2012 3:18 am

workingmama wrote:I am a British Citizen born and bred however my husband has applied for his naturalisation and I am actually quite amazed at the way they seem to process applications, it does not appear to be in a specific order such as being dealt with from date recieved.

I also work for a government department so I am also astounded at the lack of information that applicants are able to get about where their application stands. Considering its not a free service, applicants should be able to get updates.
The timeline they give of 6 months is normally put in place to cover periods where they are inundated with applications so you know the maximum length of time that it could take during busy times.
However when I see applicants for example who applied in January like my husband, with a straighforward case not hearing anything, when applicants in Feb have already been approved, it makes me wonder if when new applications come in they just get put ontop of whatever the caseworker already has, thus the application gets left behind so to speak.

If this is so I am amazed this is allowed to happen.
I plan to contact our local MP (who I deal with anyway in my own line of work) to ask her why the application for naturalisation is so hit and miss in regards to approval times. Why do some wait months and others get passed within a month. Why cant applicants get updates and why is the information given so incorrect at times.
I understand that being able to gain British Citizenship is an honor but considering the large fee of over £800 you would think applicants had the right to a slightly better service and not feel like a pest for phoning up when they see applicants who applied way after them being approved while they still wait and they want to know if some more info is needed.

Good luck to those who have been waiting a long time, it must be very stressful.
I agree with you on that the applicants deserve to know what is going on with their applications.

However, I believe the reason for the varying of wait times and the general mess that is UKBA is down to lack of staff to deal with all the applications.

If we take the applications made last year (2011) which was 205,210. And since 6 days in the week are 'post days', if we estimate that there are 312 (6 days x 52 weeks) of these post days, then on average the UKBA receive around 658 applications per day (205,210/312).

This is a staggering amount by any means and I am sure that they are understaffed. As a result, the sole reason why applications that are similar are being dealt with on a different time scale could be quite simply that officers are putting case files in different orders in a pile!

I think that for the amount that the applicants are paying, it is very bad value for money (service wise), and requires immediate investigation. Although being granted citizenship is a honour not a right, it is a right for the applicant for his/her application to be treated in a transparent, fair, timely manner.

I think we will all be really grateful if you could share with us your MP's response. Thanks.

workingmama
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Post by workingmama » Sun Apr 22, 2012 10:51 am

I agree about probable understaffing, however I fail to see why that would affect things being done in date order.
Take for example the department I work in which at times is terribly understaffed due to cut backs etc. Anything new in gets browsed through for something urgent that has to be dealt with straight away and the rest goes under the pile that is already there so each case file gets dealt with in the order it arrived.

The lack of available info also concerns me. We often take calls for other departments within our organisation and are able to access what has been done so far on a case via the computer system. Generally if a department has a backlog they will tell us that its currently taking up to 12 weeks to process something but at the same time we can see how far along it is and we give that info no matter how many times a person calls.
Sometimes by a person calling we can see something is stuck in the system or has been forgotten and we flag that up to the department dealing with it. I wish UKBA was like this also.

I think since going through this with my own husband who has only been waiting just over 3 months, I have seen a pattern that cases are processed up to a certain point which seems to be when the next monthly batch starts to come in and then those prior to that month end up waiting a very long time. That to me appears to mean cases get put on top of old cases which is wrong as it could be months until they reach the case again. Maybe I am wrong but when I mentioned this to my own manager she seemed to think the same as me especially if those that waited months were not asked for any further information.

I will definatly share the MP's response. I know from my own line of work when an MP enquiry comes in everyone right up to management starts flapping.

Bluto
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Post by Bluto » Sun Apr 22, 2012 12:59 pm

Workingmama, I would appreciate if you raise this issue with MP.

I would like to bring another issue here as well which some people have faced in past. UKBA does not update applicants about their application status before 6 months, when someone calls before 6 months they are not entertained. There are few cases when applicants called after 6 months to enquire about their application, they were told that their application was approved 4 months ago and letter was sent to old address by mistake (or letter was lost in post). Point is if UKBA doesn't update applicant before 6 months then how are they going to know that letter has been sent by home office. It would be best if UKBA drops any email or sms to applicant that they have sent a letter, if applicant doesn't receive letter at least he/she can let UKBA know.

joh118
Senior Member
Posts: 511
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Post by joh118 » Sun Apr 22, 2012 6:04 pm

I wonder if ordering a SAR file from UKBA whilst your naturalisation application is being considered will give any insights on their methods....

jms_uk
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Post by jms_uk » Sun Apr 22, 2012 7:28 pm

joh118 wrote:I wonder if ordering a SAR file from UKBA whilst your naturalisation application is being considered will give any insights on their methods....
You'd probably get it after naturalisation decision :lol:

elliass
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Post by elliass » Mon Apr 23, 2012 5:55 pm

jms_uk wrote:
joh118 wrote:I wonder if ordering a SAR file from UKBA whilst your naturalisation application is being considered will give any insights on their methods....
You'd probably get it after naturalisation decision :lol:

I submited my application 3 months and a few days a go for BC via NCS.
which means in Jan/2012; till now I have not received my approval yet . I called UKBA and what I heard only it is in the process nothing else at all.

Desipte, many people they submitted there applications after me (1 month or even 1.5 month) and they got their approval letters.

NCS told me that my application is straightforward application and usually UKBA gives periority to applications checked and sent via NCS!

I am wondering if my application is straighforward and still not finished yet ..how if it is not straightforward hom many months more I should wait :( :( :(

I noticed that the people who sent their applications by postal is much quicker and faster process than who sent via NCS.

After this I don't recommend any one else to use NCS, it is better to use postal and save your money and your time guys! :( :( :( :( :( :(

jms_uk
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Post by jms_uk » Mon Apr 23, 2012 7:25 pm

elliass wrote:After this I don't recommend any one else to use NCS, it is better to use postal and save your money and your time guys! :( :( :( :( :( :(
Main benefit of going NCS route is that you get to keep your passport.

Bluto
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Post by Bluto » Mon Apr 23, 2012 7:36 pm

Elliass, I doubt postal applications are fast. No one knows why some people get approval within 4 to 6 weeks and takes longer for some. May be it depends on original nationality? I applied by post in first week of Feb and still waiting ...

kingcedz
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Post by kingcedz » Mon Apr 23, 2012 8:14 pm

my wife applied end of January and still waiting for apporval letter. The only letter we received so far is one from HO saying the fees has been taken, is this the acknowledgement letter? or there should been another acknowledgement letter but we never received?

elliass
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Post by elliass » Mon Apr 23, 2012 9:23 pm

kingcedz wrote:my wife applied end of January and still waiting for apporval letter. The only letter we received so far is one from HO saying the fees has been taken, is this the acknowledgement letter? or there should been another acknowledgement letter but we never received?
This is the only acknowledgement letter you received; the next letter should be your approval!

kingcedz
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Post by kingcedz » Mon Apr 23, 2012 10:08 pm

[quote="elliass"][quote="kingcedz"]my wife applied end of January and still waiting for apporval letter. The only letter we received so far is one from HO saying the fees has been taken, is this the acknowledgement letter? or there should been another acknowledgement letter but we never received?[/quote]

This is the only acknowledgement letter you received; the next letter should be your approval![/quote]

Thanks.
Sounds like a stupid worry, but we are concerned what if HO send us the approval letter and its lost in the mail...
from other posts in the forum it seems there is no point calling HO asking for update. We ve actually written a letter to HO a couple of weeks ago asking for update but not received any response.
If HO approved the application, will our local council contact us as well? I m wondering if anyone has tried to contact local council if they received the citizenship certificate?

elliass
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Post by elliass » Mon Apr 23, 2012 11:43 pm

kingcedz wrote:
elliass wrote:
kingcedz wrote:my wife applied end of January and still waiting for apporval letter. The only letter we received so far is one from HO saying the fees has been taken, is this the acknowledgement letter? or there should been another acknowledgement letter but we never received?
This is the only acknowledgement letter you received; the next letter should be your approval!
Thanks.
Sounds like a stupid worry, but we are concerned what if HO send us the approval letter and its lost in the mail...
from other posts in the forum it seems there is no point calling HO asking for update. We ve actually written a letter to HO a couple of weeks ago asking for update but not received any response.
If HO approved the application, will our local council contact us as well? I m wondering if anyone has tried to contact local council if they received the citizenship certificate?
Hi,

I applied in mid of Jan/2012 and still waiting.
Usually you will recieve an approval letter but for some reason if you couldn't recieve a letter then the council would contact you.

But to be in the safe side it is better to call your council and ask them if they received any letter for you if not then ask them to contact you to inform you about it once it arrives.

I think this is a good solution! good luck mate! :)

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manoj123
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Post by manoj123 » Tue Apr 24, 2012 3:59 pm

Have called today to check the status of my application. The lady at the other end kindly refused because it is less than 6 months since I applied.

workingmama
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Post by workingmama » Tue Apr 24, 2012 5:08 pm

Have called today to check the status of my application. The lady at the other end kindly refused because it is less than 6 months since I applied.
I also called today to try to ask about my husbands application.
I called 15 times, each time I spent at least 5 minutes on the phone as it rang and rang with intermittent annoncements to be patient as lines were busy then suddenly a messege said something along the lines of (your call has been disconnected). Can I just say my manager was agast at this and said if she was running the call centre she would seriously look into what the heck was going on. On the 16th attempt I got through after 7 minutes and the woman refused to tell me anything as it has not been 6 months. I asked her why my husbands claim was still waiting approval when others who applied 2 months after him were approved and asked why they did not process on date recieved.

She told me that they were supposed to work by date recieved but some applications were very complicated. I explained that my husbands was straightforward, no criminal record, spouse visa, no excess trips outside etc and she could not tell me why so many get stuck in the system. I then raised the issue of the fact I had sent two emails from my government email address to the home office and yet had not even recieved the normal email acknowledgment. (when you email any government department it sends out an automated messege directly telling you thanks for email and they have a certain length of time to reply). She apologised for this and could not understand why especially as it was government organisation to government organisation email.

I just find the whole system totally disorganised. One member of staff will give details before 6 months, one will not. Some get processed before others while some wait almost a year for no reason. If naturalisation was a free service then you would be in no position to complain about the length of time or way they do things but you pay a large fee and at least you should expect consistant service, to be able to at least know where your application is at and not made to feel nervous at picking up the phone.

Maybe working for a government department myself where we have strict deadlines, process on basis of date recieved, have to give information out even if we clearly notify people there is a length of time that things will be dealt with. In my own job one of the expected times of processing something for one department is 3 months however if anyone calls we understand their worry and we give what ever information we can see on the computer system without giving the member of public a telling off and making them call back at the end of the 3 months.
Mistakes do happen and without people calling to check on progress those mistakes do not come to light. Just this week I have found 2 cases that were obviously lost in the system and was able to rectify it, but I would not have known this unless the person called after the 3 months was up.

As I said I am raising these issues with my MP in the hope he can liase with the Minister of Immigration. Without complaints about how the system is run then it will continue to run in a disorganised manner. I am not asking for applications to be quickly processed but what I would like to see is that applicants can at least get updates before the 6 months is up. It takes just a few seconds to access someones application and quickly give an update.

bubbletea
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Post by bubbletea » Wed Apr 25, 2012 1:04 am

manoj123 wrote:Have called today to check the status of my application. The lady at the other end kindly refused because it is less than 6 months since I applied.
A friend of mine applied at similar time as myself called them up and the lady said Decision has been made, I think the reason she did not tell you is because your application is still in process, and I wish you don't need to call again and get the letter very soon!!! Best of luck!

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