Spanish citizien & naturalisation

Hi everyone,

this is my first post and I'd like to thank everyone participating on this forum. It is really a good place to look for information about naturalisation - probably the best one!
My case is a bit strange and there are still few things I'm not sure about... I wonder if someone of you guru could please show me the light!

I'd like to apply for naturalisation and my situation goes as follow:
- I'm a Spanish citizen
- I came in the UK for interview in December 2006. Spent few days in UK then flown back to Spain. Interview went well and accepted the job.
- I came again in February 2007 and started working.
- I'm a Frequency Flyer, been out of the UK several times (for work, both EU, Asia, US), however well under the 4xx days mentioned by the application form
- I've bought a house (should this matter).

Per today then, I've been in UK for 5 years and 7 months approx.

Now.. For personal reason I may need to quit my job and go back to Spain for several weeks. I may keep the job for few more months, however cannot keep it up to the continuous 6 years UK residency. I do plan to get back to the UK at some point however I'd prefer to get residency sooner than later.

So here I am, asking you guys any suggestion to make the magic happen.
I understand that:
- I need to complete 6 years of residency (5 years + 1 year [<90 days away])
- I need to stay 1 or 2 weeks after my naturalisation application is sent.

I thought I could:
1- start the application based on my interview date (however I wasn't in UK for 2 months after my interview)
OR
2- fly back to Spain and than back to UK when needed (however, HO tracks all my flights)
3-... no idea.. help!

Hope I was able to give enough information here and thanks to get through the whole post... Is there any way you guys could suggest me a way to get my naturalisation done and feel happy?

Thank you.

Under EEA regulations, PR status is obtained automatically after 5 years of exercising treaty rights. You can apply for naturalisation 1 year after obtaining PR. It seems you have obtained PR in February 2012. There is no requirement to be employed after that date.

You can apply in February 2013 and you don't need to be employed at the time. As long as your absences in the last year are less than 90 days (and less than 450 days for the 5 year 2008-2013). You will also need to pass the Life in the UK test.

The issue you might face is future intentions requirement. The UK is not interested to grant Brtish citizenship to someone who is not intended to make the UK his home. Having said that this requirement is only applicable at the time of the application (there is a question on the form) and if after becoming British citizen, you decide to move away, this will not affect your citizenship.

Hi Jambo,

Thanks for your reply. Ok,I need to wait till Feb before applying, however...

How would it work out if I quit may job, say in November, spend one month in UK and go to Spain in January (so 1 month before applying for naturalisation). Given I was away for work during the previous months, I may be close to the 90 days limit (say I can keep it down to 85 days). Would that still be acceptable?

I have a house here in UK, would that be considered?

I understand that it's much easier to just stay until I complete the whole 6 years, however it's not possible for me.

There is no problem in going to Spain in January. You will need to come back to apply in February. As long as your days are below the threshold, you will be fine (remember that you don't count the day you leave the UK and the day you return so only count days where the full 24 hours were spend abroad).

This makes me feel more relaxed, thanks!

I guess that as I quit the job and need to be self-sufficient I need some form of health insurance to prove I'm OK?

The other question is... Does the UK track all my movements out of the country? Even on a ship??

After exercising treaty rights for 5 years, you obtain Permanent Residence status. From that point, you are not required to exercise treaty rights and you won't lose this status unless you leave the UK for more than 2 years.

So there is no need to be self sufficient and to have health insurance.

You should assume they are able to keep track although it is not simple with regards to EU citizens. In any case, don't ever lie on an immigration application.

Two things that occur to me for you to consider:

(a) You must have been in the UK on the date of your application at the beginning of the qualifying period.

(b) Have you checked if you would, under Spanish law, lose your Spanish citizenship if you naturalise as the citizen of another country?

Thanks for your reply Christophe:

(a) depends how is defined the "qualifying period". As I was saying, I came to the UK for the interview in November and than to start the job in February. Can November count as qualifying period?

(b) Spain is a bit funny however as I plan to live in UK and not Spain, I rather prefer to have UK citizienship!