Retention of South African Citizenship from within the UK

[nabazela]

the SA High Commission to London has posted updated information:
https://dirco.gov.za/uk/retention-of-so ... tizenship/

[megan_spoon]

I am currently in the process of applying for retention of my South African citizenship, since I am eligible to apply for ILR soon and can apply for British Citizenship immediately after obtaining ILR. I thought I would share an update on this post as it is the most useful one I have found - so here is what I have done so far (and the latest costs involved) based on the information from RossJ and others - Thanks all!

I following the numbered instructions at https://dirco.gov.za/uk/retention-of-so ... tizenship/ which seem to have been updated since the original post:

1. Certified two copies of the photo page of my passport at the local post office: £12.75

2. Applied for a letter of non-acquisition from the British Home Office: £429!!
Click 'Apply online' from this page or use form NQ provided:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... ip-form-nq
I applied online on 22 July 2024 and received the letter via special delivery on 27 July 2024 (no email confirmation or anything, just the letter in the post).

3. Paid the processing fee using the banking details provided and printed proof of payment: £25

4, 5. Downloaded and completed the DHA-1664 and DHA-529 forms:
(Take note of the instructions for question 10(d) and regarding adding marital status and email address to form DHA-529)
Since the instructions state 'all questions on the two forms must be answered' and 'do not answer “N/A”', I filled in 'NONE ACQUIRED' for any questions about other citizenships, 'BORN IN SOUTH AFRICA' for any questions that are only applicable if born outside of South Africa, and 'STILL RESIDENT IN SOUTH AFRICA'/'NOT YET RETURNED' as applicable for question about my parents or my absences from South Africa. This seemed a bit silly and others have just left them blank, but the guidance is confusing so hopefully this isn't a problem.

6. Got a special delivery envelope from the post office, A4/C4 size, and they put £9 worth of stamps on it for a weight of up to 500g in case. Wrote my address on it in ballpoint pen: £9

I plan on posting the passport copies, original letter of non-acquisition, proof of payment, completed forms, and self-addressed envelope tomorrow to the address given in the instructions, and will probably send it using special delivery as well, due to the cost of having to replace the letter of non-acquisition should something get lost! So another £9 to the cost.

I will update when I hear back, total cost so far: £494.75.

[dupie]

I am currently in the process of applying for retention of my South African citizenship, since I am eligible to apply for ILR soon and can apply for British Citizenship immediately after obtaining ILR. I thought I would share an update on this post as it is the most useful one I have found - so here is what I have done so far (and the latest costs involved) based on the information from RossJ and others - Thanks all!

You have to have had ILR for at least a year before you can apply for citizenship. I have ILR now and UKVI website says 5 years and 1 year on ILR, which gives me another 6 months or so before I can apply.
Anyways, have you got any update on your application yet? How long is the NQ form valid for? I dont want to get it too early and then it expires before i can send it away.

****MY BAD, ONLY SEEN NOW YOU HAVE POSTED THIS A COUPLE DAYS AGO****

[CR001]

I am currently in the process of applying for retention of my South African citizenship, since I am eligible to apply for ILR soon and can apply for British Citizenship immediately after obtaining ILR. I thought I would share an update on this post as it is the most useful one I have found - so here is what I have done so far (and the latest costs involved) based on the information from RossJ and others - Thanks all!

You have to have had ILR for at least a year before you can apply for citizenship. I have ILR now and UKVI website says 5 years and 1 year on ILR, which gives me another 6 months or so before I can apply.
Anyways, have you got any update on your application yet? How long is the NQ form valid for? I dont want to get it too early and then it expires before i can send it away.

****MY BAD, ONLY SEEN NOW YOU HAVE POSTED THIS A COUPLE DAYS AGO****

Incorrect (bold & underlined above). The user has clearly stated they are married to a British citizen and therefore does NOT have to wait 12 months on ILR. UKVI website clearly states this.

[dupie]

Incorrect (bold & underlined above). The user has clearly stated they are married to a British citizen and therefore does NOT have to wait 12 months on ILR. UKVI website clearly states this.

I do not seem to find anywhere where she said she is married to a british citizen, nevertheless, just following for the update from her!

[megan_spoon]

Incorrect (bold & underlined above). The user has clearly stated they are married to a British citizen and therefore does NOT have to wait 12 months on ILR. UKVI website clearly states this.

I do not seem to find anywhere where she said she is married to a british citizen, nevertheless, just following for the update from her!

Appreciate the concern, but yes I should have mentioned I am married to a British Citizen. Technically you only have to have been in the UK for 3 years before you can apply for citizenship as the spouse of a British Citizen, but you need ILR first as well. Currently ILR requires that I have been in the UK for 5 years (-28 days), but there was a time when this was only 2 years for spouses of British Citizens, which is probably why the citizenship requirement is still different.

To answer your question about the NQ form, the certificate from the Home Office that confirms I am not yet a British Citizen says that it is valid for 3 months from the date of issue, and the South African Embassy specifies that they need to receive this at least 20 days before expiry.

I have tracking confirmation that my application was received at the embassy on Friday (2 August), and the photographic proof of delivery shows a fairly big pile of A4 envelopes! So obviously nothing has been sent back yet, but I will update.

[megan_spoon]

I am currently in the process of applying for retention of my South African citizenship, since I am eligible to apply for ILR soon and can apply for British Citizenship immediately after obtaining ILR. I thought I would share an update on this post as it is the most useful one I have found - so here is what I have done so far (and the latest costs involved) based on the information from RossJ and others - Thanks all!

I following the numbered instructions at https://dirco.gov.za/uk/retention-of-so ... tizenship/ which seem to have been updated since the original post:

1. Certified two copies of the photo page of my passport at the local post office: £12.75

2. Applied for a letter of non-acquisition from the British Home Office: £429!!
Click 'Apply online' from this page or use form NQ provided:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... ip-form-nq
I applied online on 22 July 2024 and received the letter via special delivery on 27 July 2024 (no email confirmation or anything, just the letter in the post).

3. Paid the processing fee using the banking details provided and printed proof of payment: £25

4, 5. Downloaded and completed the DHA-1664 and DHA-529 forms:
(Take note of the instructions for question 10(d) and regarding adding marital status and email address to form DHA-529)
Since the instructions state 'all questions on the two forms must be answered' and 'do not answer “N/A”', I filled in 'NONE ACQUIRED' for any questions about other citizenships, 'BORN IN SOUTH AFRICA' for any questions that are only applicable if born outside of South Africa, and 'STILL RESIDENT IN SOUTH AFRICA'/'NOT YET RETURNED' as applicable for question about my parents or my absences from South Africa. This seemed a bit silly and others have just left them blank, but the guidance is confusing so hopefully this isn't a problem.

6. Got a special delivery envelope from the post office, A4/C4 size, and they put £9 worth of stamps on it for a weight of up to 500g in case. Wrote my address on it in ballpoint pen: £9

I plan on posting the passport copies, original letter of non-acquisition, proof of payment, completed forms, and self-addressed envelope tomorrow to the address given in the instructions, and will probably send it using special delivery as well, due to the cost of having to replace the letter of non-acquisition should something get lost! So another £9 to the cost.

I will update when I hear back, total cost so far: £494.75.

I received my confirmation that I will remain a South African citizen when I acquire my British citizenship today!

It is just a single loose piece of paper in my self-addressed envelope, a bit crumpled even. Very relieved.

They posted it back yesterday, so it took exactly a week for them to process it once the application arrived.