Working during citizenship application with ILR

[Ser3nity]

Hello,
I have some questions regarding eligibility to work during the period my passport is sent away for my citizenship application.

Let me explain my situation. I'm currently a US citizen living in the UK with ILR. I've just moved from north to south of England, and am currently unemployed but looking for work. I have a US passport which expires in Apr 2018. I'm contemplating sending it off for renewal, since I travel during Dec 2017 and don't want issues with the "6 month" rule entering Germany.

When I send that off and receive my new passport, my ILR won't be in the new passport. From what I have read this is fine for travel, but not fine for work? My question is, will my old passport be sufficient for finding work, at least up until Apr 2018, or will it now be "expired" and invalid, since I have a new passport? If invalid, what do I do about this?

Additionally, after my trip in Dec, I will apply for Citizenship, and will then be without my passport(s) for ~6 months or whatever the timeline is. During this period, what do I do about employment? I will have nothing proving my ILR status. Employers want to see my passport and proof of ILR. What's the procedure here?

Any information appreciated,
Thank you

[CR001]

When I send that off and receive my new passport, my ILR won't be in the new passport. From what I have read this is fine for travel, but not fine for work? My question is, will my old passport be sufficient for finding work, at least up until Apr 2018, or will it now be "expired" and invalid, since I have a new passport? If invalid, what do I do about this?

For work you now required a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP card) stating your ILR status. Your old passport is unlikely to be accepted as proof any longer. You will need to apply for a BRP card or apply for citizenship.

Additionally, after my trip in Dec, I will apply for Citizenship, and will then be without my passport(s) for ~6 months or whatever the timeline is. During this period, what do I do about employment? I will have nothing proving my ILR status. Employers want to see my passport and proof of ILR. What's the procedure here?

You can apply using NCS at the council and they copy your documents and return ALL your originals to you.

[Ser3nity]

Thanks for the reply. I didn't know that they would copy my passport and let me keep the original, this is great news (if I understand that correctly).

My issue now is mainly timing. Is it worth applying firstly for a BRP card, and afterwards citizenship? How long would the card take compared to just going for citizenship? I ask this because if I only apply for citizenship, I don't have proof of visa (ILR) until the citizenship application is accepted. If it takes 6+ months, I can't work until that is finished by my understanding?

For that reason, is there somewhere you can apply for BRP and still keep hold of your passport, like the NCS, or is that only for citizenship applications?

Thank you

[CR001]

I didn't know that they would copy my passport and let me keep the original, this is great news (if I understand that correctly).

Correct.

My issue now is mainly timing. Is it worth applying firstly for a BRP card, and afterwards citizenship? How long would the card take compared to just going for citizenship? I ask this because if I only apply for citizenship, I don't have proof of visa (ILR) until the citizenship application is accepted. If it takes 6+ months, I can't work until that is finished by my understanding?

You can apply for a BRP card in person, costs quite a bit though - £590 on top of the actual BRP application cost if you do postal (which can take months), and the card will take 7-10 days to be delivered to you.

For that reason, is there somewhere you can apply for BRP and still keep hold of your passport, like the NCS, or is that only for citizenship applications?

See note above. You can apply at a Premium Service Centre for an additional charge.