Applying for British citizenship (HELP)

[OskarAmadeusz]

Hi

So I have been looking to go through the naturalisation process in order ultimately obtain a British passport however reading all the requirements online it seems to me there is no real consistency and it just all a bit too much. Could someone please help me out and tell me what I need that is specific to myself like literally bullet points of what I need.

I am 20 years old and I moved to England from Poland 12 years ago when I was 8, i have lived in England continually and not had any prolonged periods outside of England.

I understand I need the life in the UK test which I have passed. Also, it says i need proof of sufficient level of english, this is where i was a bit confused. I have a GCSE in english at a grade B but apparently they don't accept that, not even the fact that I go to university and study a subject taught in english (biochemistry). I rang them about this and they said no, the person said i need a ESOL B1 qualification. Does anyone know anything about this? It just seems a bit ridiculous to me that if this is true that i have to pay £200 to go sit a 10 minute speaking and listening exam that is the the same level of complexity as a year 8 Spanish exam. If this is true then fair enough its not a big deal. My main question is regarding the permanent residency card, on the websites it states that you can only apply for the permanent residency if you have lived in the UK for at least 5 years and then you can only apply for the naturalisation process after holding the permanent residency card for further 12 months. My question is can i apply for naturalisation as soon as i get my permanent residency card? I've lived in the UK for 12 years that is more than the 5 years plus 12 months that they say you need to hold the permanent residency. Can I apply for the naturalisation as soon as i get my permanent residency but then in my application just prove that i have lived here for 12 years? Also, roughly how long does the permanent residency take to process as well as naturalisation?

Many thanks guys

[CR001]

ESOL is no longer accepted. You must do a B1 test that is on the HO approved list.

When you can apply depemds on the date you attained PR. You should get a letter with your PR card telling you what that dateis/was.

[bmrpl]

Hi there,

I have applied for my permanent residence AND citizenship within a month from receiving it. What you need to do is to apply for your permanent residence based on 5 year period at least 6 years back. It's fairly simple and straightforward

[OskarAmadeusz]

Thank you for your help guys, hopefully everything works out well!

[LadyRenoir]

You could use your degree if you actually finished it- so a BA degree diploma from a UK country would count as evidence of speaking English, the fact of just studying does not. So yes, you will have to fork out for an English test.
PR took for me around 6 months from the date I sent my documents. Naturalisation can take anywhere from 2 months to a few months (in some cases longer).