Becoming a British citizen is a major life event for a person. It not only allows you to apply for a British passport, but also to participate more fully in the life of your local community. Naturalisation is one way of becoming a British citizen. This is a route for adults aged 18 or over with ILR or Settled status under the EUSS (EU Settlement Scheme) for 12 months (unless you are married or in civil partnership with a British citizen). Children under 18 cannot be naturalised. 

However, naturalisation is not an entitlement but a privilege provided by the British Nationality Act 1981. The British Nationality Act 1981 (BNA 1981) is the main law that governs British citizenship and nationality.

The Home Secretary (UK) may exercise discretion to naturalise you only if you meet a number of statutory British citizenship naturalisation requirements (such as the residence requirement, Good Character requirement, and Knowledge of Language and Life in the UK requirements). Your application may be granted even if you are unable to satisfy all the requirements. However, this cannot be done in all cases. 

Please note that a nationality through naturalisation application does not give you any immigration status in the UK while it is being considered. You must have valid permission to stay in the UK until you get a decision on your application and attend your citizenship ceremony.

Statutory requirements for naturalisation

If you are applying for naturalisation, you should meet the following legal requirements:

1. You must be 18 or over at the time of application 

2. You must be of sound mind to be able to understand the step you are taking 

3. You must have resided in the UK for at least 5 years before you apply (or 3 years if you are married or in a civil partnership with a British citizen) 

4. You must have been physically present in the UK (including the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) on the day 5 years before the Home Office receives your application for naturalisation or on the day 3 years before the Home Office receives your application for naturalisation if you are married or in a civil partnership with a British citizen

5. You must not have breached the UK’s immigration laws in your 5-year or 3-year residence period before making your application. Where you have been granted settled status under the EUSS (EU Settlement Scheme), you may be assumed to have met this requirement. 

6. You must be free from immigration time restrictions when you apply and for the 12-month period before you apply (if you are not married or in a civil partnership with a British citizen)

7. You must normally not have been outside the UK for more than 450 days in the 5-year period or more than 270 days in the 3-year period before making the application  

8. You must normally not have been outside the UK for more than 90 days in the 12-month period before making the application 

9. You must intend to continue to live in the UK, or to continue in Crown service, the service of an international organisation of which the UK is a member, or the service of a company or association established in the UK 

10. You must have passed the Life in the UK test 

11. Unless exempt, you must show that you can communicate in English (or Scottish Gaelic or Welsh) to an acceptable CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) B1, B2, C1, or C2 level 

12. You must be of good character, which includes the fact that you should have entered the UK lawfully and do not have any criminality issues including civil penalties.  

Where and how can the Home Office exercise discretion?

The Home Office can exercise discretion in an application for naturalisation where the British Nationality Act 1981 allows flexibility or where the Secretary of State has a general discretion to decide whether you should be granted citizenship. However, the Home Office or the Secretary of State cannot usually exercise discretion to ignore all statutory requirements. They must exercise discretion according to the BNA 1981 and Home Office nationality guidance.

1. Waiving the full capacity requirement

Full capacity is defined as being ‘not of unsound mind’. In cases where you cannot be considered of full capacity, the decision maker must consider whether it would be in your best interests to waive this requirement. In doing so, taking into account all the following will normally be appropriate:

• Your ability to communicate, to the extent you can express yourself 

• The views of any professional, person, or otherwise, who has taken responsibility for your welfare

• Your other family members’ citizenship status, especially those with whom you reside or are in regular contact

A Senior Caseworker should decide whether to waive the full capacity requirement.

2. Discretion over residence requirements

Whilst some discretion can be used to waive some of the residence requirements, doing so to the extent that the requirements are ignored is not allowed.

Discretion to waive the residence requirements is available except that you must be free from time restrictions under immigration law when you apply.

In assessing whether you meet the residence requirements, the decision maker must consider the following aspects:

• Your presence in the UK at the start of the qualifying residence period

• Absences during the qualifying period, in the final year, and technical absences

In most cases, it is expected that you have been in the UK on day 1 of the qualifying period. This means you have completed the full 5 (or 3) years in the UK as required. However, in special circumstances there is discretion to waive this requirement, such as those relating to your health, that prevented you from being in the UK at the start of the qualifying period.

Discretion while treating the requirement to have been in the UK on the first day of your residential qualifying period as fulfilled should normally be exercised if you meet one or more of the following:

• You were prevented from being in the UK because you had been removed from the country and the decision to remove you was later overturned

• You were incorrectly prevented from resuming permanent residence in the UK following an absence

• You are normally resident in the UK but due to exceptional reasons you could not return from abroad at that time, such as health issues/illness or travel restrictions due to a pandemic

• You are a current or former member of the armed forces

If the Home Office proposes to exercise discretion, they should see appropriate evidence demonstrating why you were unable to be present at the start of your qualifying period. For example: if you have raised health grounds, the Home Office should see relevant medical evidence.

3. Discretion over absences during the qualifying period

Where you have spent more than 450 days or 270 days outside of the UK during the qualifying period, the Home Office must consider exercising discretion if you meet the other requirements.

Where you exceed the permitted absence by 30 days or less, the Home Office must exercise discretion unless other grounds exist based on which you fall for refusal.

Where you have been absent from the UK between 480 and 900 days or 300 and 540 days, and you otherwise meet the requirements, the Home Office must only consider exercising discretion where you have established your home, family, employment, and finances in the UK and one or more of the following applies:

• At least 2 years' residence or 1 year (if you are married to or in a civil partnership with a British citizen), without substantial absences immediately before the start of your qualifying period - if the absence period is greater than 730 days or 450 days, the residence period must be at least 3 or 2 years respectively 

• You have the excess absences because of your postings abroad in Crown service under the UK government or in service designated under the specified section of the British Nationality Act 1981  

• You could not have avoided the excess absences because your absences were the consequence of the nature of your career, such as a merchant seaman or employment with a UK-based multinational company with frequent travel abroad

• There are exceptionally compelling reasons of an occupational or compassionate nature to justify your naturalisation now, such as a firm job offer where British citizenship is a statutory/mandatory requirement

• You were prevented from being in the UK because you had been removed from the country and the decision to remove you was later overturned

• You were incorrectly prevented from resuming permanent residence in the UK following an absence

• You had excess absences because you were unable to return to the UK because of a global pandemic

• Where your absence from the UK exceeds periods stated above due to Crown Service overseas, discretion is normally exercised where:

• You were resident in the UK and Islands before an overseas posting 

• You had the excess absence from the UK and Islands because you were on a posting on Crown service

You should provide evidence of your employment and posting from the relevant Government department.

In other cases, where your absences from the UK exceed the periods stated above, exercising discretion would be highly unlikely. Your application will normally be refused, and you may be advised to re-apply when you can bring yourself within the statutory requirements, unless specific circumstances exist that warrant exceptional consideration at a senior level.

4. Discretion over absences in the final year

Discretion for excessive absences during the final year of the qualifying period is normally only exercised if you meet the future intentions requirement. 

Where you are applying for naturalisation on the basis of being married or in a civil partnership with a British citizen or have met the future intentions requirement, the following will apply.

• Discretion will be exercised if total absences are of 100 days or less  

• Total absences are between 100 and 180 days, where you meet the residence requirement across the qualifying period – discretion is only appropriate where you demonstrate strong links to the UK through the presence of family, employment and your home in the UK

• Total absences are more than 100 days but for 180 days or less where you meet the residence requirements over the full qualifying period - exercising discretion will be considered if both the following apply:

• You have demonstrated that you have made the UK your home by establishing a home, employment, family, property and finances in the UK

• Your absence is justified by Crown service or by compassionate or compelling occupational reasons, including your inability to travel due to a global pandemic

• Total absences exceed 180 days where you meet the residence requirements over the full qualifying period - exercising discretion will be considered if you have demonstrated that you have made the UK your home

• Total absences exceed 180 days where you do not meet the residence requirements over the full qualifying period – the Home Office must only exercise discretion where you have demonstrated that you have made the UK your home and exceptional circumstances such as Crown Service exist.

5. Discretion over Immigration Breaches

Some discretion can be exercised, in the special circumstances of a particular case, to disregard breaches of the immigration laws (unlawful residence) during the qualifying residence period. Such breaches only involve being in the UK without leave to enter or leave to remain. 

The Home Office will normally only exercise discretion to disregard a period of unlawful residence in the UK if there are reasons for this which were clearly outside your control, or if the breach was genuinely inadvertent and short, for example you entered as a minor or you were a refugee.

6. Discretion over Good Character 

The good character requirement is a statutory requirement for naturalisation, but the Home Office has discretion in deciding whether you satisfy it.

The Home Office may consider:

• Criminality

• International crimes, terrorism and other non-conducive activity 

• Your criminal convictions. 

• Immigration offences, such as breaching a restriction on taking employment and harbouring other immigration offenders.

• Cautions, warnings, reprimands, or other offences. 

• Fixed penalty notices such as those issued under the coronavirus Regulations, or for traffic offences

• Your immigration history. 

• Deception or dishonesty. 

• Financial soundness, including tax issues. 

• Whether you have shown respect for UK laws and obligations.

• The Home Office does not apply the good character requirement by looking only at one event. Caseworkers consider the following:

• The nature and seriousness of your conduct. 

• How long ago it occurred. 

• Whether it was an isolated incident or part of a repeated pattern. 

• Your age at the time. 

• Evidence of rehabilitation and positive behaviour. 

• Any mitigating or exceptional circumstances. 

For example, a minor offence committed many years ago with no further issues may be viewed differently from repeated offending or recent dishonesty.

You may still be refused citizenship even if you satisfy the residence, language, and other requirements.

7. Discretion over Knowledge of Language and Life in the UK (KOLL) 

You must demonstrate KOLL (Knowledge of Language and Life) in the UK unless you are over 65 or have a medical condition that prevents you from doing so. This includes if you hold settled status under the EUSS. Length of your residence in the UK does not exempt you from these requirements. 

If you apply without meeting KOLL requirements, your application may be refused, and your fee retained.

How can Visa and Migration help?

The Home Secretary may refuse to grant you a certificate of naturalisation where you satisfy the statutory requirements, but granting you citizenship would not be in the public interest. For example: the Home Secretary may decide to refuse your application if granting it could adversely impact the UK’s international relations.

Therefore, we can help you apply for naturalisation if you are unsure of how to apply, what documents to include, and how to demonstrate if your situation warrants a discretion.

For expert advice and queries on the naturalisation application in 2026, you can call us at +44 (0)20 3411 1261 or write to info@visaandmigration.com