UK Mentions Category Of People Who Can Apply for British Citizenship Without Fee
- The UK Home Office has outlined a fee waiver scheme for a group of applicants to apply for British citizenship at no cost
- Children whose parents have settled status, indefinite leave to remain, or British citizenship are among those who could qualify
- A parent or legal guardian can apply for the waiver on a child's behalf and include multiple children in a single application
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The UK Home Office has set out the category of children who can apply for British citizenship without paying the standard application fee, in guidance published on its official website.
The scheme is open to children under the age of 18 who are eligible for British citizenship and whose families cannot meet the cost of the application.
Source: UGC
Crucially, if a child turns 18 before a decision is reached on their fee waiver request, they can still proceed with their citizenship application as a child and remain eligible for the waiver.
Who Qualifies for the Fee Waiver
To be considered for the waiver, a child must first meet the eligibility criteria for British citizenship.
This requires that at least one parent treated the UK as their permanent home and, after the child was born, either became a British citizen, obtained indefinite leave to remain, acquired settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, received indefinite leave to enter the UK, or was granted permanent residence status.
Beyond citizenship eligibility, the financial circumstances of the household are also assessed. A family may qualify if they have no stable accommodation, cannot cover basic living costs such as food and heating, have insufficient funds remaining after paying for housing and essentials, or if paying the fee would directly affect a child's wellbeing and needs.
A parent or legal guardian is permitted to submit the application on a child's behalf, and multiple children from the same household can be included in a single waiver request.
Children who are in the care of a local authority are handled differently: rather than applying for a waiver, their guardians are instructed to submit evidence of that arrangement alongside the citizenship application, and the process will be free of charge.
How to Apply for the Citizenship Fee Waiver
Applications can be submitted either online or by post. Those applying from Guernsey or Jersey must use the postal route. Applications from the Isle of Man are not currently accepted under this scheme.
Where an applicant chooses the online route and is successful, the citizenship application that follows must also be completed online.
Applicants who are unable to complete both processes digitally must use postal forms instead.
Applicants are required to upload proof of identity, which can include a passport, a national identity card, or a biometric residence permit.
Financial documentation is also required, such as bank statements, payslips, records of rent payments, or letters confirming support from local authorities or family members.
Once a waiver application is processed and approved, the Home Office sends the applicant a personalised code, referred to as a token, which must then be used when submitting the actual citizenship application.
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Source: Legit.ng
