There's also a theory that the process will speed up now that the summer passport rush is over. The thought is they move staff over to passports during this crunch time and it delays the naturalization process. I don't know if this is true but it's wishful thinking.

[Edit] Eligibility criteria: 3 year Spouse ILR Language criteria met : Life in the UK + US Citizen Current nationality: US Method of application: NCS Maidstone Date of application: 04/08/2015 Payment method: Debit Card Date of receipt by UKBA: 18/08/2015 Date of debit or clearance of fees: 19/08/201...

The process seems to be moving along now but ther was a 2 week gap between submitting my application and receiving acknowledgment and payment. It must be due to the summer holidays. Eligibility criteria: 3 year Spouse ILR Language criteria met : Life in the UK + US Citizen Current nationality: US Me...