British Citizenship questions - unemployment + multiple citizenships

[monkeyface]

I am writing on behalf of my husband who is a Dutch National. He acquired Permanent Residency this time last year. Unfortunately he has just been made redundant from his job of 4 years+. He wants to apply for British Citizenship now that Brexit is looming. We used a immigration lawyer to help us with his PR application and although they were excellent, they want several hundred pounds to help us with his British Citizenship application so if we can avoid using them, that would save us some money as the application is expensive in itself.

He has successfully completed both his Life in the UK test and his English proficiency test/interview, so now we only have his application to submit. The two issues we have are;

1) 1.9 "Your present nationality". He actually holds 3 passports already, - the country where he was born, the country his mother was born and grew up in and the country his father was born and grew up in, so this will be his fourth. Only one of these is a European country. The other two do not allow citizens to give up their nationality. Will this cause any problems with his application since he will effectively have 4 passports/nationalities? All 3 were declared on his PR form and caused no issue but can he just put his European nationality here or does he need to list them all?

2) Since he is now officially unemployed (but looking for a new job), what should he put in section 1.5 "Details of your employment", 1.6 "Are you: An employee, a business partner, self employed, a director", 1.47 "name of employer", 1.48 "Address of employer", 1.49 "Tax office or tax office reference". None of these sections can be filled in as they do not apply to his status at the moment.

3) In section 5.1, what qualifies as a "relative"? Could my brother's girlfriend (who he is not married to but has a child with be a witness for my husband who she has known for 3 years and has no blood relationship with)?

If anyone can answer these questions, we would both be very grateful. Thanks in advance.

[dhyperion]

Hi monkeyface

Question 1. Put the details of his Dutch nationality as I'm presuming this was the basis of his PR (only EU nationals can get PRs - everyone else gets ILRs) and it's this PR as a Dutch/EU national which makes him eligible to apply for citizenship. List the other nationalities in the "additional information" section. They will link his citizenship application to his PR and get all the details anyway and match it.

Question 2. I would put down unemployed in occupation and list the employment history. Possibly "strike out" the other boxes to show they are not applicable.

Question 3. Since you are married I suspect your Brother's girlfriend may be deemed as family or relative. This is a bit of a grey area but to be on the safe side I would ask a close friend instead who fits the referee criteria. When in doubt go for the safer option!

[dhyperion]

You can also call the helpline to get advice on the form. Can't seem to find the number now but others have posted in on this website.

If the application is fairly straightforward (which I suspect it will be in your husband's case) I don't think you'll need an immigration lawyer, and I suspect you didn't need one for the PR either. I did it all myself and it went fine, as long as you pay attention to the detail(s), read all the guides thoroughly and organise all your paperwork you should be fine.

If you're still worried about the form you can use the NCS service provided by your local council, they will check the form and all the documents for a fee, certify and make copies so you don't have to send originals and send the form for you. Fees vary but it won't be anywhere near the cost of a lawyer.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collectio ... ng-service

[monkeyface]

You can also call the helpline to get advice on the form. Can't seem to find the number now but others have posted in on this website.

If the application is fairly straightforward (which I suspect it will be in your husband's case) I don't think you'll need an immigration lawyer, and I suspect you didn't need one for the PR either. I did it all myself and it went fine, as long as you pay attention to the detail(s), read all the guides thoroughly and organise all your paperwork you should be fine.

If you're still worried about the form you can use the NCS service provided by your local council, they will check the form and all the documents for a fee, certify and make copies so you don't have to send originals and send the form for you. Fees vary but it won't be anywhere near the cost of a lawyer.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collectio ... ng-service

Great. Thanks for your reply. Hopefully now that EU citizens will have rights under Brexit he won't even need British Citizenship!

[randomperson]

Hi monkeyface

Question 1. Put the details of his Dutch nationality as I'm presuming this was the basis of his PR (only EU nationals can get PRs - everyone else gets ILRs) and it's this PR as a Dutch/EU national which makes him eligible to apply for citizenship. List the other nationalities in the "additional information" section. They will link his citizenship application to his PR and get all the details anyway and match it.

Question 2. I would put down unemployed in occupation and list the employment history. Possibly "strike out" the other boxes to show they are not applicable.

Question 3. Since you are married I suspect your Brother's girlfriend may be deemed as family or relative. This is a bit of a grey area but to be on the safe side I would ask a close friend instead who fits the referee criteria. When in doubt go for the safer option!

I'm a dual citizen already (EU + US) and this isn't what I was advised by Home Office or NCS staff. I was told to list all nationalities in the nationality field, but where it asks for "Current passport/travel document number" put the number of my EU passport. So that's what I did. Based on their further communications, Home Office staff have clearly understood that I've applied based on my EU nationality and subsequent residence. Then again, my two nationalities fit in that (not very large) nationality field, so your mileage may vary...

[dhyperion]

Hi monkeyface

Question 1. Put the details of his Dutch nationality as I'm presuming this was the basis of his PR (only EU nationals can get PRs - everyone else gets ILRs) and it's this PR as a Dutch/EU national which makes him eligible to apply for citizenship. List the other nationalities in the "additional information" section. They will link his citizenship application to his PR and get all the details anyway and match it.

Question 2. I would put down unemployed in occupation and list the employment history. Possibly "strike out" the other boxes to show they are not applicable.

Question 3. Since you are married I suspect your Brother's girlfriend may be deemed as family or relative. This is a bit of a grey area but to be on the safe side I would ask a close friend instead who fits the referee criteria. When in doubt go for the safer option!

I'm a dual citizen already (EU + US) and this isn't what I was advised by Home Office or NCS staff. I was told to list all nationalities in the nationality field, but where it asks for "Current passport/travel document number" put the number of my EU passport. So that's what I did. Based on their further communications, Home Office staff have clearly understood that I've applied based on my EU nationality and subsequent residence. Then again, my two nationalities fit in that (not very large) nationality field, so your mileage may vary...

So am I. To be honest - it doesn't matter if you put it there or in the additional info section - as long as you list it.

Also, it's worth noting that if you call the helpdesk you don't actually speak with the staff that deal with cases and know the ins and outs of the process. They are trained helpdesk staff primarily reading a manual (usually the same guide that's available online) and answering questions. I have found some of the "advice" they hand out a bit dubious at times - it really depends on who you end up speaking to.

[dhyperion]

You can also call the helpline to get advice on the form. Can't seem to find the number now but others have posted in on this website.

If the application is fairly straightforward (which I suspect it will be in your husband's case) I don't think you'll need an immigration lawyer, and I suspect you didn't need one for the PR either. I did it all myself and it went fine, as long as you pay attention to the detail(s), read all the guides thoroughly and organise all your paperwork you should be fine.

If you're still worried about the form you can use the NCS service provided by your local council, they will check the form and all the documents for a fee, certify and make copies so you don't have to send originals and send the form for you. Fees vary but it won't be anywhere near the cost of a lawyer.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collectio ... ng-service

Great. Thanks for your reply. Hopefully now that EU citizens will have rights under Brexit he won't even need British Citizenship!

I wouldn't hold my breath on that Brexit deal guaranteeing any rights