Something Missing in the New Bill

[1963British]

OK, I have been reviewing the new Bill and something seems to escape me.

By way of background, unlike many here I am a dual UK/US National thanks to parentage. My children are dual UK/US with slightly "more" effort. So I am looking at all this with the concern being my wife who is currently on the "three year plan" in becoming a citizen. I am also looking at this as an individual trained in the USA as an accountant and a lawyer.

Having said all that, I could have sworn that the white/green papers indicated that the citizenship and permanent residence rules would have been modified at the same time.

The citizenship bill introduces an assortment of new immigration categories like "permanent resident" and "probationary citizen."

Is there a single MP that could tell me who can get those, how they can get those and explain same to any Entry Clearance Officer?

And I thought the American Congress was horrid!!

What does this tell me? The question is not if they can meet the December 2010 date, the question is how late they will be.

[JAJ]

No new immigration categories are created.

For example, "permanent resident leave" means the same as Indefinite Leave to Remain.

"Probationary citizenship leave" is temporary leave designated as such under the Immigration Rules.

[Generalisimus]

OK, I have been reviewing the new Bill and something seems to escape me.

By way of background, unlike many here I am a dual UK/US National thanks to parentage. My children are dual UK/US with slightly "more" effort. So I am looking at all this with the concern being my wife who is currently on the "three year plan" in becoming a citizen. I am also looking at this as an individual trained in the USA as an accountant and a lawyer.

Having said all that, I could have sworn that the white/green papers indicated that the citizenship and permanent residence rules would have been modified at the same time.

The citizenship bill introduces an assortment of new immigration categories like "permanent resident" and "probationary citizen."

Is there a single MP that could tell me who can get those, how they can get those and explain same to any Entry Clearance Officer?

And I thought the American Congress was horrid!!

What does this tell me? The question is not if they can meet the December 2010 date, the question is how late they will be.

I agree that is would be mich better to have a temporary residence that leads straight to a citizenship/ILR application (depending on the choice of the candidate) provided certain conditions are met. In other words, the ILR should be kept as an alternative for those who cannot take the UK citizenship without giving up their original one (such as the Japanese). An extension of the temporary residence permit would be the third option for those who do not meet all the conditions for the UK citizenship/ILR. Although the new system is close to that concept, the so-called probationary citizenship is just an unnecessary hassle in my view, as it does not really give you anything extra, especially for those already on Tier 1 permits. That said, the Home Office needs to make some money too, I suppose

[thsths]

No new immigration categories are created.

For example, "permanent resident leave" means the same as Indefinite Leave to Remain.

"Probationary citizenship leave" is temporary leave designated as such under the Immigration Rules.

Indeed, it is just a category of statuses. However, I do wonder what "designated as such" means. Does it have any impact on your application for FLR (or your status) if you get probationary citizenship leave? I guess this will be clarified in secondary legislation, but it is difficult to see how everything works together without having the details.

[Generalisimus]

No new immigration categories are created.

For example, "permanent resident leave" means the same as Indefinite Leave to Remain.

"Probationary citizenship leave" is temporary leave designated as such under the Immigration Rules.

Indeed, it is just a category of statuses. However, I do wonder what "designated as such" means. Does it have any impact on your application for FLR (or your status) if you get probationary citizenship leave? I guess this will be clarified in secondary legislation, but it is difficult to see how everything works together without having the details.

The real downside I see there is if you get your probationary citizenship leave based on employment AND you are made redundant without finding another job before your notice expires at any point in time whilst you are a "probationary citizen". I think that the clock would then automatically reset to day one, which would not have been the case if you held an ILR. That way, probationary citizenship could be significantly worse than getting a permanent residence after eight years under Tier 1 and switching to citizenship after yet another year.