Naturalisation application - using a solicitor

[yarons]

I am considering to apply for naturalisation through an immigration consultancy firm. The reason behind this logic is that my company may be willing to sponsor my application(i.e pay the bill) if I use this firm they're working with. Comfort is also a consideration.


I have contacted the consultancy regarding time frames and they gave me the usual 6 months quote you get from HO but did mention that they see many of their cases getting process within 3-4 months.

By seeing the latest processing times in this forum I find 3-4 months to be exceptionally long and wondering whether he was just being cautious or HO takes longer to process applications from consultancies as they suspect the case would be more complex?
Opinions from this wise and experienced forum would be greatly appreciated.

Y

[donpetuchi]

I have contacted the consultancy regarding time frames and they gave me the usual 6 months quote you get from HO but did mention that they see many of their cases getting process within 3-4 months.

You don't need a solicitor if your application is straightforward. You'll be saving your firm on consultancy fees although they'll pick your application costs (£720??). Just a thought. Is your case straightforward? Any convictions, bankruptcy etc? Just wondering why you want to use a consultancy

[yarons]

I have contacted the consultancy regarding time frames and they gave me the usual 6 months quote you get from HO but did mention that they see many of their cases getting process within 3-4 months.

You don't need a solicitor if your application is straightforward. You'll be saving your firm on consultancy fees although they'll pick your application costs (£720??). Just a thought. Is your case straightforward? Any convictions, bankruptcy etc? Just wondering why you want to use a consultancy

My case is pretty straightforward (based on 5 yrs WP/HSMP + 1 yr ILR). The only reason I'm considering is because my Company will take care of everything (hassle and pay). if I don't use this firm then I'll have to pay for myself and book an appointment with NCS. I don't mind doing that at all so long as it's quicker.

I much prefer speed over hassle and money considerations. So my question is- do we have any evidence or reason to believe that using a solicitor will take more time than the other routes? I suppose the only reason would be - HO may pay extra attention to solicitor requests and take longer to process as the logic says: "why pay more money if your case is straightforward and you can use NCS?". That reasoning sounds pretty remote to me but would be good to have the forum's view on this.

Thanks
Y

[taliska]

there is no evidence that any route is quicker yarons, unfortunately it's a game of luck and chance if you get a speedy response or not, using a solicitor, NCS or individual postal application does not affect the speed of the decision process

[yarons]

there is no evidence that any route is quicker yarons, unfortunately it's a game of luck and chance if you get a speedy response or not, using a solicitor, NCS or individual postal application does not affect the speed of the decision process

Thanks taliska. I didn't think it was the case. There are very few people using a solicitor so it'd be difficult to draw any conclusions on whether the timelines the solicitor indicated to me are realistic or overly cautious.

I think he was just trying to be safe and not promise me a quick process.

[taliska]

That's quit possible. good luck