TIMELINE AFTER NATURALISATION APPLICATION SUBMISSION

[rogerroger]

skmd,

your timeline appears to be the same as mine and i applied through ncs. i wonder if there isnt any difference in the timeline with the exception that they take the time to ensure your application is pukka.

a friend of mine applied for naturalisation, he got his acceptance in under 3 weeks, btu he is married to a british citizen. do you guys think "spousal acceptances" take less time

[confused1]

I think it doesn't really matter in straight forward cases like WP and if you were married to a British citizen. Some are fortunately luckey enough to be receiving their approval with 3 weeks, as you've mentioned. Once a case worker starts examining your case, it doesn't take too long. Usually it's the time when your application is awaiting to be considered by a case worker really delays your application.

[ezh]

Here is my and my wife's BC application timeline:

mine (straigthforward 7.5 WP + 1 IRL):
Postal application received in Liverpool - 28 Sept 05
Money taken - 07 Oct 05
Acknowledgements letter - 27 Oct 05 (dated 12 Oct 05)
Character check letter with CT2 - 07 Dec 05
Approval letter - 23 Feb 06 (dated 14 Feb 06)
Ceremony - 07 Mar 06
Passport application - n/a

I emailed the IND for update on the 10 Feb 06 (no reply) and phoned on the 14 Feb 06 - they said the approval letter was about to be posted.

Note: I didn't need the English language test because of my professional qualification.

my wife's (student):
Postal application received in Liverpool - 08 Nov 05
Money taken - 09 Oct 05 (next day after receiving the application )
Acknowledgements letter - 12 Nov 05 (dated 10 Nov 05)
Character check letter with CT2 - 07 Dec 05
Approval letter - 23 Feb 06 (dated 14 Feb 06)
Ceremony - 07 Mar 06
Passport application - n/a

It looks my wife's application was simply attached to mine and was considered further together with mine - we got the same ref. numbers.

an averaged time for our applications is 3.87 months (4.5 months for mine and 3.1 for my wife's) - just below the average time stated on the IND web page. So, not so bad after all. Very good actually for a postal application made at the beginning of the backlog.

[confused1]

Congratulations ezh. Hope you attend the ceremony to finalise your British Citizenship.

Just in case if some body wonders, how does it feels to be receiving the Naturalisation certificate?

Ans: It hurts when I remember that the whole process costed me over £300. Other than that, nothign has/will change very much. I'll still be living the same live, fulfilling by every day's responsibilities and obligations, just like when I had the ILR.

I am not sure whether just reading an oath after some body makes you feel more loyal for the country. Because after all, you (the applicant) is paying the fees.

It's my own personal thought, the money would have been much better spent, and I would have been far more satisfied, if the money, £68 (or something like that) went to the home less people or people in needs. Because then, I know the money will help to make some lives better off. Instead of giving it to some bureaucracy.

For those who insists that there should be some sorts of oath or pladges then, why not just add a section to the application where you have to state and agree the oath, otherwise, your application will be unsuccessful?

[lemess]

It's my own personal thought, the money would have been much better spent, and I would have been far more satisfied, if the money, £68 (or something like that) went to the home less people or people in needs. Because then, I know the money will help to make some lives better off. Instead of giving it to some bureaucracy.

No offence but there is nothing stopping you spending the £268 on donations to charity if you consider that a worthier cause than the naturalisation process. Naturalisation is an entirely vouluntary process.

As for the expense, considering that it gives you the right to work and live across the EU, gives you visa free travel almost anywhere in the world and gives you peace of mind about having the ability to live in the UK with no restrictions whatsoever, I'd say a one time fee of £268 is not too bad. If you compare it with most other countries the level of service that you get for it is pretty impressive. People in places like the US and Canada have to wait for years before their applications even get considered - here you can get your application turned around in months if not weeks.

[confused1]

It's my own personal thought, the money would have been much better spent, and I would have been far more satisfied, if the money, £68 (or something like that) went to the home less people or people in needs. Because then, I know the money will help to make some lives better off. Instead of giving it to some bureaucracy.

No offence but there is nothing stopping you spending the £268 on donations to charity if you consider that a worthier cause than the naturalisation process. Naturalisation is an entirely vouluntary process.

As for the expense, considering that it gives you the right to work and live across the EU, gives you visa free travel almost anywhere in the world and gives you peace of mind about having the ability to live in the UK with no restrictions whatsoever, I'd say a one time fee of £268 is not too bad. If you compare it with most other countries the level of service that you get for it is pretty impressive. People in places like the US and Canada have to wait for years before their applications even get considered - here you can get your application turned around in months if not weeks.

I should have made this clearer, it's the cidea of citizenship ceremony I was talking about. Read it now and see if it makes sence to you.

[TintinHerge]

Hi

I hope this is the right place for asking this question. If not, I apologise and will re-post in the right forum.

I am eligible for applying for BC (4 years WP + 1 year ILR) , have passed the test and booked an appointment for 2 weeks from now at a NCS.

I am not very clear about the checklist of things I need to take. From what the lady who booked my appointment told me , all I needed was:

The Filled Application Form
Passport(with all the stamps on it i.e WP , ILR)
Life in the UK Test Certificate
Cheque/Credit Card payment for Home Office
Cheque/Credit Card payment for NCS

I asked her if that was all and she said yes. Is this correct ? Do I need any more documents like letter from my Employer or Bank statements, etc ?

Thanks in Advance for all your help
Tintin

[Fibunnaci]

Hi TintinHerge, From my experience you may also need to attach some sort of evidence for the last 5 years(if not through marriage), be it from work or college ..etc stating you were in UK for most of the time with in the five years.

[Fibunnaci]

Hi Guys,

Does any body know if your references have been approached by the HO during the Character checks. If so, just want to know what sort of queries they were...

[TintinHerge]

Hi TintinHerge, From my experience you may also need to attach some sort of evidence for the last 5 years(if not through marriage), be it from work or college ..etc stating you were in UK for most of the time with in the five years.

Now you are putting me in panic mode. Would'nt that be clear from my passport ? Or should I get a letter from my employers, just to make sure ?

[tekaweni]

Hi Tintin,

I have an appointment with the NCS on Thursday and I'll be taking the same items you have listed, plus all my P60's.

Good luck.

[TintinHerge]

Hi Tintin,

I have an appointment with the NCS on Thursday and I'll be taking the same items you have listed, plus all my P60's.

Good luck.

Good Luck to you, too. Could you please update the board after your appointment , so that I know if or not I need to take my P60s or a letter from my employers or neither.

Tintin

[Fibunnaci]

Hi TintinHerge, From my experience you may also need to attach some sort of evidence for the last 5 years(if not through marriage), be it from work or college ..etc stating you were in UK for most of the time with in the five years.

Now you are putting me in panic mode. Would'nt that be clear from my passport ? Or should I get a letter from my employers, just to make sure ?

Hey no need to panic, They need that confirmation letter or pay slip to establish that you were here for the number of days you were required to be here. It does not have to be from employers,if you were unemployed, you could get letter from job centre(JSA).

Myself applied last week and this was what I was asked and had them handy in my bag so I just handed the letters.

[bbdivo]

Hi TintinHerge, From my experience you may also need to attach some sort of evidence for the last 5 years(if not through marriage), be it from work or college ..etc stating you were in UK for most of the time with in the five years.

As long as you have a passport that covers the full five years you shouldn't need anything else.

[bbdivo]

Hi Guys,

Does any body know if your references have been approached by the HO during the Character checks. If so, just want to know what sort of queries they were...

A friend of mine had one of his referees called to clarify some information, can't remember exactly what but it was something really straightforward.

[Fibunnaci]

Hi Guys,

Does any body know if your references have been approached by the HO during the Character checks. If so, just want to know what sort of queries they were...

A friend of mine had one of his referees called to clarify some information, can't remember exactly what but it was something really straightforward.

Thanks bbdivo, I was thinking if I had to prepare my referees for question time as one of them is really a busy person and not so organised.

[bbdivo]

Hi Guys,

Does any body know if your references have been approached by the HO during the Character checks. If so, just want to know what sort of queries they were...

A friend of mine had one of his referees called to clarify some information, can't remember exactly what but it was something really straightforward.

Thanks bbdivo, I was thinking if I had to prepare my referees for question time as one of them is really a busy person and not so organised.

It's definately worth telling them that they may get a call! At least they wont be surprised if they do get called and may even be prepared!

[Fibunnaci]

Hi Guys,

Does any body know if your references have been approached by the HO during the Character checks. If so, just want to know what sort of queries they were...

A friend of mine had one of his referees called to clarify some information, can't remember exactly what but it was something really straightforward.

Thanks bbdivo, I was thinking if I had to prepare my referees for question time as one of them is really a busy person and not so organised.

It's definately worth telling them that they may get a call! At least they wont be surprised if they do get called and may even be prepared!

Yes,I will do, I think it is best if i remind my guy politely.

Guys Who have applied in february give me a shout if you heard anything yet, I will updat mine once I hear from HO.

Cheers.

[TintinHerge]

Can I suggest to the Moderator that it wud be useful to add an additional field to the list below i.e. List of Documents which you were asked to produce(or sent). This will help future applicants to fully understand what documents to take/send when applying.

Also a Tip for London Applicants(if you didnt know it already) : The Brent NCS Offices are open on weekends too - So if you are like me and cannot or do not want to take a few hours off from work on a weekday , use the Brent Office instead of the other ones. Wandsworth offices are the worst , the next avaialble appointment being on 20th April , while in Brent you can get one in 2-3 weeks.

Hope this helps
Tintin

I would suggest that we open up a new thread to track progress of applications submitted and the progress as it happens.
It may help people who are in the process of applying to get a perspective!!
People who have submitted after 01.08.2005 and are awaiting processing or have achieved success may post their stories here.
Details such as the following could be provided:
NCS or Postal
If NCS, which centre
Date of submission or posting
CRITERIA - 5 yr stay (4 + 1 yr ILR)
Date of debit of debit/credit card
Date of receipt of acknowledgement
Date of receipt of approval
Date of Ceremony
Date of appln. for passport
Method used
Date of Receipt

ANY HELP IN PROVIDING THE INFO. WOULD BENEFIT THE GROUP!!!!

[Fibunnaci]

Come on Guys.

Some time lines for february. We need to see them if you got them....

Also have not heard from John for a while..

[Fibunnaci]

Hi Guys,

Coming home from work,I learn that I received my approval.

Here is my time line.

NCS Application
Date of submission or posting 16/02/2006
CRITERIA - 5 yr stay (4 + 1 yr ILR)
Date of debit of debit/credit card = paid cheques 24/02/2006
Date of receipt of acknowledgement = 27/02/2006
Date of receipt of approval = 02/03/2006

[tekaweni]

Hi Fibunnaci, and a hearty congratulations to you! That was really quick - they must be making great progress with their backlog despite the bbc scare story last month.. what is your country of origin? I'm South African.

TintinHerge you asked me to report back on my experience at the NCS today - I can tell you they took only the form, the fees, and a photocopy of each page of my passport. Didnt want to even see the P60's I spent hours searching for last night - apparently the people at Liverpool get their own report from the IR.

One thing they did say is to be SURE I've mentioned ALL convictions, no matter how small. I had written 'none' when in fact I got a speeding fine two years ago (yes thats a conviction, although parking fines arent). On their advice I put that down..

The whole visit took 30-40 minutes. Plus 5 hours travel time because of course there are no NCS's in Scotland - grrrrr!!

G'luck with yours.
Kim

[TintinHerge]

Thanks, tekaweni. Thats very helpful.

And yes, 5 hrs is a long time - But I hope when everything is done and dusted, you will feel it was all worth it.

Fibbunaci : Congratulations, thats lightning fast. Which NCS centre did you use ?

[Fibunnaci]

Thanks a lot guys. I was surprised myself when I got it, as I was asking to gauge the time it takes.

I used the NCS in Southwark, you can get appointment in a week or two unlike wandsworth.

And I know you guys will hear from Liverpool soon as well by the way it is going. Good Luck!!!

Ho has actually processing the applications very fast, come on 14 days from application to approval,I can't ask for more.I am grateful.

I am expecting my Ceremony invitation letter soon and will apply for passport afterwards.

I will update my complete timeline in due course.

[angelbaby]

Details such as the following could be provided:
NCS or Postal : NCS
If NCS, which centre :BARNET
Date of submission or posting :17. 02. 2006
CRITERIA - 5 yr stay (4 + 1 yr ILR) :5 yr stay
Date of debit of debit/credit card :21. 02. 2006
Date of receipt of acknowledgement :23. 02. 2006
Date of receipt of approval: 02. 03. 2006 (letter dated 01. 03. 06)
Date of Ceremony: waiting to hear
Date of appln. for passport
Method used
Date of Receipt

I was waiting for my half term holiday to submit my application and when i tried 2 or 3 NCS centres they couldnot give me an appointment for 3 weeks. and when i tried Barnet, i got the appointment for next day and i was in fact late for my appointment. I called the lady and told i am on my way. It took only 15 minutes for the lady to check the documents and photocopy the necessary documents. The lady was really pleasant and i cant believe that the application is approved in less than 2 weeks!!