BN: a few question about form and application

[maxima]

1. I havent found any requirements about how long current passport must be valid on the date of the application (for example to get tourist visa to almost any country you have to have passport valid say 1-3 months after your visit supposed to end). My son's passport going to expire in July 2007 and I want to apply in February 2007.

2. Reference - in new Guide AN (TN) they says that one of referee must be a person of professional standing - doctor, church guy, civil servant, accountant, solicitor. I am confused. What kind of requirements is it? I havent been living 3 years at same place and I dont go to doctor more than once a year and I dont go to church at all, I dont receive benefits to meet civil cervants, I dont have business therefore no accountant, never killed no one hence never met solicitor... What I am supposed to do ?

3. Documents - what documents I need (to apply as after 5 yrs of residency). Am I understand it correct - they need all 5 years covered by employer letters? Why? I provided all that stuff then applied for ILR.... This is so painful to get all this paperwork done again... Is there more clear explanation of what documents must be provided... I thought it will be just a passport with ILR :

Thank you

[bbdivo]

An unexpired passport is not a requirement when applying for BN, in fact you need a passport at all.

I applied for BN 6 months after the passport I used to enter the UK had expired, my approval came through in 3 weeks.

Read Section 4 of the Guide AN (Titled - What documents you will need to send) it should tell you what you need to know about documents.

[JAJ]

2. Reference - in new Guide AN (TN) they says that one of referee must be a person of professional standing - doctor, church guy, civil servant, accountant, solicitor. I am confused. What kind of requirements is it? I havent been living 3 years at same place and I dont go to doctor more than once a year

Are you employed? Is there not a professionally qualified person there who knows you (eg qualified accountant, engineer, company director etc?)

[stedman]

As JAJ said, surely you must know at least 1 person who falls under the "professional" category? You're probably being too restrictive in your thinking. Cast the net wider to your friends, friends' partners, work colleagues. Maybe you don't realise some of your non-British friends actually have UK passports. I'm no social butterfly but can certainly think of scores of UK nationals who've known me for that long so I find it hard to believe you can't get even one?!

[Christophe]

As JAJ said, surely you must know at least 1 person who falls under the "professional" category? You're probably being too restrictive in your thinking. Cast the net wider to your friends, friends' partners, work colleagues. Maybe you don't realise some of your non-British friends actually have UK passports. I'm no social butterfly but can certainly think of scores of UK nationals who've known me for that long so I find it hard to believe you can't get even one?!

And don't forget that the person doesn't necessarily have to know you well: it need not be someone that you'd invite to your place for dinner or vice versa, for example. It merely has to be someone who has been acquainted with you for the required length of time. And of course your relationship with the person doesn't have to be a professional one.

[Marco 72]

2. Reference - in new Guide AN (TN) they says that one of referee must be a person of professional standing - doctor, church guy, civil servant, accountant, solicitor. I am confused. What kind of requirements is it? I havent been living 3 years at same place [...]

I think you may be misunderstanding the requirement here. Your referee doesn't need to have interacted with you for a period of three years, all they ask is that you must have made their acquaintance at least three years in the past. It could even be someone you met many years ago, before emigrating to the UK. My advice is to to think hard about all the people you used to know since you moved to this country. Anyone: work colleagues, landlords, study colleagues, etc. You may be surprised how many of them are willing to help, even if they haven't heard from you in a while. Contact them, and ask them if they are willing to act as your referee. Once you have two referees, call the Home Office helpline (0845 010 5200), tell them about their professions and ask them if one of them qualifies as "person of standing". According to what they told me, "anyone working in a professional organisation" qualifies. I'm not sure what that means, but they may be able to tell you more. They told me a teacher was ok, even one working in a private school.

3. Documents - what documents I need (to apply as after 5 yrs of residency). Am I understand it correct - they need all 5 years covered by employer letters? Why? I provided all that stuff then applied for ILR.... This is so painful to get all this paperwork done again... Is there more clear explanation of what documents must be provided... I thought it will be just a passport with ILR

That's what I thought too, but unfortunately it's not the case. For some reason they need to check the residence requirements twice, once for ILR and once for naturalisation. It doesn't matter if they overlap. However, my personal impression is that the criteria used for naturalisation are much less strict than those for ILR. When I submitted my application for ILR in 2005, I was advised to include as much documentation as possible (pay slips, letters from employers, P60's). When I handed in my application for naturalisation at a Nationality Checking Service they didn't want any P60's or pay slips: my passports and employers' letters were enough. If you are a non-EU citizen your passports might be enough, provided they cover the entire length of your stay. However I would still advise you to bring letters from employers, just to be on the safe side.

[maxima]

I havent been working anywhere more than for 1.5 yrs.

Can it be IT manager? Engineer? Yeah I need to call I think..

Thanks for the help guys...

[maxima]

However I would still advise you to bring letters from employers, just to be on the safe side.

Yeah if I havent thrown them away

[Marco 72]

I havent been working anywhere more than for 1.5 yrs.

That is irrelevant. If you knew someone three years ago, then you have known them "for three years". In English to have known someone "for three years" and to have known them "since three years ago" are the same thing.

[Marco 72]

However I would still advise you to bring letters from employers, just to be on the safe side.

Yeah if I havent thrown them away

You can always contact them and ask them to write new ones. It's their duty to do so, and in most cases you'll get them without any trouble.

[maxima]

You're making my day many thanks!

[Marco 72]

No problem. By the way, the reason they didn't want my P60's and pay slips at the NCS was that I already had employers' letters. Also, if your passport is of the kind which gets stamped when you enter or leave the UK they may not even need those - but I would bring them just in case.