Help clarify my situation please.

[jamesjames]

Could someone here help me clarify my situation?
I am a non EU national married to an EU national who already has her naturalisation and has just applied for her British Passport and is waiting to receive it. Our continous 5 years together was on 30th June this year [2014], before she applied for her British Passport.
My question is this: Am I eligible to apply for my own naturalisation now or do I have to wait for the 12 months after the continous 5 years, considering that the 5 years was complete before she became a british citizen? I am asking this because she was still an EU national by the time I completed my 5 year rule.
Your help will be much appreciated.

[milan69]

If you have been resident in the UK for the last 3 years, are married to BC and hold ILR then you can apply.

[jamesjames]

If you have been resident in the UK for the last 3 years, are married to BC and hold ILR then you can apply.

Thanks Milan for taking time to respond to my query.
Does it matter that our continuous 5 years was over [meaning I was no longer under the EU rules by the time she became a BC]? I didn't apply for RP as I understand that is not necessary.

[milan69]

Q5: I'm a EEA national/family member of EEA national. When can I apply for naturalisation?

Under EEA regulations, Permanent Residence status is obtained automatically after 5 years of exercising treaty rights. You need to hold PR status for 1 year to be eligible for naturalisation (unless you are married to a BC) so effectively you can apply after 6 years of residence in the UK. Having a PR Confirmation (following EEA3/EEA4 application) is optional and is not required in order to apply for naturalisation.

You have two options:

1. Apply after 6 years in the UK. This includes 5 years of exercising treaty rights + 1 year with PR. You will need to provide proof of the 5 years (similar to what is needed in EEA3/EEA4 application). Form AN has a specific section (Q2.4-2.6) for such application.
2. Apply 1 year after the issue date of the PR Confirmation (EEA3/EEA4). In this case, there is no need to prove treaty rights again and normally just your passport (and Life in the UK test) is required.

If you hold a PR Confirmation for less than 1 year but have lived in the UK for 6 years, you can apply using option (1). The PR confirmation can only be used if you apply 1 year after the issue date. The reason is that the PR Confirmation only contains one date - issue date. It doesn't state when the PR status was actually acquired. If you want to use a PR date prior to the issue date, you will need to provide treaty rights proof to prove it

[vinny]

In Q1, after "granted ILR", add " or attained PR".