Our Case History
Lead applicant arrived in the UK on a Skilled Worker visa (spouse came as a dependant).2020: Our son was born outside the UK.
December 2021: Our son entered the UK on a Skilled Worker Dependant visa.
Recent: Both parents successfully obtained ILR and have since naturalised as British Citizens.
December 2025: We applied to register our son as a British citizen via Form MN1 (with a fee waiver).The Refusal: The Home Office refused the MN1 application because our son does not hold settled status (ILR) and has only completed 4.5 years of residence in the UK instead of the expected 5 years.
Current Status: His current Skilled Worker Dependant visa is valid until September 2026. We have saved the full fees required for an ILR application.
Financial Situation: We are currently receiving Universal Credit as British citizens.
Our Query:We understand that dependent children do not face a 5-year residency minimum for ILR and can apply for ILR immediately since both parents are British WITHOUT NEEDING TO COMPLETE 5 YEARS. However, we are confused about whether to use Form SET(O) or Form SET(F).We were hoping to use Form SET(O) because our son is currently on a Skilled Worker Dependant visa and has been in the UK for over 4 years.
If we use Form SET(F), we are worried it will trigger the strict family-route "Adequate Maintenance" mathematical calculations under Appendix FM. Given our reliance on Universal Credit, we want to ensure the application is as straightforward as possible without failing strict financial assessments.
Given that both parents are now British but the child is still on a Skilled Worker Dependant visa, should we proceed with Form SET(O) or Form SET(F)?
