British Citizenship – Good Character Requirement FAQs

[ahmad1234]

Hello,
I am due to apply for UK citizenship in February 2015. I have driving offence LC20 3 points on license and 40 pound fine in court because I was driving on international license in september 2012. I went to court in December 2012. Its been more than 2 years.

I understand that 3 years must pass for this to be spent. However, it is a non custodial offence and can the caseworker use discretion because I have had nothing since. Also as it is an international license, this had to be dealt with in court, unlike other FPNs.

Thank you

[mteja]

Hello All

I had an appointment with NCS today for my British Citizenship.

I had all my documents, my route would have been either 3years Spouse Visa Route or 5years.

Anyway initially i had overstayed my visa in 2008 went back to my home country and i got married , then we came back on 3yr Visa.

In NCS Today there is a new law, under good conduct, if you are overstayer in the past then one will need to wait for 10years after getting the ILR to qualify for BC.

Thought i inform guys who are applying direct to HO to watch out otherwise they will loose there money!!

I asked the lady in NCS when did that law come out, she said as from December 2014!!

[mteja]

Thanks Vinny to the link you replied me about my overstaying issue!!
I got my Spouse Visa in Sept 2008, and My ILR Oct 2010 according to the link am i right to think am due to apply for BC in Oct 2018?

[rikmonsta]

Dear Friends,
I will be applying naturalisation on 18 february 2015. In december 2013 I was given a Fixed Penalty Notice by traffic police for failing to stop at traffice light. I was given 3 points under TS10 and 60 pound fine. will this affect my application?

Also, I am self employed and my net profit last year was 9000, hence i didn't pay ny tax due to less profit..will this affect my application is it any better to pay tax for good character?

regards

[akhurshid]

Dear Friends,
I will be applying naturalisation on 18 february 2015. In december 2013 I was given a Fixed Penalty Notice by traffic police for failing to stop at traffice light. I was given 3 points under TS10 and 60 pound fine. will this affect my application?

Also, I am self employed and my net profit last year was 9000, hence i didn't pay ny tax due to less profit..will this affect my application is it any better to pay tax for good character?

regards

No and No if that is all you have.

[JonF]

Hi all

I'm hoping I've come to the right place for some help and advice.
I'm posting this on behalf of a good friend who has been going round in circles for the last 8 years in trying to obtain his citizenship, today he practically had an emotional break down after encountering another hurdle so I've taken it upon myself to help him out.

My friend was quite literally smuggled into this country as a 6 month old baby from Iran by his parents in 1982. He grew up in this country, went to school here, has a family and mortgage and owns a successful small business employing 6 people and I consider him to be just as British as anyone. He has 5 brothers, two of which were born in this country so have citizenship but my friend and his two other brothers were born in Tehran however one of these brothers had a career in professional boxing so was given an exceptional talent visa and eventually married a British girl so is now a citizen.
Unfortunately these boys had a very troubled up bringing as their parents had serious drug habits and this resulted in a life of crime and consequentially a 2 year sentence for my friend in 2006 for nothing more than sheer stupidity
I read the very first post about not being eligible for 15 years after his sentence but can't help but think this case has exceptional circumstances. I consider myself of good character free of any criminal convictions, I am a company director for a London based consultancy working for the mayor and have been good friends with him for nearly 18 years, he truly has turned a new leaf since the conviction and now he's an award winning tattoo artist and his brothers are all very successful one being a professional footballer, another a former WBU world champion boxer (as mentioned) another a director of a successful construction business and another is a signed UK hip hop artist (something in the genes!) I suppose the question I am asking is; do you think if I and his brothers put a strong enough case together we can at least get him a Visa or apply for for citizenship under naturalisation?
He's has been given 6 month Visa's every 6 months for the last 7 years but this has prevented him from obtaining a passport so he has never left the country, he can't even go to France on a day trip!

To add; just recently he managed to obtain his birth certificate from the hospital he was born in Tehran, this is another whole lengthy story I won't bore you with but he moved heaven and earth to get it and went to the Iranian embassy in London today who said they couldn't give him an Iranian passport as he doesn't have a UK visa. This was the last straw for him and I literally saw him break down at the prospect that he will never be able to travel or become a British citizen hence why I feel compelled to help.

I was born in the UK so I'm a British citizen, my father is British however my mother is German so i owe my very existence to the immigration laws in this country and I refuse to accept the situation my friend is in.

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Regards

Jon

[ukswus]

Hello All

I had an appointment with NCS today for my British Citizenship.

I had all my documents, my route would have been either 3years Spouse Visa Route or 5years.

Anyway initially i had overstayed my visa in 2008 went back to my home country and i got married , then we came back on 3yr Visa.

In NCS Today there is a new law, under good conduct, if you are overstayer in the past then one will need to wait for 10years after getting the ILR to qualify for BC.

Thought i inform guys who are applying direct to HO to watch out otherwise they will loose there money!!

I asked the lady in NCS when did that law come out, she said as from December 2014!!

I would imagine one would have to wait for 10 years, but not after ILR, but rather after having overstayed. So, you will become eligible in 2018.

[Garbati]

Hi, First of all, I would like to thank all the contributors to this forum - I have always found it to be very informative and the contributors all very helpful.

Secondly, I would like some help with the Good Character Requirement. I am normally a person that is always on the side of the law wherever I am but misfortunes sometime follows.

Ok, my case - I will be eligible to apply for citizenship very soon. My problems started last week when I got a parking ticket (forgot my car and took a bus home), I paid the fines on time. Then in the same week fueled my car, forgot to pay for the fuel and drove off. I didn't remember until police came knocking on my door. Police advised me to go and pay, which I did instantly. I did ask them whether this is considered a criminal offence but they said as long as I paid back on time I shall be alright.

Could experienced contributors advise me on this case - have I breached the good character requirement? Shall I declare both of them in the application form and to the NCS?

[Shekhar235]

Hi there
I have a question to ask if any one can help me with it will be greatly appreciated
I am applying for British citizenship next month on the basis of 5 years work permit and 1 year of indefinate leave to remain ,13 years back I had case on me back in my country about taking fake certificates to get in to uni which I never used any further , and I was underage in that period is well , as long as I know it went to court and since then I never heard of it till the date ,I got US visa since then couple of times with ought any hitch,after 6 years of working in US got 5 years visa to work in UK, then got German and croatian visa is well, did not had any issues to get my ILR approved as well as change of visa to Tier 2 couple of years back,
Just worried if there will be any issue if I apply for Citizenship at all after all this ?
Please if any one can help me with my query will be greatly appreciated
Thanks

[secret.simon]

@JonF

I would suggest placing your query about your Iranian friend in a new thread, rather than adding it to this "Good Character Requirements FAQs" thread, to which it is not relevant and in which it may not be answered fully.

As and when you do that, can you also clarify what travel document does your friend currently hold. You mention that your friend is issued a 6 month visa from time to time. What kind of visa is he issued? Most visas are issued on a travel document of another country/diplomatic entity. On what travel document is the visa issued on? These questions would help us understand the issue in more depth.

If he has been here for almost all his life, it is possible that he is eligible for indefinite leave to remain.

You may wish to raise his issues with the Iranian embassy in the "Other Countries" section. To me, it sounds improbable that the Iranian embassy would refuse a passport on the grounds that he does not have a UK visa. The requirements for having a passport revolve around being a citizen of the country and fulfilling its obligations, not about having the visa of a foreign country.

[JonF]

@JonF

I would suggest placing your query about your Iranian friend in a new thread, rather than adding it to this "Good Character Requirements FAQs" thread, to which it is not relevant and in which it may not be answered fully.

As and when you do that, can you also clarify what travel document does your friend currently hold. You mention that your friend is issued a 6 month visa from time to time. What kind of visa is he issued? Most visas are issued on a travel document of another country/diplomatic entity. On what travel document is the visa issued on? These questions would help us understand the issue in more depth.

If he has been here for almost all his life, it is possible that he is eligible for indefinite leave to remain.

You may wish to raise his issues with the Iranian embassy in the "Other Countries" section. To me, it sounds improbable that the Iranian embassy would refuse a passport on the grounds that he does not have a UK visa. The requirements for having a passport revolve around being a citizen of the country and fulfilling its obligations, not about having the visa of a foreign country.

Hi Secret Simon

Thanks for the response.

I'll copy the post into a more relevant forum, I kind of guessed that due to the criminal record affecting his application that this thread may be suitable.

He does not have any travel documents as I suppose you could consider him to be an asylum seeker? He holds a discretionary leave to remain Visa which is only issued on a 6 moth basis, I have the letter in front of me which states that he does not qualify to remain in the United Kingdom under the Immigration Rules. When he applies he literally applies with not a lot more than a copy of his UK driving licence as the home office have his case on file.

He visited the Iranian Embassy on Monday 26th January and they told him that he cannot have an Iranian passport due to the fact that he does not have an indefinite leave to remain in this country and also has no proof of how long he has been living here which I found rather funny as apart from his Iranian appearance he's as British as fish and chips!

I can't make sense of his situation, he's clearly not talking to the right people which is why I came to this forum for some proper knowledge

Thanks

Jon

[Garbati]

Hi, First of all, I would like to thank all the contributors to this forum - I have always found it to be very informative and the contributors all very helpful.

Secondly, I would like some help with the Good Character Requirement. I am normally a person that is always on the side of the law wherever I am but misfortunes sometime follows.

Ok, my case - I will be eligible to apply for citizenship very soon. My problems started last week when I got a parking ticket (forgot my car and took a bus home), I paid the fines on time. Then in the same week fueled my car, forgot to pay for the fuel and drove off. I didn't remember until police came knocking on my door. Police advised me to go and pay, which I did instantly. I did ask them whether this is considered a criminal offence but they said as long as I paid back on time I shall be alright.

Could experienced contributors advise me on this case - have I breached the good character requirement? Shall I declare both of them in the application form and to the NCS?

Many Thanks to all.

[secret.simon]

Hi Secret Simon

Thanks for the response.

I'll copy the post into a more relevant forum, I kind of guessed that due to the criminal record affecting his application that this thread may be suitable.

He does not have any travel documents as I suppose you could consider him to be an asylum seeker? He holds a discretionary leave to remain Visa which is only issued on a 6 moth basis, I have the letter in front of me which states that he does not qualify to remain in the United Kingdom under the Immigration Rules. When he applies he literally applies with not a lot more than a copy of his UK driving licence as the home office have his case on file.

He visited the Iranian Embassy on Monday 26th January and they told him that he cannot have an Iranian passport due to the fact that he does not have an indefinite leave to remain in this country and also has no proof of how long he has been living here which I found rather funny as apart from his Iranian appearance he's as British as fish and chips!

I can't make sense of his situation, he's clearly not talking to the right people which is why I came to this forum for some proper knowledge

Thanks

Jon

@Jonf

You see that you have posted this query in the 14 years ILR thread in the Indefinite Leave to Remain forum. I'll append my comments in that thread.

[Rahel1984]

Hello All

I had an appointment with NCS today for my British Citizenship.

I had all my documents, my route would have been either 3years Spouse Visa Route or 5years.

Anyway initially i had overstayed my visa in 2008 went back to my home country and i got married , then we came back on 3yr Visa.

In NCS Today there is a new law, under good conduct, if you are overstayer in the past then one will need to wait for 10years after getting the ILR to qualify for BC.

Thought i inform guys who are applying direct to HO to watch out otherwise they will loose there money!!

I asked the lady in NCS when did that law come out, she said as from December 2014!!

I would imagine one would have to wait for 10 years, but not after ILR, but rather after having overstayed. So, you will become eligible in 2018.

Will that apply to those peple who applied b4 the new rule?

[secret.simon]

It seems, from various forum threads, that it applies to all decisions taken after December 2014, irrespective of when they were submitted. That is because the requirements have not changed, only the definition of "good character" has been significantly tightened/widened (depending on your point of view).

You may want to search on the forum for more threads on the same topic.

[Rahel1984]

It seems, from various forum threads, that it applies to all decisions taken after December 2014, irrespective of when they were submitted. That is because the requirements have not changed, only the definition of "good character" has been significantly tightened/widened (depending on your point of view).

You may want to search on the forum for more threads on the same topic.

Bcos in 2010 i was refused my student visa but i won the apeal. So in the meantime i didn't have visa. Just thinking if thats gona be a problem?

[akhurshid]

Bcos in 2010 i was refused my student visa but i won the apeal. So in the meantime i didn't have visa. Just thinking if thats gona be a problem?

You are not over stayer while your application/appeal is being processed and granted later on.

[Rahel1984]

Bcos in 2010 i was refused my student visa but i won the apeal. So in the meantime i didn't have visa. Just thinking if thats gona be a problem?

You are not over stayer while your application/appeal is being processed and granted later on.

Thank you akhurshid. Im so relieved now

[biloxi26]

Based on the discussion above this will be of interest...especially to those who have been waiting as long as i have (since the beginning of April, 2014).Your thoughts are as usual very much welcome

Prior to my application, i was on a 2 year spouse visa and ILR. Before the aforementioned i had left the country to regularise my stay after having overstayed

Following several unfruitful calls during the wait period to the call centre, my most recent call was bound to be rather fiery and it was. Anyways, 2 days later this is the response i received:

Dear XYZ

I am writing in regard to your outstanding application for British Citizenship,
We aim to process all applications within 6 months from the date submitted. However, in certain circumstances this target is not possible. Following our assessment of your case, unfortunately it appears your application will not be processed within the 6 months target.

Following recent clarification of the Nationality rules greater levels of scrutiny will he applied to certain applications. This will be dependent on certain indicators within their immigration history that pre-date the application for British citizenship. Your case has been identified as such a case and will not be decided within 6 months

We expect to make a decision on your application within the next 3 to 6 months but we will write to you again if this is not going, to be possible. Please note we will contact you with further updates and can advise you do not need to contact us again unless your circumstances change significantly.

Please do not contact the UKVI Contact Centre regarding the progress of your ease as they will not be able to provide any further information.
This also applies to any family members whose applications for citizenship were submitted at the same time.

Yours sincerely

[Rahel1984]

Based on the discussion above this will be of interest...especially to those who have been waiting as long as i have (since the beginning of April, 2014).Your thoughts are as usual very much welcome

Prior to my application, i was on a 2 year spouse visa and ILR. Before the aforementioned i had left the country to regularise my stay after having overstayed

Following several unfruitful calls during the wait period to the call centre, my most recent call was bound to be rather fiery and it was. Anyways, 2 days later this is the response i received:

Dear XYZ

I am writing in regard to your outstanding application for British Citizenship,
We aim to process all applications within 6 months from the date submitted. However, in certain circumstances this target is not possible. Following our assessment of your case, unfortunately it appears your application will not be processed within the 6 months target.

Following recent clarification of the Nationality rules greater levels of scrutiny will he applied to certain applications. This will be dependent on certain indicators within their immigration history that pre-date the application for British citizenship. Your case has been identified as such a case and will not be decided within 6 months

We expect to make a decision on your application within the next 3 to 6 months but we will write to you again if this is not going, to be possible. Please note we will contact you with further updates and can advise you do not need to contact us again unless your circumstances change significantly.

Please do not contact the UKVI Contact Centre regarding the progress of your ease as they will not be able to provide any further information.
This also applies to any family members whose applications for citizenship were submitted at the same time.

Yours sincerely

I got the same letter today after waiting 7 months

[biloxi26]

what is the background to your application....e.g. are there issues as regards your immigration history or otherwise?

[biloxi26]

The increased scrutiny following the recent watchdog report (http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014 ... ome-office) should not be applied retrospectively. If the guide defining what constitutes poor character mentioned that people with poor immigration histories are less likely to be approved then perhaps some will not have even bothered applying and saved a few quid

[Rahel1984]

what is the background to your application....e.g. are there issues as regards your immigration history or otherwise?

Im a spouse of a British citizen. So applied on that category. But i was student in this country from 2005. I had refusal on student category in 2010 bcos of a silly mistake from my college. But i won the apeal against their decision. In the meantime i didn't have visa. Hopefully they wont count that as a overstayer. Apart from that i have very good immigration history.

[Obie]

I believe people to whom this guidance is applied retrospectively should seriously consider applying for compensation, as those people had legitimate expectation, that it was the rules in place when they applied, that will be applicable to their circumstance.

[akhurshid]

I believe people to whom this guidance is applied retrospectively should seriously consider applying for compensation, as those people had legitimate expectation, that it was the rules in place when they applied, that will be applicable to their circumstance.

I am actually surprised no one has challenged the rule changes in court yet.
HO can't expect people to meet changes they brought months after the application was made. That's like going back in time and make that change but that's just my way of thinking...