Married/Maiden name Naturalisation/1st passport UK

[Mrs_KNA]

Hello, I'm new here so hope I'm going about this the right way.

I sent my Naturalisation application off a few days ago only to now see your posts about the issues people face when applying for their first passport in their married name.

I applied for my Naturalisation in my married name but my expired South African passport is in my maiden name. I've lived here 11 years and got ILR in 2010 so I know quite a delay in applying but hey ho.

Will my Naturalisation certificate be in my married name?

If so, can I still do my passport application in my maiden name to save me the hassle everyone else has faced applying in their married names?

If not, I guess that's perfect as it won't affect my passport application.

I have never told SA I'm married and I have no interest in dual nationality. I haven't got SA's permission to apply to naturalise here so I'll forfeit my SA citizenship which doesn't bother me.

I'd rather get my BP in my maiden name to save hassle then renounce my SA citizenship and apply to change my name in my BP when the time is right as it can take 12 mths and I don't have time to wait as I need to get off this rock after having no valid passport for 2 years. (I know - I've been
lazy!)

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance

[CR001]

HO will likely write to you for clarity about your name. Your citizenship and British passport will be issued in the same name as your foreign passport, so very likely only in your maiden name. HO has a big issue with different names and multiple identities.

Assuming your SA passport has expired, what documents have you submitted to prove residence in the UK since it expired?

It sounds like you posted your application yourself. It would have been picked up (name issue) if you had applied through NCS at the council.

Remember that you will still need to go to Home Affairs to get a letter allowing you to travel in and out of SA (if you travel there) on a British passport. The letter is issued free of charge and you can wait while they do it (takes a couple of hours). And trust me, the SA border people WILL ask your for the permission letter if you travel in and out of SA.

[Mrs_KNA]

I did do it myself. I always have and didn't even know about NCS. Bit heisty on my part I guess.

I've sent my marriage certificate and letters from employer along with P60's for every year here and payslips. I'm married to a British citizen. I hope that was enough...

I'm hoping they send the naturalisation certificate on my maiden name. That will make the whole process so much easier as I've been emailing passport office all day and they don't care that I'll automatically lose my SA citizenship. The name thing is a massive deal. Which is most frustrating.

Thanks for your response.

[CR001]

I did do it myself. I always have and didn't even know about NCS. Bit heisty on my part I guess.

I've sent my marriage certificate and letters from employer along with P60's for every year here and payslips. I'm married to a British citizen. I hope that was enough... As I said, they will probably write to you if they have a query. They wrote to me about my daughters name.

I'm hoping they send the naturalisation certificate on my maiden name. That will make the whole process so much easier as I've been emailing passport office all day and they don't care that I'll automatically lose my SA citizenship. Which passport office have you been emailing and for what purpose??

The name thing is a massive deal. Which is most frustrating.

Thanks for your response.

[CR001]

Assuming your SA passport has expired, what documents have you submitted to prove residence in the UK since it expired?

This is also quite important, did you send any documents to prove residence as you appear to have submitted and expired passport?

Language criteria met: Yes with ILR application

I have also just seen your timeline post. What did you submit for proof of English Level B1?? There was no English requirement in 2010 if that is when you applied for ILR.

Did you submit LIUK, which is mandatory?

[Mrs_KNA]

Assuming your SA passport has expired, what documents have you submitted to prove residence in the UK since it expired?

This is also quite important, did you send any documents to prove residence as you appear to have submitted and expired passport?

Language criteria met: Yes with ILR application

I have also just seen your timeline post. What did you submit for proof of English Level B1?? Did you submit LIUK?

I did do it myself. I always have and didn't even know about NCS. Bit heisty on my part I guess.

I've sent my marriage certificate and letters from employer along with P60's for every year here and payslips. I'm married to a British citizen. I hope that was enough... As I said, they will probably write to you if they have a query. They wrote to me about my daughters name.

I'm hoping they send the naturalisation certificate on my maiden name. That will make the whole process so much easier as I've been emailing passport office all day and they don't care that I'll automatically lose my SA citizenship. Which passport office have you been emailing and for what purpose??

The name thing is a massive deal. Which is most frustrating.

Thanks for your response.

HMPO passport enquiries. I did it via their 'contact us' link on their website and then when they responded kept replying with more questions. Probs really annoyed them with my tedious questions but I wanted to cover all bases. (Good response times. Around 2 hrs). All lead back to I have to either cancel passport or change name. Even though I can't change my name as I've applied without SA's permission. So seriously hoping they send biometrics request and Naturalisation certificate in maiden name. Solves so many problems. Only time will tell.

[Mrs_KNA]

Assuming your SA passport has expired, what documents have you submitted to prove residence in the UK since it expired?

This is also quite important, did you send any documents to prove residence as you appear to have submitted and expired passport?

Language criteria met: Yes with ILR application

I have also just seen your timeline post. What did you submit for proof of English Level B1?? There was no English requirement in 2010 if that is when you applied for ILR.

Did you submit LIUK, which is mandatory?

I did the LIUK exam and sent when applying for ILR. It was a must at the time. It was late 2010. The form required it from what I recall.

The docs sent for residence was a letter from employer with P60's and payslips for all years. My expired passport has my ILR visa in it. Did I need to send more? I sent everything the forms required and read all guidance notes.

[CR001]

What did you complete on the form for meeting the English B1 SELT test? This is a mandatory requirement since October 2013 in addition to the LIUK.

[CR001]

HMPO don't care about your name problem. They will issue a passport based on your foreign passport and naturalisation certificate if your passport is not cancelled.

There are other ways to change your name without going through Home Affairs.

[Mrs_KNA]

What did you complete on the form for meeting the English B1 SELT test? This is a mandatory requirement since October 2013 in addition to the LIUK.

I didn't

Oh dear.

[CR001]

I would strongly suggest you withdraw your application as soon as possible or make sure payment doesn't go through to have it returned as an invalid application. You won't get citizenship approval without the English test as you are not from an exempt country.

Apply again through NCS, they will check your form and documents before sending it for you.

[noajthan]

The docs sent for residence was a letter from employer with P60's and payslips for all years. My expired passport has my ILR visa in it. Did I need to send more? I sent everything the forms required and read all guidance notes.

How on earth did you answer the proof of English question?!

Pro tip: NCS are great for catching these little gotchas.

[Mrs_KNA]

OMG... thank goodness you were here. I've removed the money from my account. How can I withdraw the application without a reference?

[Mrs_KNA]

The docs sent for residence was a letter from employer with P60's and payslips for all years. My expired passport has my ILR visa in it. Did I need to send more? I sent everything the forms required and read all guidance notes.

How on earth did you answer the proof of English question?!

Pro tip: NCS are great for catching these little gotchas.

I just ticked life in the UK and ignored the rest. I feel like such a plum
I wrote a covering letter about life in the U.K. Being satisfied previously.

[ohara]

OMG... thank goodness you were here. I've removed the money from my account. How can I withdraw the application without a reference?

Presumably you wrote your name on it

Why did you not complete the section about satisfying knowledge of language

[CR001]

Contact HO asap and explain you completely misunderstood things and want to withdraw and will reapply in a month or so through NCS.

Then come back here and post ALL your question, no matter how silly you think they are, so that we can get you on the right track and ready to apply through NCS.

[Mrs_KNA]

Thank you so much.

Can I start by asking what this test is? How do I apply? Is it a course or a test like before?

[ohara]

B1 is a speaking and listening test. It takes about 10 minutes and judging by your posts, you're about 100% likely to pass. It costs £150.

You must do it at a Home Office approved centre, which in the UK is Trinity College London or IELTS.

https://www.trinityselt.co.uk/OEWeb/loadExamDtl.do

https://www.ielts.org/book-a-test/find-a-test-location

Make sure the centre you choose is on the approved list (any Trinity College or IELTS centre in the UK should be): https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... entres.pdf

[CR001]

It is a test, takes about 20 minutes. You MUST do it at an HO approved test centre. The link below gives good information and links to the approved HO list. You need English B1 level.

http://www.immigrationboards.com/britis ... 98118.html