Proof of residency

[Darejames]

Hi All,
My first time here, please pardon my long background details. I found this forum helpful and useful. I am about to apply for my BC, I am EU (dual nationality - German and Italian passports holder). I came here on 1/10/17, obtained Pre-Settled Status on 24/06/19, and ILR on 31/7/23 in my own right as EU. My spouse, EU, Italian, became a citizen on 01/06/2017. We got married in 2008 in Nigeria as I am originally from Nigeria but lived and work in Germany for a while before coming to the UK. During my application for Italian citizenship, our Nigerian marriage certificate was submitted as part of the process but was not returned to us. After lots of enquiries as to why, the Italian citizenship office explained that we should have registered our marriage at the Italian Embassy in Nigeria before applying for citizenship as a result, they needed it for verification and it will remain in our fill. After their verification and citizenship success, they finally issued us a certified copy of the original and authenticate it with Apostille. In addition, they told us that our marriage was officially registered in my wife’s commune, in Italy. We were able to obtain both the Italian and multi-lingual (Europe-wide) marriage extract from Italy. Afterwards, in Germany, we registered our marriage using the multi-lingual marriage extract and was issued a German marriage certificate. In the UK, I used my German passport for my Pre- and ILR applications and I have been self-employed since Jan. 2020 till date.

List of requirements, Pls advice if these are sufficient or not:
1: The passport issued by Germany for applicant
(I have valid passport)
2: Applicant’s certificate proving speaking and listening in English at B1 CEFR or higher
(I have B1 from Trinity College) (I have done life in UK test as well)
3: Proof of living in the UK for Applicant for 5 or 3 years if applying as the spouse of a British Citizen
(We have Council tax 2019 – 2024 both names on it, used these for my ILR recently. Is that ok)
(Never travel out of UK since 2019 to date)
(NHS doctor’s letter confirming each date of completed appointments btwn 2017 - 2023 Is that ok)
4: Your marriage or civil partnership certificate
You can send a photocopy of your spouse passport - you must photocopy every page of the passport
(Can I use our German marriage certificate here?)
5: Two referee declarations for Applicant
(Optician and Pharmacist both are British Citizens - are these ok?)
6: Applicant’s most recent tax year account statement and corresponding HMRC tax return as proof of
self-employment.
(I requested tax statement 2022/23 from HMRC, showing payments, got that and I
printed my online tax returns for same year but it has watermark on it …is that ok?)
(Income, around 7k... is less than tax threshold but I still paid NI contributions. Would this be ok?)
7: One proof of British citizenship for my spouse (such as a passport or UK citizenship certificate)
(If I send copies of wife’s British passport under (4) above can I provide citizenship certificate here?)

Thank you all for sharing

[contorted_svy]

Hi All,
My first time here, please pardon my long background details. I found this forum helpful and useful. I am about to apply for my BC, I am EU (dual nationality - German and Italian passports holder). I came here on 1/10/17, obtained Pre-Settled Status on 24/06/19, and ILR on 31/7/23 in my own right as EU. My spouse, EU, Italian, became a citizen on 01/06/2017. We got married in 2008 in Nigeria as I am originally from Nigeria but lived and work in Germany for a while before coming to the UK. During my application for Italian citizenship, our Nigerian marriage certificate was submitted as part of the process but was not returned to us. After lots of enquiries as to why, the Italian citizenship office explained that we should have registered our marriage at the Italian Embassy in Nigeria before applying for citizenship as a result, they needed it for verification and it will remain in our fill. After their verification and citizenship success, they finally issued us a certified copy of the original and authenticate it with Apostille. In addition, they told us that our marriage was officially registered in my wife’s commune, in Italy. We were able to obtain both the Italian and multi-lingual (Europe-wide) marriage extract from Italy. Afterwards, in Germany, we registered our marriage using the multi-lingual marriage extract and was issued a German marriage certificate. In the UK, I used my German passport for my Pre- and ILR applications and I have been self-employed since Jan. 2020 till date.

List of requirements, Pls advice if these are sufficient or not:
1: The passport issued by Germany for applicant
(I have valid passport)
2: Applicant’s certificate proving speaking and listening in English at B1 CEFR or higher
(I have B1 from Trinity College) (I have done life in UK test as well) It must be a SELT test
3: Proof of living in the UK for Applicant for 5 or 3 years if applying as the spouse of a British Citizen
(We have Council tax 2019 – 2024 both names on it, used these for my ILR recently. Is that ok)
(Never travel out of UK since 2019 to date) Council tax is enough.
(NHS doctor’s letter confirming each date of completed appointments btwn 2017 - 2023 Is that ok) Not needed.
4: Your marriage or civil partnership certificate
You can send a photocopy of your spouse passport - you must photocopy every page of the passport
(Can I use our German marriage certificate here?) Is it in English? I suggest sending both that and the multi-lingual document. Remember to scan all pages of your spouse's passport as required
5: Two referee declarations for Applicant
(Optician and Pharmacist both are British Citizens - are these ok?) If the optician is chartered with a relevant professional body yes. Pharmacist doesn't appear on the list of accepted professions
6: Applicant’s most recent tax year account statement and corresponding HMRC tax return as proof of
self-employment.
(I requested tax statement 2022/23 from HMRC, showing payments, got that and I
printed my online tax returns for same year but it has watermark on it …is that ok?) Yes.
(Income, around 7k... is less than tax threshold but I still paid NI contributions. Would this be ok?) Not a problem, income is not a requirement for British citizenship
7: One proof of British citizenship for my spouse (such as a passport or UK citizenship certificate)
(If I send copies of wife’s British passport under (4) above can I provide citizenship certificate here?) You don't need to provide the citizenship certificate, as you already provided the passport above

Thank you all for sharing

You can apply straight away as spouse of a British citizen.

[CR001]

@contorted_svy pharamcist is the same as a chemist on the professions list. An optician has to be registered with the GOC to practice and use the title optician, so should be fine.

[Darejames]

@contorted_svy... @CR001
Thanks for the prompt response..much appreciated
(1) For my passport, do I need to or should I scan all the pages of my passport as well?

(2) Grade 5: Graded Examination in Spoken English (GESE), Entry Level Certificate in ESOL International
Speaking and Listening (Entry 3)
I had it done at the SELT centre in Stratford. Is it different?
Got the link from the Gov. website list of approved provider

(4) I have already translated the German marriage certificate into English. The multi-lingual has English on it as well. I was planning on scanning the translation, including the certificate of translation and the original German certificate. (would that be ok?) Do I need to scan the original marriage cert or just the translation?

(5) Just to clarify, my referee (the optician) is an optometrist by profession (is that still ok?)

I have another question. On the online form, where it asks for other nationalities. I filled in the information for my Italian passport. I also mentioned that I have Nigerian nationality but my Nigerian passport has expired
and the system would not allow me to put the expired date. What do I need to do about that? I have included a note at the end of the application and I said I can provide it if required. I dont know if I should scan it as well.

Thanks for all your advice and clarifications.

[contorted_svy]

1- yes. Scan all pages.
2- yes that is ok.
4- no harm in scanning both the German marriage certificate and the translation
5- is he an optician or optometrist? I'm not sure if optometrists have a different professional body or if it's the same as opticians?

6- the form is very clunky. I would suggest to attach the expired passport (scans of all pages) and explain in a cover note. I'm not sure about your Italian passport, what does the form ask you to do about that?

[CR001]

5- is he an optician or optometrist? I'm not sure if optometrists have a different professional body or if it's the same as opticians?

There is only ONE regulatory body, the GOC,for optical professionals.

[Darejames]

The form just asks for other nationalities and the details to be filled out online and says "Can you provide it if required and I said "yes" to all of them.

There is no specific instruction asking for it other than the details.

[alterhase58]

The form just asks for other nationalities and the details to be filled out online and says "Can you provide it if required and I said "yes" to all of them.

There is no specific instruction asking for it other than the details.

Just fill in the details you can fill in - it's not about whether any passport has expired - passport is a travel document only.

[Darejames]

Thanks to you all. I have been very impressed with lots of insights and advice on this forum...its more than amazing...I will follow all your advice and proceed accordingly...and surely give update..

[Darejames]

Pls could you clarify this for me...the form asks: are you employed (Yes/No)? As I am self-employed, am I supposed to answer Yes.. a bit confused. The next section asks for type of employment and I have put in my self-employment details there..

Thanks.

[contorted_svy]

You are in employment (self-employed) so it is correct to answer yes.

[Darejames]

Thanks... appreciated...just finishing the online form... and getting things together

[Darejames]

Hi All,
Does it matter if I take the pictures of the documents to upload or is the pdf scan ok? Also, do they have to be coloured or black and white...

[AmazonianX]

Hi All,
Does it matter if I take the pictures of the documents to upload or is the pdf scan ok? Also, do they have to be coloured or black and white...

Use pdf scan (I think that's the accepted format). Can be either, just keep within accepted limit of NMT 6mb each.

[Darejames]

...@AmazonianX
Many thanks for the advice..I will do just that...it does make good sense..

[contorted_svy]

I scanned everything in black and white and it was accepted.

[Darejames]

...@contorted_svy
Many thanks. I will do the same

[Darejames]

Hi Moderators,
...@AlterHase
I want to start a new post but I am clueless..I am not sure if I can raise this topic here..so pls forgive me if I am out of line...I am a german citizen, does anyone have any update what the effect of acquiring BC and naturalisation is on German nationals...

I dont have a retention permit (Beibehaltungsgenehmigung from the Bundesverwaltungsamt)...Also what is the effect of the new citizenship law...planning to send my BC application in few days.

Thanks in advance for your consideration...

[alterhase58]

Hi Moderators,
...@AlterHase
I want to start a new post but I am clueless..I am not sure if I can raise this topic here..so pls forgive me if I am out of line...I am a german citizen, does anyone have any update what the effect of acquiring BC and naturalisation is on German nationals...

I dont have a retention permit (Beibehaltungsgenehmigung from the Bundesverwaltungsamt)...Also what is the effect of the new citizenship law...planning to send my BC application in few days.

Thanks in advance for your consideration...

No need to start a new thread - continue here.

Basically if you have no permit you will loose your German citizenship.

If you want to keep it wait until the revision has been passed by the Bundestag and come into force. Naturalisation is voluntary you can wait a few months without any issue.

[Darejames]

...@alterHase...Guess what!!! you are a saviour...always straight to the point. Danke mein Bruder.
I will wait...can't afford to loose my german nationality. Never knew this before. Was not in the loop of things...
Many thanks...

By the way is there any link for renewing German passport here in London and is there anything to be aware of? My renewal is coming soon...

[Darejames]

if i may also add another question...You know the old hardcover...i overheard someone saying the German passport has now been changed...how true is that...

[alterhase58]

German Embassy passport applications - all the info here: https://uk.diplo.de/uk-en/02/passports- ... 16/2539956

German passports are now the EU standard format, weinrot and softcover. Though the biometrics page is quite tough plastic (certainly on mine dating back to early 2020).

[Darejames]

many thanks...will go over it...I never knew about losing my German nationality while in Germany. I was applying for my Italian citizenship same time as for my German. It just happened that I got my Italian one just before the German nationality. Now I know why the officers were looking puzzled because I have three nationalities...lol...Many thanks. I was too consumed with the BC...well this forum has been helpful with you moderators and excellent advisers...

[alterhase58]

Note the current law applies to obtaining 3rd party (non-EU) nationalities, the UK counts as 3rd party now.
There's an exception for taking on EU nationalities.

[Darejames]

ok.. now I understand..
I am wondering if I don't want to apply for a British Passport is there any downside to having my ILR. My reason for asking is that I think it will be easier for me to travel back and forth to Germany with my German passport without facing EU ristrictions and ETIAS visa applications...I don't know if coming back there will be any issues with the border force here...As I have not traveled for over 5 years now... does anyone have ideas...

Also I realised that having the BC will invalidate my ILR...any ideas?