British Citizenship refused.

[Suganthan]

Please anyone help me when can apply again??

Your application for British Citizenship has been refused.

Your application for British Citizenship was received on 12th Feb 2024 Your application has been considered under section 6(1) of the British Nationality Act 1981.

You have not demonstrated that you meet the requirements for British Citizenship and your application has been refused.

What this means for you

You have not been naturalised as a British Citizen.

The reasons for this decision are set out in the next section.


On behalf of the Secretary of State for the Home Department

Your personal information
The Data Protection Act 2018 governs how we use personal data. For details of how we will use your personal information and who we may share it with please see our Privacy Notice for the Border, Immigration and Citizenship system at https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... itizenship. This also explains your key rights under the Act, how you can access your personal information and how to complain if you have concerns.

Reasons for decision

Based on the evidence available you do not meet the requirements to naturalise as a British citizen because:
• you do not meet the Good Character requirement.

One of the requirements for citizenship is that the applicant is of good character. ‘Good character’ is not defined in the British Nationality Act 1981, but the applicant is expected to have shown due regard for the laws of this country.

You have not met this requirement because of: Your criminality.

You were convicted of sexual assault on 1st September 2009 at Ealing magistrates and given a suspended sentence of eight weeks for a two-year period. You subsequently broke the requirements of the suspended sentence and was imprisoned for eight weeks on 6th April 2010 at Ealing magistrates.

Your conviction has been considered in accordance with the good character requirement. The guidance states that an exceptional case is one where on the facts of the case, the application would normally be refused but there are mitigating circumstances which mean it would be appropriate to grant.
When considering all factors on the balance of probabilities, we are not satisfied that there are sufficiently compelling mitigating circumstances to demonstrate you are now of good character, and therefore an exceptional grant is not appropriate.
It is open to you to re-apply for citizenship at any time, but in light of offences, any application made before 12th February 2034 is unlikely to succeed. Before submitting a further application for citizenship, you should ensure that you meet all the requirements.

It has been noted that you applied for Naturalisation in 2019 but this was refused based on the Residency not being met. Unfortunately, our new Good Character policy came into effect in July 2023. Your application date application is 12th February 2024, therefore during your application, we would need to be satisfied you meet this requirement.

Next steps
The application fee for British Citizenship is not refundable and has been retained to cover the cost of handling and processing your application.

Include only if a ceremony fee is being returned.
You will be refunded the sum of £80.00 because you are not required to attend a citizenship ceremony.

You can request a review of this decision using the form at https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... ed-form-nr

If you still wish to become a British Citizen, you can make a new application. You can do this at any time, but you are advised to ensure, as far as possible, that the requirements are met before doing so.

[contorted_svy]

Have you committed this offence? Have you done anything to rehabilitate your character? You have clearly been told you need to wait 10 years before applying again.

[secret.simon]

I think the two important parts of that message are

You were convicted of sexual assault on 1st September 2009 at Ealing magistrates and given a suspended sentence of eight weeks for a two-year period. You subsequently broke the requirements of the suspended sentence and was imprisoned for eight weeks on 6th April 2010 at Ealing magistrates.

AND

our new Good Character policy came into effect in July 2023.

The new Good Character Policy deal very strongly with any form of criminality, particularly one where there was either a sexual element or one with imprisonment and in your case, there was both.

A person will normally be refused if they:

have received a custodial sentence of at least 12 months in the UK or overseas
have consecutive sentences totalling at least 12 months in the UK or overseas
are a persistent offender who shows a particular disregard for the law
have committed an offence which has caused serious harm
have committed a sexual offence or their details are recorded by the police on a register

A person must be refused if they have:

a custodial sentence of less than 12 months
a non-custodial sentence or out-of-court disposal recorded on their criminal record

and you (the caseworker) are not satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that they are of good character. See considering the balance of probabilities.

I would suggest that given that your criminal conviction was for a sexual crime, and it was repeated, followed by a custodial sentence, that it is unlikely that you will receive British citizenship in the short-to-medium term.

[Suganthan]

Have you committed this offence? Have you done anything to rehabilitate your character? You have clearly been told you need to wait 10 years before applying again.

Ok thanks why they mention 10 year's?? Policy end after 10 years

[Suganthan]

Ok thanks why they mention 10 year's?? Policy end after 10 years

[alterhase58]

It is open to you to re-apply for citizenship at any time, but in light of offences, any application made before 12th February 2034 is unlikely to succeed.

That's a standard "ban" on approval.
Though the wording keeps the door open just slightly, in case you can show compelling evidence that you should be granted citizenship before the 10 years are up.

[Suganthan]

Please can you give me advice on Evidence. Are you sure before ten years l can give evidence. I have 3 kids, who already have they're British passports, l know where l was wrong, in the past. I hope you can understand. Do you think they will accept it? Would they think l'm suspicious if l give evidence on the citizens ?

[contorted_svy]

You would need tp show that your character has changed, eg you volunteer in your community. You having children who are British would not make an impact on your good character.

[secret.simon]

Ok thanks why they mention 10 year's?? Policy end after 10 years

Essentially, they're saying what I advised: that in the short-to-medium term of about 10 years, you have very little chance of being naturalised.

The policy may change in ten years time. Your chances of naturalisation will depend on what the policy is when you reapply.

I have 3 kids, who already have they're British passports

That's irrelevant. Your children having British citizenship doesn't give you a right to British citizenship.

The point is, the offence was serious (sexual in nature), repeated at least twice, tried in court and resulted in a court conviction and time served. It would be very hard to get past all that.

[Suganthan]

Hi, all thanks for yours reply,

After 2 years i will applied again with some evidence like, committy work, working at church any other evidence let me know?
Can I appiled??? Please repy all

[contorted_svy]

You can reapply at any time providing as much evidence as you can that your character has changed, but as explained in the letter and in other comments it is not obvious you will be successful. You should review the Good Character guidance, especially the sections about Custodial convictions and Serious Harm. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.u ... racter.pdf

[Suganthan]

Please reply more clearly please....
If I'm send evidence they will accepted? More likely? what you think example evidence tell me more likely accepted??

[contorted_svy]

There is no reassurance you will be accepted - especially after the recent change in the good character policy and the harsher approach they take towards people with prison sentences. The answers we gave you are all dictated by guidance. Ultimately this is decided by caseworkers, and citizenship is not a right but a privilege, they can set/interpret the rules how they prefer.

[Suganthan]

Please help which evidence saw passing citizenship get soon , any idea?? Please advice

[contorted_svy]

We have offered the best advice we have. We are not professional solicitors - if you want to reapply in the near future suggest you consult a solicitor.

[Casa]

Please help which evidence saw passing citizenship get soon , any idea?? Please advice

Repeatably asking the same question in multiple posts, won't get you a different answer.

[Scotland001]

Please reply more clearly please....
If I'm send evidence they will accepted? More likely? what you think example evidence tell me more likely accepted??

Considering your case, it appears that 15 years have passed since your conviction. I would recommend writing a detailed cover letter outlining how you have reformed during this time, supported by relevant references. The significant time period itself also reflects personal growth. Additionally, were you placed on the offenders register, and if so, for how long?

[Suganthan]

No offenders register end of register

[secret.simon]

No offenders register end of register

This is unclear. Were you ever on the offender's register, even in the past, even if you no longer are on the register now? If you were, when did it end and for how long were you on it?

[Suganthan]

l was registered for 10 years. The register office told me (2016 July) you are no longer registered anymore, we will remove your name from the list.

[secret.simon]

Having ever been on the list may be problematic for British citizenship. At the very least, if you live in in the UK outside Northern Ireland, the Home Office can take into account offences that are 'spent' for other purposes.

Applicants are required to disclose all convictions, regardless of whether or not they are ‘spent’ under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (1974 Act). You may take into account any past convictions regardless of when they took place, as nationality decisions are exempt from section 4 of the 1974 Act that provides for certain convictions to become ‘spent’ after fixed periods of time.

That is to say that the Home Office can take into account criminal convictions that are no longer considered in the recent past/excused for the purposes of good character. I wouldn't rate highly your chances of getting British citizenship in the next 10 years, but @Scotland001 may advise otherwise.