On July 30, 2023, the UK Government unveiled substantial modifications to the good character requirement for individuals seeking British citizenship. These changes swiftly came into effect on July 31, 2023, signalling a more rigorous approach to granting citizenship, particularly for individuals with a criminal record.
The Home Office has introduced a set of new regulations that will make it considerably more challenging for individuals with a history of criminal convictions to attain British citizenship. The enforcement of these changes applies these stricter criteria to all new citizenship applications from individuals who have served a prison sentence lasting at least 12 months. This move underscores the government’s steadfast commitment to safeguarding the nation’s borders and ensuring that individuals with criminal records cannot exploit the UK’s immigration and nationality system.
The revised rules for assessing “good character” requirements will be more stringent and specific, explicitly targeting serious offenders, irrespective of when or where their crimes occurred.
Good character requirements constitute a pivotal condition for acquiring British citizenship. They evaluate an applicant’s adherence to UK laws and their respect for the rights and freedoms of British citizens. These requirements encompass considerations such as criminal convictions, immigration violations, and grave offences like war crimes, terrorism, or genocide.
These new measures supersede the previous regulations that allowed some individuals with criminal backgrounds to secure British citizenship after a specified number of years had passed since the completion of their sentence, regardless of the nature of the offence or its location.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman emphasized the significance of this crackdown, stating, “British citizenship is a privilege. Those who commit crimes shouldn’t be able to enjoy the breadth of rights citizenship brings, including holding a British passport, voting, and accessing free medical care from the NHS. I am cracking down on abuse of the UK’s immigration and nationality system by introducing a tougher threshold so that serious criminals cannot gain British citizenship. This is the fair and right thing to do for our country.”
As is customary with Immigration Rules, there will be exceptions, and citizenship may still be granted in cases where strong mitigating circumstances support the grant. For instance, an individual who committed a minor offence, with a significant period of rehabilitation since the offence, may be considered of “good character.” Such cases will be assessed individually by the Home Office.
The Criteria for Refusal
Under the revised guidelines, an application for citizenship will likely be declined if the applicant:
- Has received a custodial sentence of at least 12 months in the UK or abroad.
- Has consecutive sentences totalling at least 12 months in the UK or abroad.
- Is a persistent offender who exhibits a significant disregard for the law.
- Has committed an offence causing serious harm.
- Has committed a sexual offence or is recorded by the police on a register.
Furthermore, an individual must be refused if they have:
- A custodial sentence of less than 12 months.
- A non-custodial sentence or an out-of-court disposal is recorded on their criminal record, and the Home Office official is not satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that the applicant is of good character.
Given the complexity of nationality law and these changes to the Good Character requirements, applicants falling into any of the above criteria are strongly advised to seek legal advice if they aspire to become British citizens.
How can we help
To discuss your British Citizenship application with an experienced adviser from our team, contact us on 0208 757 5751 or use our contact form.
