According to UK nationality law, being married to, or in a civil partnership with a UK national does not automatically grant you the right to acquire British citizenship.

If you wish to ultimately settle in the UK with your partner, you need to follow the naturalisation route. This allows you to become a citizen of the United Kingdom, providing that you meet specific eligibility criteria.

While other applicants need to spend a qualifying period of 5 years in the UK before they can apply for British naturalization, those who hold a Spouse visa are usually eligible only after 3 years.

British citizenship by marriage is a fundamental step for foreign spouses who wish to settle in the UK with their partners.

Once you are a naturalized British citizen, you will be able to live and work in the UK free from immigration controls.

It must be noted that this route to British citizenship is only available for those who are married or in a civil partnership with a UK national, providing that they have held Indefinite Leave to Remain for at least three years.

What is the British citizenship by marriage requirements?

British citizenship through marriage is the settlement route for those who are married to or in a civil partnership with a UK national or settled person.

Do I need to be a settled person to become a British citizen?

To qualify for British citizenship through marriage, you must have lived in the UK for at least three years before the date of your application. Most importantly, you must be a settled person. In fact, holding ILR is one of the mandatory preliminary steps in your journey through British naturalisation.

Before you apply for citizenship in the UK, you must have one of the following:

• Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK (ILR)
• EU Settled Status
• Indefinite Leave to Enter the UK (that is the permission to move to the UK permanently from abroad)

It must be noted that, as a part of your citizenship application, you will be asked to provide proof of your permanent residence status.

Residency requirements

To qualify for British citizenship as a spouse of a UK national, you must have lived in the UK for three years before you submit your application.

You are also required to meet the residency condition.

In other words, you must not have:

• Spent more than 270 days outside the UK during the three-year qualifying period before your application
• Spent more than 90 days abroad in the last 12 months before you submit your forms
• Broken any UK immigration law at any time during your residency in the UK.

“Good character” to qualify for British citizenship

Satisfying the “good character” requirement means that you must have respected UK law and fulfilled your obligations as a resident since the day you entered the country.

If you have a severe or recent criminal record, including any custodial sentence of more than 4 years, your British citizenship application will be refused. The same applies to those who have been guilty of an immigration offence in the last 10 years before their application, or that have first entered the country illegally.

Any imprisonment between 12 months and four years will impact your citizenship application unless at least 15 years have passed since the end of the sentence.

English Language Requirement for British Citizenship

The English language requirement can be met if you:

• Are a national of a majority English-speaking country
• Have valid speaking and listening certificate at level B1 CEFR or higher, from one of the Home Offices’ lists of recognised tests, taken at an approved test centre
• Obtained a degree in the UK
• Obtained a degree taught or researched in a majority English-speaking country and an AQUALS from UK NARIC confirming the qualification is equivalent to a UK qualification
• Obtained a degree taught or researched in a non-majority English-speaking country and an AQUALS from UK NARIC confirming the qualification is equivalent to a UK qualification and an English Language Proficiency Statement from UK NARIC.

Life in the UK Test

You must complete the Life in the UK test prior to submitting your naturalisation application. The test can be booked online and costs £50. It is a 45-minute test with 24 questions. 

There may be exemptions from both the English Language and Life in the UK requirements due to age and physical or mental condition.



If you need expert advice and assistance with an application for Naturalisation as a British citizen, contact us at 0203 865 6219 or leave a message.