Registering A Person Born To British Mother Before 1983

You can apply to register as a British citizen using form UKM if you were born to a British mother before 1 January 1983. All successful applicants will become British citizens by descent. As a British citizen by descent you will not normally be able to pass on British citizenship to any children born outside British territory.

Eligibility Requirements

You willbe entitled to registration if you meet all of these requirements:

1. you were born before 1 January 1983
2. you would have become a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies by descent if, before 1 January 1983, women had been able to pass on citizenship to their children in the same way as menat the time of your birth
3. you would have acquired a right of abode in the UK because:
   • your mother was, at the time of your birth, a citizen of the UnitedKingdom and Colonies by birth, legal adoption, naturalisation or registration in the United Kingdom, Channel Islands or Isle of Man, or
   • one of your mother’s parents was a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies by birth, legal adoption, naturalisation or registration in the United Kingdom, Channel Islands or Isle of Man at the time of her birth,or
   • one of your father’s parents was a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies by birth, legal adoption, naturalisation or registration in the United Kingdom, Channel Islands or Isle of Man at the time of his birth, or
   • you were resident in the United Kingdom for a continuous period of 5 years before1983 and had become settled in the United Kingdom by the end of that 5 year period, or
   • you are a woman who, before 1 January 1983, was or had been married to a man with the right of abode in the United Kingdom

It is important that you meet all of these requirements. You cannot register using form UKM unless you would automatically have become a British citizen on 1 January 1983 if women had been able to pass citizenship on or before that date. You will not qualify for registration if you would have become a British overseas citizen or a British dependent territories citizen on 1 January 1983, if women had been able to pass citizenship on before that date.

Citizenship Ceremony

If your application is successful and you are living in the UK, you will be invited to attend a citizenship ceremony. You will receive an invitation letter from the Home Office, UKVI and this will confirm the local authority you should contact to arrange your citizenship ceremony. The Home Office, UKVI expects you to arrange to attend a ceremony within 3 months of receiving your invitation otherwise it will expire and you will have to re-apply for registration and pay a further processing fee.

If you are living abroad, your citizenship ceremony will take place at the embassy or consulate in the country you are living in.

If you do not attend the ceremony within 3 months without good reason, your application for citizenship will be refused by the Home Office UKVI.

At the ceremony, you will be asked to affirm or swear an oath of allegiance to Her Majesty the Queen and to pledge your loyalty to the UK. Following this you will be presented with your certificate of registration as a British citizen. Making the Oath (or Affirmation) and Pledge at a citizenship ceremony is a legal requirement, and the point at which you will become a British citizen. Successful applicants are rarely exempt from ceremonies and only if they are physically unable to attend or if their mental state would make it inappropriate to attend. If you wish to be exempt you should say why and provide supporting evidence.

How Can We Help?

Our expert team of nationality law solicitors in London can represent you in your application for registration as a British Citizen and carry out all the work on your British Citizenship application until a decision on your application is received from the Home Office UKVI. As part of our professional legal services in relation to your application for registration as a British Citizen, our specialist team of immigration solicitors will carry out the following immigration casework:

• We will assess your eligibility for registration as a British Citizen by considering all the relevant information including your past immigration history;
• We will advise  you on the chances of success in your application for registration as a British Citizen and would draw your attention to any weaknesses in your application;
• We will advise you on the list of documents to be submitted in support of your application for registration as a British Citizen;
• We will assess all the supporting documents to ensure that the documents you provide duly satisfy the Home Office UKVI requirements for registration as a British Citizen;
• We will complete the relevant application form online for your registration as a British citizen, submit the same online, help you pay the Home Office UKVI fee for the application and schedule your appointment with the application centre for enrolment of your biometrics;
• We will prepare a detailed cover letter in support of the application explaining in detail your eligibility for registration as a British Citizen by referring to all the relevant information, documents, laws and requirements;
• We will upload all the supporting documents online to be considered in support of the application including our cover letter prepared to support your application;
• We will carry out all the work on your application for registration as a British Citizen until a decision is received from the Home Office UKVI on your application.

How Much We Charge?

Unless your application is very complicated, our fees for an application for registration as a British Citizen are given in the fee table below:

The agreed fixed fee will depend on the complexity of your registration application and the volume of casework involved in the application. In addition to our fixed fee for registration application, the applicant will also have to pay the Home office UKVI fees for the registration application.