(cross posted in americaninuk)
I registered for a National Insurance Number today in England.  Which made me curious, being a US citizen and having all ready accrued some social security, if I retired in the UK on a british pension, would I also be eligible to claim my social security from the states (assuming it is available by the time I retire) or vise versa?

 I recently discovered that I'm a dual citizen of UK and the US via my father who was born in England.  I studied in Sheffield from January-July 2007 (study abroad) and really enjoyed it. I'm now nearing the end of my undergraduate years at University in Chicago and am hoping to return to the UK.  I ran across this site and was hoping that someone could help me answer a few questions.....

1. Do I have to pay the home fees (which are so much cheaper!!) to go to school in England or will I be forced to pay the International fees?

2. I haven't actually applied yet to get the passport, but does anyone know how long it took them (I'm hoping to leave Sept. 2008 to get an MA Taught Degree...studying in London)???

3. I'm so confused by all of the legal jargon that I'm reading about citizenship, passports, fees, etc.!!  Okay.,..that wasn't really a question, just a frustrated comment!

Thanks everyone!

Do teachers count as people with "professional standing" for the purpose of acting as referees on citizenship applications?

TIA!

(I can dredge up an accountant if not--just thinking of the easiest person. No, I haven't been with the same GP for 3 years, can't use them. God, I hate this referee system!)

According to the BBC's top story immigrants who want to become British and settle permanently in the UK will soon need to pass more tests to "prove their worth" to the country.
( More... )

The situation: A friend of mine(South African/Canadian citizenship) has ILR and has been married to a British citizen for over three years. She and her husband are poor as churchmice so she can't afford all the governmental rigmarole to get her citizenship right now. A group of her online friends are secretly saving up to give them the money for her application fee on their 4th anniversary in August (she doesn't read this community so it's okay), but I was thinking about giving her the study book and the £34 fee for her birthday next month so she could have time to study and pass the test before August. Being a nervous test taker, she needs all the time and preparation she can get.

Is this feasible? Can she take the test before paying the application fee or does it all have to be done together? If it CAN be done separately, is there a time limit between the time she takes the test and when she has to have her application completed? If she goes over that time, will she have to sit the test again?

I would appreciate any insight you could provide.

I received my British passport in the mail today - which made today, after 20 years of not having the tangible proof, quite extraordinary. Thanks to all of you who put up with my questions and offered loads of advice; you are all legends.

And, because I wouldn't be me if I didn't ask something:

Is there anything I need to do regarding my citizenship, beyond having this? For instance, is moving there/working there as easy as picking up and going?

Will there never be stamps in my passports again, since I'll be leaving/entering the UK/US on the appropriate passports? Will that not look a bit funny?

Again, thanks heaps for everything. I would have been lost without this community.

Link

"Unskilled workers from non-EU countries will be banned from taking jobs in the UK for the "foreseeable future", the government has said.

Foreign nationals who want to marry a British person and come to the UK will also have to sit an English test.

The moves come as ministers unveil details of their new points-based system for migrants.

About 12,000 unskilled migrants from non-EU countries in Africa, America and Asia came to work in the UK last year.

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith set out the proposals, which come into force in 100 days' time, in a speech at the London School of Economics.

She said that immigration policy should not just be about economics but should also take into account the wider impact on society.

She also stressed the importance of migrants learning English.

Ms Smith told BBC News the aim of the proposals was to "control those who come here, for the good of the country".

In moves aimed at strengthening "British values", Ms Smith wants a clampdown on forced marriages, English tests for spouses applying to enter the UK and tighter restrictions on convicted criminals gaining citizenship.

It comes ahead of the launch of an Australian-style points-based immigration system in the early part of next year."


Obviously this could have implications for some members of this community.

For the time being it does seem that it will still be possible to obtain a visa for a married partner, although from March 15th (I think) they will have to sit a written English test similar to the 'Life in the UK' cultural awareness exam.

Any thoughts on this or general comments on the UK's increasingly hardline immigration policy?

Hi there! I'm originally from the US, and have lived in the UK for over 4 years now. I was on a student visa for 3 of those years and now I'm on a limited leave to remain visa due to the fact that I'm married to a British bloke and have a little one. I'm due to apply for the indefinite visa next year and want to also apply for UK citizenship soon afterwards.

My question is this: I've been hearing that the UK is toughening up on immigration and am wondering whether I will be affected by this? It's similar to the point system that Australia already has and now the UK is bringing it in too. I've already done the Life in the UK test and obviously I'm a native English speaker so there's no problems there either. I can easily obtain professional referees here that I've known for more than 3 years and I have no qualms about attending an interview, if need be.

Thanks in advance for your help!

It turns out that my dad has a lot more stuff than I thought he did. He has half of what I need to get the ball rolling: his original (hand-written, city-stamped) birth certificate, declaration of dissolution of his first marriage, and his marriage certificate to my mom. However, he's in Iowa and I'm in California.

It would save me some money by not having to get copies of all those things, one of which I would have to send away to Edinburgh for. Is there any way that they'll take notarized copies of these documents?

Not sure how many of you read the separatedbyacommonlanguage blog, but here's an entry (with subsequent relevant comments) on the use of "Brit" and what the best word is (if there is in fact such a thing, because there seem to be problems with most options) to call residents of the UK and its constituent countries. A lot of the attitudes seem to be very similar to those on here. In my own personal experience, most of my overseas friends are in the "neutral, but foreign" camp, with a few "I don't like it all" mixed in.
Anyhoots, thought I'd post it in order to spark more discussion/reactions on what seems to be a hot topic here lately.

Welcome to brits_americans! So, you're thinking about moving to the UK, eh? Before posting any questions you might have, please look over the following questions:

1. Are you a current student? If yes, then study abroad through your university. If your university does not offer a study abroad program, it may be possible for you to study abroad through a different university and transfer your credits.

2. Are you a recent graduate or student on summer break? If yes, then check out the BUNAC, where you can obtain a 6 month work visa to work in the UK.

3. Are you an aspiring student? If yes, then apply to UK universities through the UCAS system if you're going to be an undergrad, or directly through the university you're interested in for graduate study. You may be able to stay longer through the International Graduates Scheme or Scotland's Fresh Talent Scheme. Feel free to ask questions about study abroad here or in nor_am_uk_ac and colddampgrad, both great communities dedicated to North Americans wanting to study in the UK.

4. Do you have one or more degrees and earn at least $55,000 a year? You may qualify for the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme.

4a. You may also qualify for the HSMP if you are under 27, make $40,000 per year and have earned your graduate degree in the UK, or if you graduated from a top 20 US MBA program.

5. If you work in a Shortage Occupation, you may be able to obtain a work permit.

6. Are you the child of a British citizen? You are probably eligible for citizenship by ancestry. If you are the child of an EU or Commonwealth (e.g. Canadian) citizen, there may also be other options for you, such as the Working Holidaymaker visa.

7. Are you the significant other of a Brit and looking to take the plunge? Look into a fiance, civil partnership or spousal visa (depending on your situation--more info here). Unfortunately there's no way for international couples to have that "get to know each other" period, other than through the options described above.

8. Are you 17, broke, unqualified but OMG just LOVE England!!!111!!!?
If so, go get a degree and then see the other options. If you don't want to, forget it. The UK already has enough useless teenagers.

8a: If you are 17, broke, unqualified and post on this community without having read this entry, we reserve the right to take the piss mercilessly until a mod sees the post and deletes it. Think of it as a useful introduction to British culture. :)

To sum up, you can't just move to the UK and hope you can find a job. If you're thinking about moving to the UK, just remember the process is tedious in just about every route you go through, even if some of these situations apply to you.

That said, if you *are* in a situation where emigrating to the UK is a viable option, please feel free to post questions in this community. Many of our members have studied abroad, worked abroad, or married British citizens (or some combination of the three), and would be glad to share their experiences with you. Be sure to have a look through the community tags to see if your question has already been answered. We'd be glad to help with questions that may be a little less straightforward (e.g. moving to the UK on a spousal visa/student visa/work permit with a dependent).

---

This post will be subject to change. As immigration laws tend to be. We'll do our best to keep it current, though. :) If the tone makes you a bit nervous, maybe you should reconsider being part of this community--dativesingular may have posted this, but the phrasing of the content was very much a group effort. A little bit on the snarky side is just how we roll. :)

Sorry if I don't reply til much later. And sorry if this has been asked in the past-- but I've not seen it in the last couple of months.

I have a question, it came up in a convo I was having at the local pub... It's for all American citizens who have applied (and granted) UK Citizenship.

Did you, or did the US government, renounce your US Citizenship once you became a UK Citizen? I know on the website it says you risk losing it-- but I'm just curious as to how many US Citizens here hold a dual citizenship with the UK, or if it actually did get renounced in the process, etc.

Any thoughts on this subject would be great. I'm just curious for future information.

My mother has lived in the UK for 36 years, and is married to a UK citizen. Immigration keep telling her to just get a UK passport already, and she's having increasing trouble dealing with the immigration lines at the airports.

The reason she's never got one before is that you always needed to surrender your passport, and the one occasion she got through on the phone they warned this could be six months to a year. She travels abroad every couple of months, including visiting ill relatives at short notice.

So my questions, seeing as I've never been able to get through on the phone either:
How long does it take to get naturalised status in practice?
This website claims you can avoid sending your passport off - do they insist you send it in later? http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/applying/nationality/
[update]
Hey, according to this you can just take all your docs to your local council office and they'll authorise copies and you don't need to surrender your passport at all! They kept that quiet! One of the participating offices is just down the road from my mum!
http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/applying/nationality/ncs

Anything else I should know about before prodding my mum to get this over and done with? I'm looking forward to hearing her vocal opinions of the Life in the UK test...

I am a dual citizen with the US and the UK. I was born after 1983, so I fit into that nationality act.

I have filled information for a UK passport, however, I am not sure what specific forms I should fill out as far as registration with the consulate and everything. Also, do I still have to take the "Living in England" test?

If anyone knows the specific forms I am looking for or their links it would be appreciated. I'd like to see about working in the European Union after college, but I'm very unsure about the specific forms needed if trying to register as a dual citizen (beyond passports).

Thanks!