to be pissed off at how much I am paying the Home Office!!

[MichKit]

Sorry, just a rant. Am off to get naturalised as a British citizen tomorrow and its costing me £750 for me + £460 for DD. Already paid the Home Office £200 for original visa, £255 to extend student visa, £450 for dependent visa, £750 for permanent residency, all in the past 7 years. And after this I will have to pay more for a passport.

Have paid through the nose on taxes, have not been claiming ANY benefits (including child, though I should now!).

AIBU to be feeling taken advantage of? Especially when a friend who works for the HO told me that teh actual admin costs to do all these visas are minimal?

Mummygirl, that's waht I'd like to know. My friend says that the charges are arbitary, and there is no real justification for them.

And I can see that as well, as when I first came here I was hit with the £255 student visa extension, when the year and years before it had been free. So where does all this extra money go, and how come they haven't always charged this? Plus why does it increase by huge amounts every year and not necessarily in line with inflation?

Well, having read that last post, yes, you have to naturalise because ILR does expire if you live out of the UK for 2 years, whereas naturalisation does not.

So yeah, you'd need to naturalise or re-apply and pay, for LLR again if you wish to come back to live in the UK and you are a non-EU/EEA national.

I know that because a good friend of mine is an immigration solicitor in London.

And yes, Bucha's right as well, people born with the right to British nationality do not have to register.

All they need to do is get a British passport.

Why do they need to have a 'justification' for charging the fees? What would be justifiable to you?

Who knows where the money goes, maybe it goes into the bottomless pit of money that we presumably spend processing asylum claims and chucking people out who've overstayed their Visas?

And,be careful michkit, because AFAIK, there is still the future intentions requirement for natn, so if you are about to go awol for 2 yrs, then your FIs can't be said to be in the UK. Have a good read of the website before making any appn.

They don't need to justify anything.

If you don't like it, don't pay it and deal with the consequence.

It's really a matter of sucking it up.

That's what you have to do in life sometimes.

The money used to pay my wages when I worked in the nationality office acksherly

So people that pay to stay lawfully are paying for people that want to stay unlawfully! Not very fair.

..or, as Bucharest says, paying for the people who process the applications.

It's just like taxes. The people who pay pay for the people who don't pay. That's life.

Thanks Bucharest, I'll check on that. DH's placement starts late next year, do you know if that will affect this application? We are not going AWOL, only to Denmark.

Life is fair?

Damn, when did that happen! The boat seemed to have left me behind about 20 years ago.

...and asylum claims are not 'staying unlawfully', btw.

...and asylum claimants are not 'staying unlawfully', btw.

YOu've just justified your wages there by the way Bucharest Kidding, don't flame me please.

expat.

MichKit - IIRC, if you are living out of the UK for longer than two years you have to reapply for ILR

Midnight, I meant those that overstay/ don't have their visas, not asylum claimants. Should have made that clear, my bad.

Expat, that was funny

www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/britishcitizenship/eligibility/naturalisation/standardrequirements/

There you go, cheap at half the price.

Ah, yes, see what you mean about living outside the UK. It isn't always the case that ILR is revoked, but there is a risk. Presumably the same conditions would apply as existed when you first got it.

But it's a risk, and see why you are applying for nationality.

Still think it's a bargain though.

I wish the actual price was just as cheap Its a months salary for me!

And I have to give up my current nationality as it doesn't allow dual with Britain (but am not grumbling about that here, have done that already!)

Oh and I forgot to add the 'Life in the UK' test price to my original price list

For a lifetime of fabulous summers, English seaside resorts and fish suppers it's a bargain michkit!

Plus, you pay for England, you get Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland into the bargain. 4 countries for the price of one.

Pay it and stay or don't pay it and go basically. That is the way it is when you live in another country. Of course you have a choice, just because you don't like one of the choices (i.e. having to leave your DH) doesn't mean it isn't a choice.

I don't know about British citizenship for babies born abroad. But it is going to cost us money to register this new baby as an Australian citizen (he/she will be entitled to it, but there is an administration charge) as well as the cost of their passport. Which is fine, as I said above, just the way it goes.

Well, I suppose I could justify paying for Wales I do like their mountains.