Shorter Citizenship Pathway for foreign-born Spouses of British Citizens
Create a new shorter pathway for foreign spouses of British Citizens to apply for citizenship. The current 5 year visa, followed by an application for ILR before being allowed to apply for Citizenship is, we believe, costly and distressing for couples trying to settle in the UK.
Signatures
7
signatures
Government response threshold (10,000) · 7/10,000
Debate threshold (100,000) · 7/100,000
- 30 JUL 2026Petition opened for signaturesCreated by Jade Winterhoff
Background
Many Commonwealth nations have specific paths for foreign born spouses gaining sponsorship and residency. In Australia, Spouses can apply immediately with a 2 year visa that ends with eligibility to apply for Permanent Residency. The only delay beyond this is processing time. The process is the same in Canada, whereby a Canadian Citizen can sponsor their spouse for 2 years whilst awaiting their PR application to process. We do not understand why the UK insists on a minimum of 5+ years and what we consider to be extortionate fees.