Update from UKVI on renunciation of British citizenship

Today I received the first form of confirmation of receipt of my renunciation form being under consideration. It is worth adding that the cost of couriering the papers with an overnight courier service may have proven itself to be an unnecessary expense, given that the paperwork was received by UKVI six working days before receiving a response by e-mail, thereby indicating that Registered Delivery from Austria to the UK may be perfectly sufficient in terms of ensuring safe delivery and that it is signed for upon delivery.

Today I received a simple e-mail with my case ID number (a simple eight digit number) and my name, and scant little other information, save for the fact that the generic mail suggests it may take up to six months to make the decision. At least I need not fear statelessness in light of renunciation kicking in before my Austrian citizenship kicks in, but also worth considering in light of this message, that those in a similar citizen are recommended to not delay in submission for the event that UKVI is not able to stick to the 6 month processing time.

“UK Visas & Immigration

Dear [NAME],

Case ID: [CASE ID NUMBER]

Thank you for your application to the Home Office. Your application has been received and is being considered.

It may take up to six months to make a decision on your case. If we are unable to process your application within six months we will tell you as soon as possible.

Our web page contains further information on our service standards and other information which may relate to your application.

Please note that this is an automated response confirming receipt of your application and does not accept responses. Please do not reply to this email.

If there is a change in your circumstances, we kindly ask that you only contact us using this link: [LINK REMOVED]

Permanent migration team”

It should however be mentioned that the “service standards” from their website (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-visas-and-immigration/about-our-services#service-standards) do not stipulate a standard processing time for the renunciation of British citizenship, and only refers to the “inbound” side of things (ie. for visa applications and settlement to or in the UK that are made from abroad), so hopefully the process will be considerably quicker.

21 Replies to “Update from UKVI on renunciation of British citizenship”

      1. Hi brit_in_wien, I have recently applied to renounce British Citizenship and received the same information. How long did it take for you?

        1. I submitted mine on 14th June, saw the credit card charged on 25th June and received the renunciation dated 24th July on 1st August, having become Austrian on 9th July. There is now an online renunciation process, which might be quicker, although some who used it said that they were left a long time before any confirmation was received.

          1. So what documents do they require? What information do they ask you when you apply online?? Do we submit passport and neutralisation certificate too. Please do let me know thanks

  1. I submitted mine online (and paid the EXPENSIVE GBP372 fee) and received the payment confirmation email on the same day within minutes (June 5th Friday night).

    The email contained an acknowledgment of payment, reference number, as well as the link to a check list to print/courier to their Liverpool office.

    I sent mine via Fedex on the 9th (Tuesay) and they received it (according to FedEx tracking) on the 12th (Friday)

    No reply from the government/department that they’ve started processing the application as of today (17th).

    Summary:

    Applied online – June 5th (From Asia)
    Paid fee: June 5th
    Mailed out documents: June 9th (Business Day +2)
    Documents physically received in Liverpool: June 12th (Business Day +5)

    1. So how long did the whole process take for you?
      What information do they ask you online? What documents do we send in too?

    2. So how long did the whole process take for you? What documents did u submit?? What information do they ask you online

      1. Do you mean for the entire naturalisation or just the renunciation – if the former check through my past posts for details about the duration (including hold-up from my side).

    3. Any further update – seems you are not the only one encountering a delay with them (not defending them at all!)

    4. Hi Dave, are you able to share if you had successfully renounce your citizenship? I met the same issue as you and was wondering how long they are gonna take for this renunciation.

  2. Sent my application 4th February. Got the same ‘no reply possible’ email acknowledging receipt. Have heard NOTHING since. Nearly 6 months now. You’ve to pay a fee to email or phone them. It’s atrocious for the amount of money they’re charging us.

    1. I can’t defend the Home Office on this front – they take the money at the start of the process and the system is utterly arcane and impenetrable in terms of trying to speak to a human being or have some form of correspondence with them. Given the problems with passport issuing also not working very well at the moment (currently they urge people not to renew to help them cut the backlog) in light of the Covid-19 pandemic it appears nothing is working. Keep us posted about when you do finally hear from them.

  3. Anyone with fresher experiences during the pandemic? I’d hate to have to wait 6 month before I get a travel document. (I need to renounce to even apply for the one I want)

    1. Are you a third country national? As an EU citizen naturalising you are not allowed to be stateless. You wouldn’t need to renounce first to take Austrian unless you are a third country national (this could be the case for Britons from 1.1.2021)

  4. I did the online version of the form and sent my documents. Was worried that Brexit could back up air freight as I have heard some recent horror stories. Luckily no problem.

    Apart from a few minor points, it was fairly smooth. I have the generic email response. Now I have to wait. I hope it is the quoted 4 to 6 weeks as above.

    Does anyone know when they send you the declaration and I assume send your old passport back with corner cut off, how do they send it? Is it some kind of semi-secure overseas registered mail that doesn’t require a signature or is it FedEx/UPS style courier?

    Wish me luck, I’m hoping for the 4 to 6 week response.

    1. When I did my renunciation the returned form came through in a DHL envelop, which I had to pick up from a package shop. A curious end to my life as a Briton. And yes passports, if you request them back after cancellation are with a corner cut off. I countersigned forms for someone renouncing recently and he has not had the form back yet after eight weeks.

      1. I have been waiting since May that is when I received my ID number and my payment was debited from my visa. Since then I have sent a letter inquiring how things are progressing, no reply. There is no telephone number, no email address or does someone have one?

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