People applying for British citizenship are charged more than five times the amount it costs the Home Office to process their application.
A new Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) report shows it costs people £1,709 to apply to become a British citizen, but it costs the Home Office just £324 to process the application.
Successful applicants also have to pay £130 for a citizenship ceremony, bringing their total cost to £1,839.
Marley Morris, the author of the report, said: ‘A fair society should view new migrants as potential citizens and actively encourage people to commit to their new home. Yet the act of getting citizenship is a largely bureaucratic process that is priced out of reach for many.
‘If we want long-term residents to be included in our common life, there should be a clear and affordable route to becoming British.’
The citizenship fee comes after many applicants have already paid thousands in visa fees, as well as the immigration health charge, which is currently set at £1,035 for adults.
Steve Valdez-Symonds, the refugee and migration policy lead at Amnesty International, said: ‘Successive governments have charged these increasingly high fees for the purpose of passing the cost of the UK’s immigration system form the taxpayer on to migrant people – this includes the cost of the system’s errors and delays.
‘But governments are increasing the burden upon people seeking to make their new lives in the UK, people who already pay taxes and may have also paid solicitors and court fees too.’
With this in mind, the IPPR has called for fees to be brought closer to the cost of processing applications and for clearer routes to citizenship for people who have lived in the UK for years.
Former home secretary David Blunkett is asking for people to be supported in showing their contribution to the communities they live in.
‘The journey to naturalisation could be sped up as people are supported to demonstrate their commitment and contribution to the community in which they live,’ Blunkett said. ‘The same approach could be used as part of this journey to citizenship to invest in and develop greater social cohesion and integration.’
With this in mind, The IPPR wants the Life in the UK test to be replaced with a new test about British life, institutions and shared values.
The Home Office have stated they don’t profit from immigration and nationality fees and that any income helps fund the migration system.
Image: Caspar Rae/UnSplash
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