Becoming a British citizen
Getting British citizenship, becoming a British citizen and naturalising as a British citizen, all mean the same thing. We say ‘becoming a British citizen’ on these pages.
- There is no legal right to become a British citizen unless you are a stateless person. ‘A stateless person’ means you do not have any kind of citizenship.
- You can be a citizen of two different nations at the same time
- It costs a lot of money to become a British citizen
- It normally takes between 3 and 6 months but can be quicker.
Get advice about becoming a British citizen if there is anything on these pages you do not understand.
Choose 1 of the 2 options below
Option 1 Becoming an adult British citizen
Option 2 Register a child as a British citizen