Start typing and hit "Enter" to search.
Can You Get a British Passport/Citizenship with a Criminal Record

Can You Get a British Passport/Citizenship with a Criminal Record

Depending on the offence and the conviction, it may be possible to get a British passport/citizenship even if you have a criminal record. However, in some cases, it can be difficult to secure a British passport/citizenship if you do not meet the good character requirement, hence it is important to understand the factors that the Home Office will take into account, which include:

  • The severity of the crime committed
  • Whether the conviction led to a custodial or non-custodial sentence
  • The length of any custodial or suspended sentence
  • The time between applying and the end of the sentence
  • Whether the person is a persistent offender
  • Whether the criminal act caused serious harm, and
  • Whether the applicant committed a sexual offence

Sentence-based thresholds

The Home Office uses ‘sentence-based thresholds’ to determine whether a UK citizenship application should be granted or not. Based on these sentence-based thresholds, the citizenship guidance for Home Office caseworkers states that an application for citizenship (which is needed to apply for a British passport) will normally be refused if the applicant received the following:

  • a custodial sentence of 4 or more years
  • a custodial sentence of 12 months or more but less than 4 years unless 15 years or more has passed since the end of the sentence
  • a custodial sentence of under 12 months unless 10 years or more has passed since the end of the sentence, or
  • a non-custodial sentence or out-of-court disposal that shows on their criminal record committed in the 3 years prior to the date of application for citizenship

What is a persistent offender?

A persistent offender is someone who has committed several crimes over time. The Home Office will consider a range of factors when determining if a UK citizenship applicant is a persistent offender, including:

  • the number of offences committed
  • the seriousness of the offences committed
  • the timescale over which the crimes were committed
  • the impact of the offences on the public, and
  • whether the offences committed have escalated in seriousness over time

As such, it is not just the number of crimes but also the pattern over time that will be taken into consideration.

What is meant by ‘serious harm’?

The Home Office will use its discretion when deciding whether an application for citizenship should be refused because a crime caused serious harm. Serious harm tends to mean that a criminal act caused serious physical or psychological harm to a victim or victims of the crime. This is especially so where the harm is ongoing or the crime contributed to a widespread problem causing serious harm to a community or UK society.

That said, the Home Office are also required to balance such considerations with the amount of time that has passed since the offence.

Can a criminal record affect my immigration status in the UK?

Yes, under part 9 of the immigration rules, a person’s leave can be cancelled or curtailed (i.e. shortened) on the grounds of criminality. The rules state that leave must be cancelled when a person:

  • has been convicted of a criminal offence in the UK or overseas for which they received a custodial sentence of at least 12 months; or
  • is considered a ‘persistent offender’ who shows a disregard for the law; or
  • has committed a criminal offence which caused serious harm

This does not mean that all criminality will affect your immigration status. This will be based on a range of factors, including the crime committed, the type of sentence, and the duration of the sentence, among others.

If you are unsure if your application for citizenship and/or a British passport may be affected by a criminal conviction, please speak to our immigration lawyers in complete confidence on 020 3744 2797 or by email at info@reissedwards.co.uk.

Declaring Criminal Convictions on a British passport/citizenship application

As part of the British citizenship or passport application review process, the Home Office / UK embassy will check your UK and overseas criminal record. When preparing your British citizenship or passport application, it is important to declare the details of all criminal convictions in the UK and in other countries, including:

  • If you went to prison
  • If you received a non-custodial sentence (e.g. a suspended sentence)
  • Out-of-court disposals (e.g. fines, cautions, warnings, reprimands, community sentences, civil orders, civil penalties, civil judgments, hospital orders, or restriction orders.
  • Fixed penalty notices
  • Drink driving offences

If you have any endorsements on your driving licence, you will need to provide a summary of your record from the DVLA website.

Military Convictions

The immigration rules state that you should declare all convictions on your citizenship application, including military convictions. This includes if you were convicted of a crime when serving in the military under court martial or as a result of other military criminal proceedings.

Declaring Police Cautions on a British Citizenship application

The official citizenship guidance published by the Home Office states that all out-of-court disposals, including police cautions and warnings both in the UK and overseas, should be disclosed on your citizenship application. You do not, however, need to declare any spent cautions as these are exempt under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

The guidance given to case officers states that even if you do provide details of any spent cautions, these cannot be taken into account when deciding your citizenship application. In most cases, an application for citizenship will not be refused if 3 or more years have passed since the caution.

Traffic offences, including speeding or parking tickets, must also be disclosed. However, do bear in mind, these will not normally be taken into account unless you have failed to pay, which led to criminal proceedings, or if you have received several fixed penalty notices in a short duration. For more information, see our article on does traffic offence affect citizenship UK.

Declaring pending criminal prosecutions on a British passport application

It is also important to include any pending criminal prosecutions on your citizenship or passport application. A pending prosecution refers to a crime or series of crimes for which there are ongoing criminal proceedings, and the outcome of the matter is not yet clear.

In these situations, the Home Office will delay making a decision on your citizenship application until the matter has been decided. However, if the outcome of the pending prosecution will not affect the outcome of the citizenship application (e.g. if other crimes have been committed, which would cause the application to be refused), they will not put the application on hold.

Some of our Happy Client
  • Samsung Logo
  • TM LEWIN Logo
  • Automation Logic Logo
  • Jurassic Fibre Logo

Reiss Edwards Awards

Global Awards 2018
Lexis Nexis
Three Best Rated
Department for international awards
University of Cambridge Awards
Lexology Award Q1 2021

Mumu Belal

This was my first time using Reiss Edwards and I had a great experience with them, our solicitor was Zarish Aslam. Zarish was very attentive, organised, and a good communicator. Overall I am very happy with their service and wholeheartedly recommend their services.

Mohamed Mansour

"Reiss Edwards provides professional services. The team is a world-class team with great experience.

Ms Zarish is one of the best consultants at Reiss Edwards who has great knowledge and extensive experience.

Totally recommended!"

Simon Daniels

Absolutely amazing!! We were told our application wasn't possible with numerous other immigration attorneys. Thank you to Ben Inigo-Jones and Kader Gulbahce for all their support with our children's application for citizenship. You made the impossible, possible. We received their citizenship in under 3 months and couldn't be happier. Thank you from the Daniels Family

Simran Luthra

Amazing service from Baris, very informative and polite! 10/10

Reiss Edwards Reviews

Mumu Belal

This was my first time using Reiss Edwards and I had a great experience with the...

Read More

Mohamed Mansour

Reiss Edwards provides professional services. The team is a world-class team wit...

Read More

Simon Daniels

Absolutely amazing!! We were told our application wasn't possible with numerous ...

Read More

Simran Luthra

Amazing service from Baris, very informative and polite! 10/10

Read More