Naturalisation and good character

The British Nationality Act 1981 (‘BNA 1981’) contains the ‘good character’ requirement which applies to certain registration applications when the applicant is over the age of 10 years. It also applies to all applicants who apply to naturalise as a British Citizen under section 6(1) or 6(2) of the BNA 1981.

What is the definition of ‘good character’?

The BNA 1981 does not define ‘good character’, for example an applicant who wishes to naturalise under section 6(1) or 6(2) will be required to fulfil the requirements under Schedule 1 including Scheduled 1(1)(b) which simply states “that he is of good character”. As the ‘good character’ requirement is not defined in the BNA 1981 itself, the Secretary State for the Home Department sets the policy which has changed over the years.

The Secretary of State for the Home Department must be satisfied on a balance of probabilities that the applicant is of good character. The following are some of the factors to consider:

• criminality - if the applicant has not respected or are not prepared to abide by the law for example, they have been convicted of a crime or there are reasonable grounds to suspect that they have been involved in crime
• international crimes, terrorism and other non-conducive activity – if the applicant has been involved in or associated with war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide, terrorism, or other actions that are considered not to be conducive to the public good
• financial soundness - if the applicant’s financial affairs have not been in appropriate order - for example, they have failed to pay taxes for which they were liable or have accrued significant debt
• notoriety - if the applicant’s activities have been notorious and cast serious doubt on their standing in the local community
• deception and dishonesty - if the applicant has been deliberately dishonest or deceptive in their dealings with the UK government, for example they have made false claims in order to obtain benefits
• immigration-related matters - if the applicant has breached immigration laws, for example by overstaying, working in breach of conditions or assisting in the evasion of immigration control
• deprivation - if the applicant has previously been deprived of citizenship

The above is a non-exhaustive list, the Home Office Nationality Policy relating good character provides more details and confirms that an applicant may still be refused if there are doubts about their character.

We have seen that over the past 10 plus years, the nationality policy relating to good character has become increasingly stringent. On 31 July 2023, the Home Office published an updated policy relating to the ‘good character’ requirement which states as follows:

“Having a criminal record does not necessarily mean that an application will be refused. However, a person who has not shown respect for, or is not prepared to abide by, the law is unlikely to be considered of good character”

If the caseworker is not satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that the applicant is of good character given the criminal background, they may be able to refuse the application accordingly. When assessing a person’s criminal convictions, a caseworker must carefully consider all the relevant factors raised by the applicant and carefully weigh any countervailing evidence of good character, or mitigating circumstances that might support an exceptional grant.

What factors does the Home Office take into account when applying the ‘balance of probabilities’ assessment to determine whether the applicant is of ‘good character’?

• Length of time since offence – the more recent the offence, the more likely the Home Office will conclude that the applicant is not a person of ‘good character’. Whilst the guidance does not state how many years you should wait, a good starting point would to consider the policy pre-31 July 2023 which has have addressed below
• Number of offences – The Home Office policy does not set a number of offences that would mean a person is not of good character. However, the higher the number, the more likely it is the person is not of good character
• Period of which offences were committed – If the applicant has a series of minor offences or out-of-court disposals in a short space of time, this may indicate that they have a pattern of disregard of the law and may not be considered to be of ‘good character’
• The seriousness of the offence – The starting point is the sentence the applicant was given. The length of the sentence is a primary indicator of the seriousness of the offence. The Home Office will also consider whether the offence has caused serious harm. The policy states that it is at the discretion of the Secretary of State on whether they consider an offence to have caused serious harm. However, usually if the applicant has been convicted of offence related to violence, drug-related offence, sexual offence, hate crime, racially or religiously motivated offence, they will usually be considered to have been convicted of an offence that has caused serious harm and will normally be refused naturalisation
• Any escalation in the seriousness of offences – the Home Office will consider whether the applicant has committed a serious of offences which escalated in seriousness. For example, if the first offence was theft and the second offence was aggravated robbery
• Nature of the offences – this relates to the seriousness and also whether they have a pattern of offending
• Applicant’s age at the date of conviction – the Home Office policy confirms that they will consider the applicant’s age at the time they committed the offence. For example, if the applicant committed a minor offence when they were young and have not been involved in any further offences, then it may be argued that on a balance of probabilities, they are a person of good character
• Exceptional or other circumstances – the Home Office guidance confirms that they must consider the particular relevant circumstances of the applicant’s life when they committed the offence(s)
• Other mitigating factors – the Home Office will consider whether the applicant has made genuine and meaningful attempts to change their behaviour and rehabilitate

Applications submitted before 31 July 2023

For applications made before 31 July 2023, the Home Office will normally refuse the application if any of the following apply:

• a custodial sentence of at least 4 years
• a custodial sentence of at least 12 months but less than 4 years unless a period of 15 years has passed since the end of the sentence 
• a custodial sentence of less than 12 months unless a period of 10 years has passed since the end of the sentence
• a non-custodial sentence or out-of-court disposal that is recorded on their criminal record which occurred in the 3 years prior to the date of application

Whilst the above is specific to applications submitted before 31 July 2023, it is still a good starting guide to use for applications submitted after 31 July 2023 when considering the length of the sentence and the time that has passed since the offence took place.

It is important to note that if an application for registration or naturalisation as a British Citizen is refused, the applicant does not have the right to appeal against the decision. The applicant will however have a right a request the Home Office to review their decision.

How can JMW help

Applicants should be aware of the requirement of good character and the relevant threshold of proving the same when applying for British citizenship.

If you are applying for British citizenship or think that your application for naturalisation may be affected by the ‘good character’ requirement, we have a dedicated team of Immigration Solicitors who specialise in British citizenship applications and will be able to provide further tailored advice to your personal circumstances.