Record numbers of migrants are applying for British citizenship ahead of the Government’s crackdown on settlement rights.
More than 312,000 refugees, migrant workers and their dependants applied for citizenship in the year to March, according to Home Office data.
This was double the number eight years ago and the highest on record.
Another 331,000 applied for indefinite leave to remain (ILR), the precursor to citizenship, in the two years to March – a record high and a 28 per cent jump on the previous two years.
The Government plans to increase the time it takes to get British citizenship and make the requirements tougher.
How the rules are changing
Under the current rules, migrants seeking citizenship need to have lived in the UK for at least five years without having left the country for more than 450 days during that period.
They need to be over 18 years old, pass a Life in the UK test, speak English to the equivalent of a GCSE standard and prove they are of “good character”.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has proposed doubling the time migrants are required to wait before they can get ILR from five to 10 years, unless they are high earners or working in public services.
The changes will also apply to those already in the UK.
Migrants could also be banned from claiming welfare benefits until they have been granted British citizenship – currently, they are eligible once they gain ILR.
The number of people seeking citizenship in the year to March rose by 20 per cent compared with the previous year, from 263,440 to 312,063.
The biggest number of applicants were from India, with 31,298 people accounting for 10 per cent of the total.
This was followed by Pakistan (23,423 or 7.5 per cent), Nigeria (15,747, or 5 per cent), Italy (15,130 or 4.8 per cent) and Poland (10,371 or 3.3 per cent).
But net migration is falling…
An increase in citizenship applications has also been linked to the aftermath of a large wave of migrants coming into the UK under the Conservative leadership of Boris Johnson – dubbed the “Boris wave”.
But net migration has been falling due to a series of restrictions imposed by the current and previous government under Rishi Sunak.
Migration last year was half the rate of the previous year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Migration added 171,000 people to the UK’s population in 2025 – the lowest since 2012, excluding the Covid pandemic when strict border controls were in place.
Some 93,525 people claimed asylum in the UK in the year to March 2026 – down 12 per cent on the year prior, but still more than double that seen just before the pandemic.
Measures implemented to cut migration have included most overseas students being restricted from bringing family members to the UK and care workers being restricted from bringing dependents with them.
The general salary threshold for those arriving on skilled visas was raised from £26,200 to £38,700, and the minimum income requirement to sponsor someone for a family visa jumped by more than £10,000.Immigration increased soon after Brexit because Conservative ministers relaxed salary thresholds and some other routes for health and social care workers to address labour shortages.
A Home Office spokesman said: “The rise in citizenship applications reflects long-term migration trends, with more people now eligible after completing settlement routes.
“The Home Secretary has set out plans for the biggest legal migration reforms in a generation, tackling challenges created by unprecedented migration levels under the previous government.”
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