Kemi Badenoch has announced a significant policy shift, proposing that immigrants must wait at least 15 years before qualifying for British citizenship. This initiative, her first major announcement as Tory leader, aims to tighten immigration by extending the period for migrants to apply for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) from five to ten years.
Badenoch also revealed that individuals who claim benefits, access social housing, or have criminal records would be permanently barred from settling in the UK. She stated, “We need to change the way our immigration system works,” outlining two key changes:
1. The period to apply for ILR would increase from five to ten years.
2. Applicants must be net contributors with a sufficient salary, especially when bringing family members. Those with criminal records would be banned.
Additionally, the time required to apply for a British passport would rise from 12 months to five years, resulting in a minimum of 15 years before starting the application process. Illegal entrants or those who overstay their visas would be permanently ineligible for leave to remain or a passport, she explained in a video on her X account.
Currently, most migrants can apply for ILR after five years of work in the UK, with some qualifying in two or three years. ILR grants the right to live, work, and study in the UK indefinitely, with citizenship applications possible after 12 months. The new Conservative proposal would extend the ILR period to ten years and add a five-year wait for citizenship applications, tripling the minimum timeframe from six to 15 years.
The party intends to backdate these changes to 2021 by amending the upcoming Border Security, Asylum, and Immigration Bill, which is scheduled for parliamentary debate next week. Badenoch’s plan also restricts welfare access for immigrants. While most migrants on work visas, asylum seekers, and those in the UK illegally cannot claim state benefits due to the “no recourse to public funds” rule, some have had this restriction lifted.
Badenoch criticized the current system for creating a “conveyor belt” to citizenship, allowing too many to settle quickly and straining public services. She emphasized the need for immigrants to have a meaningful connection to the UK, being net contributors rather than relying on benefits, and to have no criminal records. However, she did not specify how much this policy would reduce migration numbers.
Kemi Badenoch Suggests 15-Year Pathway to British Citizenship for Immigrants
