Joint PRCBC and Amnesty UK Submission to Chief Inspector on Citizenship Fee Waiver, September 2024

On 21 August 2024, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration issued a Call for Evidence in support of his inspection of the effectiveness, efficiency, and consistency of the Home Office’s management of fee waiver applications.

This submission was made on 9 September 2024, jointly by the Project for the Registration of Children as British Citizens (PRCBC) and Amnesty International UK. The submission focuses specifically on the fee waiver that applies to children's applications to be registered as British citizens.

The submission considers the management of that fee waiver and concludes it is neither effective nor efficient. Among the recommendations that are suggested to the inspectorate are that:

Confirmation of receipt of certain state assistance be treated as a ‘passport’ to the grant of a waiver, at least as a matter of general presumption.

Demands for detailed financial information regarding independent adults (i.e., those who are not the parents or primary carers) should not, or not generally, be made.