Home Office slammed for citizenship renunciation fee hike

If you’re thinking of emigrating, renouncing British citizenship and taking on citizenship of your chosen country, start saving now!

The British government is rightly being criticised by anti-Brexit pressure groups for giving precedence over UK expats in Europe to European citizens wishing to stay in the UK post-Brexit. At the same time, there’s a huge increase in the numbers of Brits overseas who’re taking up the citizenship of their chosen country of residence, as well as a considerable increase in the numbers of Brits fleeing the UK before it’s too late, many of whom will want to go down the citizenship route as soon as is legal once they arrive.

Rather than stemming the flow and showing Britain cares about all its peoples no matter where they are, the British government has stealthily and sharply raised the fee for relinquishing British citizenship to an amount of over £1,000 for a family of three. The shock announcement is being seen by Britons on the continent as well as by those preparing to leave the UK as a final ‘kick out of the door’ by a government intent on cashing in on Brexit-induced uncertainty and the misery it’s causing.

The increase will be felt by everyday people who’ve married foreign wives and are living with them and their families in Europe, by those who’ve had small business successes overseas in niche markets and by those who’ve studied overseas and wish to remain to complete their post-graduate education on an affordable basis, The decision to give up one’s original nationality and take on another is a hard one under any circumstances but, under Brexit, the alternatives of totally disrupting family life, business life and education simply because of an ‘advisory’ referendum are totally unacceptable.

Late in April, a Home Office announcement raised the fee for citizenship renunciation from £321 to £372. It doesn’t sound like much, but couples and families will now face totals of up to several thousand pounds for citizenship applications and the renunciation of British citizenship. Interestingly, the sharp increase came at the same time as a surge in the number of Britishers applying for foreign passports. Some EU countries allow dual nationality, letting at least those whose livelihoods and lifestyle are at risk off the financial hook, but many don’t and aren’t likely to change their rules.

For example, the Netherlands is changing its laws in order to allow Dutch expats in the UK to have dual citizenship, thus cushioning them from the Brexit effect, but nothing’s being done to assist Brit expats in the Netherlands. Basically, the closer Brexit gets and even less is done to protect UK citizens in EU states, the more money the Home Office will rake in as a result of this heartless decision, as more and more Brits realise they’re of no consequence to those who now control their country of birth.