How do you calculate days outside the UK for citizenship?

How do you calculate days outside the UK for citizenship?

To calculate the number of days spent outside the UK for citizenship purposes, you need to follow these steps:

1. Grasp the Requirement: It’s crucial to understand that the UK mandates that applicants for citizenship have spent a maximum of a specific number of days outside the UK. For naturalisation as a British citizen, the limits are:

• No more than 450 days outside the UK in the last five years.
• No more than 90 days outside the UK in the last 12 months before the application.

1. Accumulate Travel Records: It’s your responsibility to collect all your travel records, including entry and exit dates. These can be found in your passport stamps, travel itineraries, flight tickets, or other documentation.
2. Create a Travel Log: Make a list or a spreadsheet with all your trips, including when you left the UK and returned.
3. Calculate Absence Days for Each Trip: Calculate the number of days you were absent from the UK for each trip. The days you leave the UK and return are generally not counted as days outside the UK.
4. Sum the Days: Add up all the days you were outside the UK for each trip.
5. Check Against the Limits: Compare the total number of days with the allowed limits for the relevant period (5 years and 12 months).

Example Calculation

1. Travel Log:

2. Sum of Days Outside:

• 2020: 8 + 4 = 12 days
• 2021: 13 days
• 2022: 0 days
• 2023: 12 days Total days outside in the last five years: 12 + 13 + 12 = 37 days

2. Check Last 12 Months: For the last 12 months (assuming you apply on 17th June 2024), check if the total days outside exceed 90 days.

Notes:

• Absences Allowed for Specific Reasons: Some absences may be allowable beyond the standard limits for specific reasons such as work for the UK government or armed forces. Other examples could include humanitarian missions or study abroad programs.
• Flexibility: Rest assured, the Home Office may exercise discretion in some cases if the absences were due to exceptional circumstances.

By following these steps, you can accurately determine the number of days you were outside the UK and ensure you meet UK citizenship requirements.