British citizenship fees & costs

Last reviewed 25 August 2026 · Reviewed by the BritainTest editorial team

Becoming a British citizen has a real cost, and most of it is the naturalisation application fee. This guide explains the main costs and how they fit together. Fees change often and are set by the Home Office, so always check the current amounts on GOV.UK. This is general information, not immigration advice. For the whole process, see our how to become a British citizen guide.

What the application costs

The main cost is the naturalisation application fee. It is set by the Home Office and is over £1,000. The exact amount changes from time to time, and it may or may not include the citizenship ceremony fee, so check the current figure on GOV.UK before you budget.

Other costs on the journey

Several costs add up along the way to citizenship:

The £50 test fee is covered in our cost and booking guide. The other amounts change, so use GOV.UK for the current figures.

Not the same as the test fee

It is worth being clear: the £50 you pay for the Life in the UK Test is only for the test. It is not the cost of citizenship. The citizenship application is a separate, much larger fee that you pay later, when you apply to naturalise. The test fee is also the one cost you can control: pass first time, helped by a free practice test, and you pay it only once.

Check the current fees

Immigration and citizenship fees are reviewed regularly and can go up. Because of that, never rely on a figure you read elsewhere: always check the current fee on GOV.UK before you apply. In limited cases there are fee waivers, for example for some children under 18 who cannot afford the fee.

how much is naturalisation fee in uk?

The UK naturalisation fee is £1,839 in total. That figure is made up of a £1,709 application fee and a £130 citizenship ceremony fee, as set out in GOV.UK's guidance on applying for citizenship.

The main cost of becoming a British citizen is the naturalisation application fee itself. It is set by the Home Office and makes up most of what you will pay. Fees change often, so always check the current amounts on gov.uk before you send your application.

The figure above reflects the latest change. The Home Office updated its citizenship fees in line with the fee uprating on 8 April 2026, and fees for Irish citizens were added to the same publication on 29 July 2025.

What additional costs should you budget for?

Beyond the application fee itself, the main extra cost to plan for is the Life in the UK test. The test fee is £50 per attempt, paid to gov.uk, and you pay it again each time you retake the test.

Remember that the test is only half of the requirement. To settle in the UK or become a citizen you usually have to meet two separate requirements: pass the Life in the UK test and meet the English language requirement at B1 level. If you do not yet hold an accepted English qualification, build that cost into your budget too.

Finally, treat any headline figure with care. The exact amount changes from time to time, and it may or may not include the citizenship ceremony fee. Fees change often and are set by the Home Office, so always check the current amounts on gov.uk before you pay anything.

Is the citizenship fee refundable?

Only in part. If your application is rejected, the overall fee will be refunded less an administration fee of £30 per applicant, so a refusal still carries a real cost on top of the time you have invested.

The same rule applies to applications that are never assessed. If a mistake means the application will not be considered, the fee will be refunded less an administration fee of £30, and the only exception to this applies to requests for a certificate correction. Double-check every detail before you submit, because small errors can cost you £30 per applicant.

This page explains British citizenship fees and costs and is for study and preparation only. It is general information, not immigration advice, and does not determine your eligibility for settlement or citizenship. For official rules and any updates, rely on GOV.UK; GOV.UK guidance controls if anything here differs.