Judicial Review on British Citizenship under the Section 4L of the British Nationality Act,1981

Table Of Contents

1. What is Section 4L of the 1981 Act
2. The “But for” Test
3. Good Character Requirement
4. The Background of the Case
5. The Judicial Review
6. Key issues
7. Conclusion
8. Importance of the Case

On 7 February 2025, the UK High Court gave its verdict in the case R (oao) APD v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2025] EWHC 246 (Admin). . In this case, the claimant applied for judicial review against the decision of the Secretary of State for the Home Department, UK.

This case is of a Pakistani woman who married a Pakistani national, at the time of this marriage living and working in the UK, who later got British nationality.

This case was attended, for the first time, as a judicial review for section 4L of the British Nationality Act 1981. This is in light of a case where the Home Office (defendant) decided to refuse the claimant’s application to be registered as a British citizen pursuant to section 4L of the British Nationality Act 1981.

Let us see what is section 4L of the British Nationality Act 1981?

What is Section 4L of the 1981 Act?

Section 4L of the British Nationality Act was introduced and inserted by section 8 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022, which came into effect on 28 June 2022.

Section 4L of the British Nationality Act 1981 allows people to apply for British citizenship through registration who missed this opportunity of acquiring British citizenship in the past because of a mistake or wrong decision by the Home Office. However, section 4L does not exempt you from the need to meet the requirements for naturalization or registration under other routes. 

Section 4L provides the route to apply for registration to become a British citizen if the applicant is an adult and full capacity (“P”) applies for registration. However, section 4L does not apply in cases where the applicant’s chance of acquiring British citizenship was delayed or missed by their own choice.

The Secretary of State may cause the P to be registered as such a citizen if, in the Secretary of State’s opinion, P would have been, or would have been able to become, a British citizen but for reasons set out in statute, which are the following:

• Historical legislative unfairness,
• An act or omission of a public authority, or
• Exceptional circumstances relating to P.

The “But for” Test

The “but for” test under section 4L means, but for the mistake made by the Home Office or other public body, would a person have been able to apply for British citizenship? If the answer is “Yes,” section 4L helps such people.

Good Character Requirement

The Secretary of State for the Home Department considers whether you are of good character while considering granting you British citizenship under section 4L.

Those who acquire citizenship under Section 4L become British citizens otherwise than by descent.

The Background of the Case

This case is of a Pakistani woman who married a person in the UK in 2014 who was also a Pakistani national then. The claimant’s husband lived and worked in the UK on a Tier 2 (skilled worker) visa. He has a child from a previous marriage who has acquired British citizenship and lives in the UK. The claimant and her husband have two children now of their own.

In 2014 the claimant was unable to get a visa as a dependent in August 2014, and she came back to Pakistan in February 2015 for medical reasons, and she had her first child born there. She returned to the UK in 2015.

In early 2016, her husband wished to switch to a Tier 1 (entrepreneur) visa. The husband could live in the UK as the father of a British son until a decision on his Tier 1 (entrepreneur) visa came.  Meanwhile, because the claimant had no right to live in the UK, she left the UK and went back to Pakistan in February 2016.

In May 2016 the claimant’s husband applied for a Tier 1 visa, but he was refused. He applied for judicial review and was granted a Tier 1 Visa in July 2017. In the meanwhile, the husband had applied for permanent residency in April 2017 based on being a family member of an EEA national, which in this case was his son from his previous marriage. His application was refused, which he challenged, and finally, in July 2018, he was granted PR (permanent residency) backdated to 29 January 2016.

After obtaining PR 2018 backdated to January 2016, the claimant’s husband applied for and received naturalization as a British citizen on 27 September 2018. In May 2020 the claimant applied for and obtained leave to enter as the spouse of a British citizen in November 2020.

The claimant made the section 4L application on 13 May 2023. She asserted in her application that she has been living in the UK since 2014, and she would have already applied for and been granted naturalization as a British citizen if the Home Office had not made mistakes and failed to grant her husband permanent residence earlier.

The Home Office refused the application in January 2024. The claimant asked for reconsideration, and it was further refused in August 2024 to the same effect but with fuller and somewhat different reasoning.

The Judicial Review

The claimant submitted that the decision of the defendant in August 2024 was irrational and there was procedural irregularity on the part of the Home Office. The judge was of the view that the claimant’s challenge was not limited to the question of whether the Home Office formed a rational opinion about her situation, but she also challenged the Home Office’s interpretation of the words “would have been able to become a British citizen but for [special circumstances].”.

The claimant also alleges that her chance of applying for British citizenship under the section was stopped by the wrong decision by the defendant.

Key issues

The court had 2 major questions to decide upon.

• Did the complainant miss out on an opportunity to become a British citizen earlier due to the Home Office’s material error?
• Was the applicant denied her right to apply for British citizenship through registration as per section 4L?
• What is the meaning of section 4L?

Conclusion

After hearing both parties, reviewing the evidence, and interpreting the meaning of section 4L, the court concluded that the claim for judicial review failed. The Home Office’s decision did not stop the claimant from applying for British citizenship.

It interpreted the meaning of section 4L as it is meant to help those who are not allowed to apply for British citizenship, but it does not simply apply to those whose chances of becoming British citizens are delayed.

The Home Office’s August 2024 decision to refuse the complainant’s application did involve an error of law, but it was not a material one. The decision was not irrational, and there was no procedural irregularity.

Importance of the Case

The outcome defines the scope of section 4L. It is meant to help people apply for British citizenship who are stopped from doing so due to the wrong decision of a public authority such as the Home Office. However, section 4L does not cover all cases of delayed or missed applications.

Thus, the decision works as guidance for both applicants and the Home Office on how to use section 4L.