Secure your child’s status with the Citizenship Payment Plan
The EdAid Foundation is on a mission to make the cost of British citizenship affordable for families living in the United Kingdom. There are currently an estimated 350,000 children who were born in in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland whothat are not recognised as UK citizens.
Children living in the UK who are not registered as citizens may face several socio-economic barriers later in life as a result of their unsettled status. Obstacles faced by those without UK citizenship include:
Not having the right to live
and work in the UK on a permanent basis.
Not being able to apply for a UK passport.
Not having the right to vote
in UK elections, restrictions on access to the NHS, and their ability to claim public funds.
Restrictions on their right to study in the UK.
As of 2024, the price of a single-child citizenship application was an application fee of £1214 paid to the Home Office. For many low-income families this fee is prohibitive and, in some cases, acts as the only barrier to securing citizenship that their children are already entitled to.
What is the Citizenship Payment Plan?
Started in 2019, the Citizenship Payment Plan Project (CPP) aims to help the families of these children secure their rightful citizenship. First launched in collaboration with Citizens UK and Kings College London, we aim to offer a low-cost option to help families better manage the Home Office fee.
Making use of EdAid’s FCA-authorised platform, we offer an ethical and affordable payment plan specific to the child citizenship fee, which is a first of its kind in the UK.
How does it work
We operate a simple 0% interest payment plan that’s paid for in 12 equal instalments over 12 months.
The Citizenship Payment plan is an interest-free, twelve-month fixed-term plan available to families who have been supported by our legal services partner, Kids In Need Of Defence (KIND) UK.
The plan itself is a non-profit social investment scheme by the EdAid Foundation where you are only responsible for paying back the fee paid to Tthe Hhome Ooffice. EdAid does not add any extra interest or charges on top of the principal amount owed.
The EdAid Ffoundation recycles 100% of completed plans, which allows us to fund future child applications down the line. In this way, all applicants are not only securing the status of their child but also helping other families in need when their plan has been repaid.
Register
Get referred to us by one of our trusted legal partners. In order to be eligible you will need to complete EdAid’s verification checks.
Verification
Once verified by EdAid, electronically sign your CPP Agreement and we will pay the fee directly to the Home Office as part of your child’s citizenship registration.
Payment
Monthly payments will be 12 equal instalments over 12 months with no fees, inflation or interest added.
What have we achieved? Impact timeline
Since our beginnings in 2019, the CPP has supported almost 400 Home Office applications, and as of mid-2024, covered nearly half a million pounds in citizenship fees.
2020 - 54 applications
2021 - 80 applications
2022 - 111 applications
2023 - 107 applications
2024 - 40 applications and counting
The story so far (testimonials)
CPP is proud to have been the only repayment program that is specific to the Home Office fee. We believe that we are a driver of real local-level change that helps to break down the financial barrier faced by families trying to secure their children’s future.
Here’s what some of the families we’ve supported over the years have had to say:
“The repayment plan was flexible and easy. Great team, who made the paper work so easy. Love you guys”
“As a single mother of 3 with NO citizenship of my own found the task of getting one for my son an insurmountable task as it was too expensive. Working part-time and looking after the kids meant the money I got barely covered bills and food. Citizenship payment plan helped me in a way I can never explain I am very grateful and thankful.”
“The CPP is a fantastic organisation and hope to use their services again soon. I would highly recommended to anyone who needs help paying fees and any cost they may encounter from the home office.”
FAQ
Am I eligible for a Citizenship Payment Plan?
-
Borrowers must:
- Be over 18 years old
- Have leave to remain in the UK
- Be the parent or guardian of the child(ren) registering for citizenship
- The child/children must be eligible with a clear and strong legal case for their citizenship (as assessed by one of our trusted legal partners).
- Have (or be willing to set up) a UK bank account in their name
- Be able to afford 12 monthly instalments of at least £102 following the payment of the citizenship fee to the Home Office
- Be able to set up a direct debit mandate for 12 payments over 12 months
- Have a National Insurance number
How do I get referred to apply for a payment plan?
-
The CPP will only be available to families whose citizenship applications have been supported by our trusted legal partners which include KIND UK & Just for Kids Law. You can refer yourself for KIND UK’s pro-bono legal support via their online form , or access Just for Law Kids legal advice service here . Once you have worked on your application(s) with one of their lawyers, you will be eligible to apply for a Citizenship Payment Plan with us. You will need to ask your lawyer to submit your name and email address to the CPP team who will then invite you to apply.
Why don’t you provide loans for parents/adults?
-
There are currently no ethical, affordable micro loans available in the UK for citizenship fees and we want to be the first. In order to do that, we are starting small; testing our Payment Plan with a handful of families that come through as referrals. We hope that this will allow us to learn, refine and grow our payment plan in order to make it accessible for a wider range of people.
How much can someone borrow at a time?
-
The amount will be determined by both the need and what the parent/guardian can afford to repay in 12, monthly instalments.
Payment plan amounts will be multiples of the Home Office Child citizenship fee which is £1214.
One child = £1214 to be repaid in 12 instalments of £102 per month
Two children = £2428 to be repaid in 12 instalments of £203 per month
Three children = £3642 to be repaid in 12 instalments of £304 per month
Etcetera… How can I apply?
-
Our legal partners will refer eligible applicants directly to us. Please speak to your lawyer to ask them to refer you. You can refer yourself for legal advice with KIND UK, via this online form, or access Just for Law Kids’ legal advice service here.
What can the payment plan be used for?
-
The payment plan is exclusively for the citizenship application of eligible children (under 18) and will be paid directly to the Home Office as part of the standard application submission process
How much time will the process take?
-
Completing our online application takes 20 minutes and you can ask for support throughout the process. Once you submit, you will receive an automated email confirming that we have received your application. You will hear whether you have been verified within 3 working days. We may need to check some details with you before verification. If your application is successful the payment can be made quickly and directly as part of the child’s online citizenship application process with the Home Office. From that point onwards the timeline (and decision) for being granted citizenship will be in the hands of the Home Office.
How are decisions made?
-
The CPP is committed to a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory decision-making process. We will assess every payment plan application on the merits of the application. Sometimes applications for a payment plan will not be successful. In these cases, the applicant will be informed of the decision and the reasons behind it. It is important that we only provide payment plans to those that will be able to make repayments in full in order for us to recycle the plan and offer it to another family.
How are you able to offer interest-free loans?
-
The Citizenship Payment Plan is a social investment scheme meaning we use repayable finance to achieve social impact. We are able to provide interest-free payment plans thanks to the grant funding we receive from some of our partners. By keeping the costs of running CPP low using an online lending platform, we hope to achieve significant social impact that fulfills our funder’s strategic objectives.
What happens if I miss a payment?
-
The payment plan is designed to be as low cost as possible with no fees or interest attached. We are only able to offer this on the basis that you ensure your monthly payment is available in your account to be collected by EdAid. Not doing so may have an impact on your child’s Home Office application.
100% of payment plans are recycled to be paid forward enabling more children to secure their citizenship.