Americans rush in record numbers to apply for UK citizenship

The number of Americans applying for UK citizenship rose to a record-high last year, spurred by US President Donald Trump's return to power and UK tax changes.

Over 6,100 US citizens applied last year, the most since records began two decades ago and 26 percent more than the previous year.

Overall applications for UK citizenships were up by 6 percent to 251,000 -- another record.

For US citizens in particular, applications surged in the last quarter of 2024, rising 40 percent yearly to about 1,700, according the Home Office.

Immigration lawyers said Trump's presidential re-election bid and victory in early November helped drive the increase. Notably, there was a "huge spike" in British citizenship searches the day after the US election on November 5, said lawyers, with continued interest since the start of Trump's second term.

But the trend came about a few years ago, as Home Office data shows that applications have risen steadily since the end of 2022. Experts attribute this to a "Donald Dash," in which Americans who emigrated to Britain during Trump's first term as president from 2016 to 2020 started to become eligible for UK citizenship.

But lawyers also added that "there's much more interest [now] than under the previous Trump administration."

UK tax changes have also been cited as a factor to encouraging Americans to secure British passports before they exit the country, according to the Financial Times.

Lawyers said the UK's abolition of non-dom tax status had incited some wealthy Americans living in Britain to seek citizenship before they left.

To apply for UK citizenship, someone has to have lived in the UK for five years or have parents with British citizenship. They may also apply if they are married to a Brit and have lived in the UK for three years.

Agencies