Since Brexit, the number of people giving up their UK citizenship has increased

According to data obtained, the number of people who have decided to give up their UK citizenship has increased since the country decided to leave the EU.

According to data, the number of people renouncing UK citizenship climbed by 30% in 2021 compared to 2020, and six times more than a decade before, when just approximately 140 people made such a decision in the aftermath of Brexit.

It has been reported that 868 people have decided to surrender their British passports in 2021. For the years 2011-2021, a total of 6,507 persons applied to relinquish their citizenship.

In response to the findings, Maryem Ahmed, the head of the immigration section at OTS Solicitors, stated that there is no unique reason why people choose to give up their UK citizenship, and that the reason relies on everyone's decision as well as their circumstances.

Nonetheless, it was indicated that one of the main causes is when someone seeks to take up the citizenship of another country that does not allow dual nationality.

Despite the fact that dual nationality restrictions have been a long-standing concern, Brexit has added complications for UK people who legitimately reside in the EU. This is because the majority of EU Member States only require foreigners to be citizens of one nation.

According to experts, most EU countries give residency permits to UK passport holders. Nonetheless, the resident permit does not grant them full rights, such as voting, and as a result, some prefer to surrender their UK passport.

Furthermore, those who want to be more competitive in the EU labour market frequently choose to give up their UK citizenship because the EU passport allows them more latitude in doing so.

“People want full citizenship rights in the countries that they live in, they may have to take the citizenship of that country and have to renounce their British citizenship,” professor Michaela Benson, who is a citizenship expert at Lancaster University stressed.

Aside from UK nationals living abroad electing to renounce their citizenship, the number of EU citizens in the UK decreased dramatically following Brexit.

According to the Office for National Statistics, just over 43,000 EU citizens applied for work, family, or student visas in 2021, a significant fall from the pre-Brexit period, when up to 430,000 EU citizens arrived in the UK. Furthermore, the same study found that only about 5% of visas given to EU nationals in 2021 were related to migration.

By fLEXI tEAM