What is Form AN?

Form AN is the Home Office paper application form for naturalisation as a British citizen. People living in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or a British overseas territory use it, as do people elsewhere who choose to apply by post. Most people who live in the UK apply for naturalisation online instead.

How Form AN works

Form AN is the paper application for naturalisation as a British citizen. GOV.UK says to use it if you live in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man or a British overseas territory. You can also use it if you live elsewhere and want to apply by post, and you then submit your documents with the form.^{[1]Home Office, Become a British citizen by naturalisation (form AN)} If you do not live in those places, you can apply online. Most people who live in the UK and apply online can keep their documents while the application is processed.^{[1]Home Office, Become a British citizen by naturalisation (form AN)}

You send the form, the payment slip with the fee and your documents to one of three places. They are the Lieutenant Governor if you are in the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, the Governor if you are in a British overseas territory, or UK Visas and Immigration at the postal address on the GOV.UK form page.^{[1]Home Office, Become a British citizen by naturalisation (form AN)}

Before you fill in the form, read the Home Office Guide AN. It sets out the legal requirements for naturalisation.^{[2]Home Office, Form AN: application for naturalisation as a British citizen (version 03/26)} The form says that each individual applying must complete a separate application. Husbands, wives and civil partners each need their own form. A family application includes separate forms for each child. Use an AN form where the child is now an adult and an MN1 form for a minor.^{[2]Home Office, Form AN: application for naturalisation as a British citizen (version 03/26)} See Form MN1 for children.

The form says to use it if you are applying on or after 2 March 2026. If you are covered by the Windrush Scheme, you should not apply on this form.^{[2]Home Office, Form AN: application for naturalisation as a British citizen (version 03/26)}

What the form asks

The table summarises the parts of the form.^{[2]Home Office, Form AN: application for naturalisation as a British citizen (version 03/26)} The tests behind those parts are explained in qualifying period for naturalisation, good character requirement and citizenship referee. For the language and life test, see Life in the UK test.

Part 7 says the application fee will not be refunded if the application is refused. It also says that if false information is given, the application can be refused and the applicant may be prosecuted.^{[2]Home Office, Form AN: application for naturalisation as a British citizen (version 03/26)}

After you apply, you must enrol your biometric details. The AN guide says you will usually be required to do so within 45 days of submitting your application, and that failing to do so will invalidate it.^{[3]Home Office, Form AN: guidance (accessible)}

Fees and timing

GOV.UK shows a fee of £1,839 for an adult with indefinite leave to remain. That is £1,709 to apply and a £130 citizenship ceremony fee.^{[5]GOV.UK, Apply for citizenship if you have indefinite leave to remain or settled status} Check the payment slip that comes with the form for the amount that applies to you.

The Form AN page gives the Home Office service level as 6 months.^{[1]Home Office, Become a British citizen by naturalisation (form AN)} From 20 July 2026, applicants in the UK can use the citizenship priority service. GOV.UK says it costs £500 in addition to the application fee and that citizenship applications usually take 30 working days with it. The super priority service is not available for citizenship applications.^{[4]GOV.UK, Get a faster decision on your visa, settlement or citizenship application}

Example

Elena lives on the Isle of Man and wants to naturalise. She completes Form AN, adds the payment slip and fee and encloses her documents. She sends them to the Lieutenant Governor.

Her husband also wants to become a British citizen. He cannot be added to her form. He completes his own Form AN with his own fee. If their daughter, aged 15, is also applying, she needs her own application on form MN1.^{[2]Home Office, Form AN: application for naturalisation as a British citizen (version 03/26)} The figures were correct on the date shown at the top of this page, and fees change.

What people get wrong

Many applicants assume Form AN is the only way to apply. It is the paper route, for specific places or for people who choose to apply by post. Everyone else can apply online.

The form also states that full fees cannot be returned for applications that fail.^{[2]Home Office, Form AN: application for naturalisation as a British citizen (version 03/26)} That makes it important to check the requirements in Guide AN before sending the form. Another mistake is to put two people on one form. The form says each person must complete their own.^{[2]Home Office, Form AN: application for naturalisation as a British citizen (version 03/26)}

The bottom line

Form AN is the paper application for naturalisation. It is for the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, British overseas territories and for people elsewhere who want to apply by post. It has seven parts, one form for each adult, and a declaration that the fee will not be refunded if the application is refused. Most people in the UK apply online. See British citizenship by naturalisation for how Compass can help.