The number of Americans hedging their options by applying for British citizenship soared to a record high last year as President Donald Trump was voted back into office.
A total of 6,131 U.S. nationals applied for U.K. citizenship in 2024, up 26% from 2023, according to Home Office data published last week.
The figure spiked during the last quarter of the year when Trump won the election and the U.K.’s Labour government announced tax changes that could prompt Americans to get their citizenships sooner.
“A significant portion of the Americans reflected in these statistics will probably have already had the right to become British for many years. But given their views on the political climate, some of them may have felt now is the time to upgrade to citizenship,” Ed Wanambwa, partner at law firm Russell-Cooke, specializing in U.K. immigration law, told Fortune.
“[Some] Americans are now looking for a way to come here short of citizenship, to at least get into the country and leave the U.S.,” he said. Wanambwa added that Americans have long been drawn to the U.K.’s education system and shared British history as a reason for moving there.
More recently, political events may have also been a “significant contributing factor to this spike in Americans applying for citizenship,” he said.
While the initial searches may have been dismissed as a knee-jerk reaction to Trump’s return to the Oval Office, interest has remained steady.
Government data points to a consistent increase in the number of American applicants for U.K. citizenship since late 2022. That trend emerged noticeably since November when Google searches and legal inquiries into emigrating began to soar. Canada, U.K., and Japan topped the list of countries receiving the most interest, according to a study conducted by Casino.org.
Parts of Europe, which have been attractive destinations for digital nomads and tourists, also experienced sharply increased inquiries when Trump clinched the election victory. Bureaucracy.es, an immigration firm in Spain, saw a more than 300% jump in client consultations for the country’s visa processes following the U.S. election, according to CNN.
Trump has a hard-line stance on immigration. Mass deportation and a crackdown on illegal immigration have been hallmarks of his campaign. But he has also vowed to end birthright citizenship for children born on U.S. soil to people who are in the country illegally (the move has been blocked by three federal judges so far).
Flocking to the U.K.
Gaining British citizenship depends on several criteria, including how long people have lived there.
While more Americans applied for British citizenship than usual last year, they were far from being the leaders on a competitive list of applicants.
The number of citizenship applications across all nationalities also hit a record high, climbing 6% to just over 251,000 last year. The maximum number of applications came from Pakistani nationals.
The U.K.’s policies may have contributed to attracting American interest. The ruling Labour Party announced plans to scrap the country’s non-dom system, a tax status that benefits individuals whose permanent home is outside the U.K.
While the framework will be abolished in April, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has hinted at considering a two- to three-year longer transition period for people holding that status. The change may have prompted wealthy Americans to become citizens.
Wanambwa pointed out various routes U.S. nationals pursue to move to the U.K., ranging from student visas to work visas. Until three years ago, the “Tier 1” Investor Visa made it easy for affluent Americans to invest £2 million or more in the U.K. and allowed them to settle there. However, after it was scrapped to “prevent abuse,” the options were limited.
However, given Trump’s plans for a “gold card visa” that offers permanent residency in exchange for a $5 million investment, the U.K. Investor Visa doesn’t sound like old news anymore.
