Dear all.

I've been living in UK for 6 years now. First, I was a student for a year also working part-time. I got my National Insurance Number at that time. Then, I worked full-time for two years. After, I enrolled for a full-time PhD studies. Now, I called home office to see if I'm eligible for applying for a British citizenship. I'm originally from Poland (European Union). Anyhoo, I was told that to be eligible I should have had Comprehensive Sickness Insurance and be registered with Work and Registration Scheme. They suggested I do it and try again in 6 years from now on. Does it make sense? I mean how does it work out like? I obviously benefit from NHS so I assumed I am insured, also, I though National Insurance Number sorts out it all. Can anyone outline to me what are my rights in that case? Can I apply for the British citizenship or not and why? Do I have to wait another 6 years just due to these two bits missing?

Cheers,
Peter

 

BTW, I've just read on HM Revenue & Customs that:
'Comprehensive sickness cover includes the National Heath Service (NHS) cover.'.

So, If I'm an EU student registered with NHS, does it count? I was told on phone by someone from the home office it does not. Then why these contradicting statements?

P.