The new Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) visa could lead to ILR after 3 years and therefore they coud achieve BC in less than 5 years.
It’s only 3 years to citizenship if you are married to a UK citizen though. It’s 5 years for everyone else... and you have to hold ILR for at least 12 months first.
So, even if they got ILR in 3 years, they would likely have to spend another 2 years on their ILR to make 5 years in the UK before applying for citizenship.
However, this is where time on a visitor visa or other visa type before the Tier 1 Entrepreneur Visa could come in.
It would still be at least 4 years to BC from the beginning of the Tier 1, but they might not have to wait the full 5 years if their previous visa timing worked out and they could show they met the requirement of being in the U.K. exactly 5 years prior, along with no more than 450 days outside the U.K. in those 5 years.
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