Novocastrian

Ah, still have a sense of humour? Can't be that bad.

FWIW (not much) the Bonn (in those days, not Berlin) office processed my Landed Immigrant thingy in about 8 months. This was 1992/3 and I had a job to come to sorted.

As I say, not relevant to 2006 perhaps, but I think going through Berlin likely isn't as slow as UK.

Novocastrian

BTW I had enough sense not to live in Bayern.

raine66

Bad luck, bad luck,

Pull up a seat, just how much time do you have.

Raine

anglogerman

All the time in the world Raine - you never know, it might be cathartic!

It's true, I'm amazed how many of you lived around here before going to Canada. What is it that makes Oberbayern to Canada a logical progression??

Novocastrian

The Oktoberfest in Kitchener-Waterloo?

JAJ

Out of interest, does your son have a British passport and British birth certificate to go with his German documentation? (assuming your ex-partner is German?)

anglogerman

He has a German birth certificate, and a temporary German "Kinderreisepass" to allow him to go to England (we had to get it in a hurry, because unfortunately I was told very recently that my father is in the last stages of bowel cancer, so of course we need to go over in a hurry). Before beginning the immigration process, I will be applying for a British passport for him, but I don't know what his status will be - British citizen, British national, or what (yes, his father is German).

JAJ

He will only be able to get a British passport if he is a British citizen. If you were born or naturalised in the UK then he's British (by descent) automatically.

You should apply to the British Consulate in Dusseldorf for him to be issued with a British passport.
http://www.britischebotschaft.de/en/

It is also strongly recommended to get him a British-style birth certificate which will make it easier for him to renew his passport later. It will also be more convenient to use in any English speaking country. The Embassy website has no information on consular birth registration but it is available at a cost of approx GBP105.

There is no time limit to get the birth certificate, so if you encounter any problems with the Consulate you should contact:

Nationality & Consular Registration Section
Consular Directorate
Foreign & Commonwealth Office
Old Admiralty Building
London SW1A 2PA.
tel: 020 7008 1500

One thing you do need to know is that your son is a British citizen "by descent". When he is older, if he has children born in Canada or anywhere else outside the UK, these children will not automatically be British citizens based on his nationality.

You should also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_nationality_law regarding his German citizenship in the future. Before leaving Germany, you should make sure he has a standard German passport. There should be no problem him maintaining dual British/German citizenship.

In terms of acquiring Canadian citizenship, he could do so as an adult and keep German citizenship provided he obtained German government permission (otherwise he would lose it automatically).

If he's currently aged 5 then he may still be a child when he acquires Canadian citizenship (although with current waiting times that cannot be guaranteed). Whether Germany revokes the German citizenship of children who acqiuire another nationality is unclear and if this is important you should seek advice in writing.

anglogerman

Brilliant advice, thank you!!! Yes,I'm British born and bred, but I was not at all sure about Felix's status. That's a big help, thanks a lot!

Judy in Calgary

:scared:

JAJ

Processing time up to a few years, then there's the possibility that the citizenship residence requirement could be increased to 5 years, and then there's the 1-2 year processing time for citizenship itself.

Perhaps a 5 year old could still become Canadian before reaching adulthood, but many new applicants starting today may not become Canadian citizens much before 10 years have passed.

Novocastrian

JAJ is clearly an expert, and gives excellent advice, but our experience on this (minor) point is different. My eldest was born in the USA and has had no problems with obtaining / renewing his UK passport while living in both Germany and Canada based on his US birth certificate.

JAJ

The problem is that without a consular birth certificate, then he needs to provide parents birth and marriage certs as well (maybe not for a renewal, but certainly for a new passport).

A consular birth certificate will certainly make things smoother if his passport is ever lost.

And in this case, child was born in Germany and German birth certificate may not be in English, so obtaining a British birth certificate will make things easier in any English speaking country by avoiding the need for an authorised translation.

I really cannot understand why anyone wouldn't want something that can only make life simpler for their child.

Novocastrian

No argument. Getting the first UK passprot needed the docs you suggest. Renewals not.


I really cannot understand why anyone wouldn't want something that can only make life simpler for their child.

Simpler? Stay home. More rewarding is another question,

anglogerman

Right. Couldn't agree more.

At present, I can provide an authorized translation myself, as I'm a certified translator for German to English (but not certified insane, I hasten to add...). Outside Germany, it'll be a different matter - a German certification may not be recognized elsewhere. So in the end, getting a British birth certificate may be best. I had to provide a certified German translation of my British birth cert before I could get married, and it IS a nuisance.