Citizenship by descent question
 

Hello,
I am very confused. I was born in the US in 1967 but my mother is from Scotland. Am I automatically a U.K. Citizen?
Do I need to register or pay a fee?
I plan on moving to the U.K. and need to know if a British Passport
will be all I need to get employment and housing?
Thanks for all your help.

Re: Citizenship by descent question
 

Have a look at the link below -

https://www.gov.uk/register-british-...british-mother

Re: Citizenship by descent question
 

I've been studying that website and it is not very straightforward.
I've gotten much more useful information here.
I'm going to just apply for a British Passport.
It seems to be pretty simple after reading past posts.
Thank you for the link though.

Re: Citizenship by descent question
 

If your mother was born in the UK but your father was born elsewhere and you were born before 1983 then you're not currently a British citizen and your application will be rejected. You'll need to register as a British citizen first. HKG3 has kindly provided you with the link to the application form.

Re: Citizenship by descent question
 

A British passport will not get you employment nor housing.

Employment you will obtain with skills and experience, private housing you will get with income and social housing you won't get at all.

Re: Citizenship by descent question
 

That's good to know. The confusion is with before and after 1983. I have been informed that the law changed in 2010 to include those of us born before 1983.
I was also informed that my future employer would only need my passport number to obtain a National Insurance number.
I do have skills. I am a licensed histologist and have a masters degree in social work.
All of this information was emailed to me from the GOV.UK website.
So, it does get confusing when I keep getting conflicting information.
I plan on getting dual citizenship and learning more before I relocate.

Re: Citizenship by descent question
 

From what I'm reading I'll need to complete the UKM application to register as a British citizen. The fee seems to be only 80 pounds for the ceremony.
Once that is complete I can apply for a passport.
I'll contact the helpline for further clarification.
Thanks for your help.

Re: Citizenship by descent question
 

For you the law changed in 2003. You will need to apply for your own National Insurance Number (NINO) once you arrive in the UK. You need to attend an interview at a Jobcentre Plus office with your passport. You can start work without one but you should obtain one as soon as possible to ensure you are being taxed correctly.

https://www.gov.uk/apply-national-insurance-number

That's correct.