Gozit

But here's the thing - UKBA CANNOT DEPORT A UK CITIZEN... We've been through this before with others on the forum - just because a UK citizen does not have a UK passport doesn't mean he/she can be denied their right of abode upon entry. If you can prove your daughter is a UK citizen by other means, such as a consular birth certificate, along with your UK passport and her Russian passport, UKBA cannot deport her. Your wife on the other hand would need a tourist visa or spouse/work visa.

Your daughter would need a tourist visa in her Russian passport but only to satisfy airline requirements. But the question is will the UK embassy issue a UK visa to a UK citizen's non-UK passport?

If I was you I would be being very adamant with the embassy with words like "I need to get to the UK with my daughter. She is a UK citizen as well as I and has the right to be in her country." and if they reply with bollocks just repeat. "My daughter needs to get to the UK. What means do you have to get her there? I need an emergency travel document or other document certifying her British citizenship to airline officials and UKBA officers. Having her passport on time would also have been lovely."

JAJ

Wouldn't it be a Russian passport and a Certificate of Entitlement to the Right of Abode? A British citizen cannot get a visa.

The advantage of a Right of Abode stamp is that it's issued locally by staff who should be familiar with non-U.K. documentation. Which is something that the Passport Office appear to be incapable of dealing with, hence all the "security checks" that were never an issue before.

Although since you can't have both a British passport and a Right of Abode stamp, if an application for a British passport has been made that greatly complicates matters.

jameshunterjones

Thanks for the suggestions. It has been suggested that a tourist visa may not be awarded to someone whose father has citizenship and whose mother has a Russian passport with spouse's visa. The logic being that there was a clear intention for the child to overstay the visa period.

Gozit

Yeah that's what I was thinking.

Why can't you have a British passport and a right of abode certificate? Is right of abode different to being a British citizen, and can't you have both?



Not this. That the child may be a British citizen. And therefore shouldn't have a tourist visa.

BritInParis

A British citizen doesn't require a visa but it wouldn't stop someone getting a visa in a foreign passport if they so wished. It would merely be to satisfied the airline's requirements to allow that person to board a flight to the UK. A ROA certificate would be considerably more expensive than a visitor visa and would likely take longer to issue.

Not until the British passport is issued, which doesn't look like it's going to happen for a while yet.

The validity period of the visa is irrelevant if the child is a British citizen since they can't overstay. Have you applied for your daughter's consular birth certificate? Do you have any recent ancestry that might entitle your daughter to any other citizenships, e.g. Irish?

JAJ

Really? Since a British citizen is not subject to immigration control, any visa would be null and void. And a consular officer should not grant one. The only "visa" that's acceptable is an ROA certificate.

That's not to say that a consular officer or employee of a private company administering the visa function might not grant a visa to a British citizen, but it would (by definition) be a mistake.

JAJ

Every British citizen has Right of Abode. Some citizens of Commonwealth countries, British subjects, etc., born before 1983, also have Right of Abode without being British citizens.

In 2006 the law changed to stop someone having, at the same time, a Right of Abode stamp and a British citizen passport.

KPD

James, I fully sympathies with you.

I approached my MP and his aide tried hard to find out what is going on. But she did not have much luck - told the same story as me. Security checks - need to wait, no indication of time line.
It's been over 6 moths for us and I made a formal complaint to HMPO customer service. Not sure this would help but this is the only thing I can do.

You or your wife can apply for your daughter's ETD at the British Consulate in Moscow. But you need exactly the same documents that were used to make a passport application. You will have to revoke the passport application.
My concern is that buggers at HMPO can simply loose the documents if they are requested back. The place seems to be a complete mess.

You can not apply for a visitor or any other type of entry clearance.

Right of Abode is an expensive exercise it would be easier and perhaps faster to get ETD and then apply for a passport once in the UK.


Best of luck!

jameshunterjones

It feels to me like ETDs are a tenuous option. I have been told that they are not available in lieu of first-time passport applications. It would not be good withdraw a passport application in favour of ETD and then have to apply for a passport again from the start.

KPD

Normally ETD is not available for first time applicants but as a temporary measure it has been made available until HMPO have sorted out the mess they are in.
In fact British consulate in Moscow is overwhelmed with ETD applications and appointments are scares.
I am considering ETD if we do not receive our passport by mid September.
We need to get back to the UK for early October.

jameshunterjones

KPD,

I am sorry to hear about your situation - I also fully sympathise with your experience.

I am wondering it is worth paying the embassy a visit while I am in Moscow in September - although I doubt it will do any good.

KPD

James, they won't let you in unless you make an appointment or there is a genuine emergency.

If I were in your shoes, I would go ahead with the settlement entry clearance application for your wife and if that is successful I would apply for ETD for your child. Then once the family is in the UK you can apply for your daughter's passport.

Of course alternatively you can wait.

The average waiting time for a settlement visa in Moscow is 3-5 months so there is a bit of time.

Best of luck!

BritInParis

As I say it would only be to satisfy the airline. Once at the UK border it would become irrelevant as the child is a British citizen. A consular birth certificate and ongoing passport backlog should suffice to allow the child in as a British citizen.

jameshunterjones

Do you think a Consular Birth Certificate alone would satisfy the airline?

jameshunterjones

But KPD, haven't you already said that we would need to withdraw the passport application to apply for the ETD? There is no guarantee that the documents could even be returned in a timely fashion.