Aija

I am an Australian currently living and working in Finland, and I'm just about to give birth to my first child. In order to obtain an Australian passport for my baby I need to acquire her Australian citizenship certificate. Filling out the online "citizen by descent" form on the Australian Immigration website seems to be fairly straightforward, until I get to the section where I must provide evidence of other citizenships I hold.

I am a dual Australian/British citizen, by descent, and applied for a British passport back in 2007 whilst still residing in Australia. The AU embassy website states that for proof of citizenship of another country "a passport is not acceptable as it does not state on what date the citizenship was acquired". It states to provide a naturalization certificate or a full birth certificate (if citizenship acquired by birth - not me).

I am utterly confused. The only document showing my British citizenship is my British passport. I have never lived in the UK, nor have I been naturalized. Am I missing something here?

It's crucial I obtain my child's passport promptly so I'm really eager to get this figured out.

philwood

Did you get a document at all when you received British citizenship? If you do, surely you would have kept it and surely it would have had a date on it?

You could scan this in and send it to them. I find it strange that they wouldn't accept a passport, but then, their reasons for doing so (not showing the date) do make sense.

Aija

Thanks for your response. Unfortunately I don't have any of the original documentation that came with the passport.

Everything I've read suggests that citizenship "by descent" is acquired at birth. Thus I don't have a requirement for either naturalization on a birth certificate.

BritInParis

If you were born in Australia and received your British citizenship by descent then you'll need to submit your full Australian birth certificate as evidence of your British citizenship.

knighstrike

You wish to obtain UK citizenship for your children?

If so, I'm afraid you can't since you are British by descent.

British by descents cannot automatically pass on British citizenship to their children.

NickyC

If you read her post you will see that she's not doing this to get British citizenship for her child.

She's doing it to get Australian Citizenship by descent for her child. It's an Australian requirement that she documents her other citizenships.

not2old

I suppose a person that has a British passport through the 'citizenship by descent', that once it expires & it is not renewed, then they no longer can claim they are British citizens?

It seems totally daft too me, because it basically says, that if the passport is not renewed, then you lose the 'British citizen' title, much like not renewing a drivers license as the right to legally drive.

Mumbling ....

Surely other than what was posted above about having the original birth certificate that would show the 'citizen by descent' parent was born in the UK, can the HO provide a letter or some other form of document to state the adult British passport holder (by descent) born outside the UK 'as a British citizen' once they've had their first passport?

not2old

for the OP, after an exhaustive search I found the following.

form

https://www.gov.uk/government/upload..._June_2014.pdf

NS guide

https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...014-update.pdf

From the UKVI web site, the 'status letter - Nationality' application fee currently is £85

Can someone in the know please post or make other suggestions if this is the right way for someone who has citizenship by descent to get a 'status letter' confirming they have British citizenship (even if its by descent)?

BritInParis

Form NS is for those who have a potential claim to British nationality but insufficient evidence for HMPO to issue them a passport. It's not suitable for someone who already holds a British passport. See Post #4 for the solution to the OP's problem.

For future reference if someone requires a 'status' letter, for instance if they are British by descent but their parents were not born in the UK, then a better solution would to make a Subject Access Request to HMPO under the Data Protection Act 1998 for the release of their passport details. This will give them a letter from HMPO stating which section and act under which they became a British citizen. The cost is £10.

alfista1

When in Uruguay I had to prove my citizenship to them as my British passport wasn't enough.
The British Embassy compiled a letter for this purpose.

Impreza

Does your British passport not have a date of issue on it? If so, I would explain about how you applied to receive that passport based on descent and state that this was the only piece of information that states the date of acquisition of British citizenship.

BritInParis

Very kind of them but I doubt this would be easy to replicate elsewhere.

As stated in the OP the date of issue of the passport is irrelevant to the date of acquisition of citizenship.

Impreza

OP stated the he applied for his British passport in 2007 by applying as 'by descent' and as far as I know, the date of issue of the British passport is the date of citizenship acquisition. With all this being said, the only other way I would argue this, is that my date of British citizenship acquisition would either be from when I was born, or in some countries when my parents married when I was alive (Due to citizenship being by descent) or as the date of the passport was issued (as long as it was the only British passport he was ever issued, and nothing previous). What other dates is there to go by for his citizenship acquisition?

BritInParis

It would ordinarily be the OP's date of birth. You need to be a citizen in order to be eligible for a passport not the other way round. If she received her British citizenship automatically by descent at birth through a British-born parent then her full Australian birth certificate will suffice.

Impreza

Exactly, so if I were OP, I would explain all of this in the application.