pollybegoode

Hi there, we are planning on applying for a spouse visa for my US citizen husband. I am a UK and US citizen. We have 1 daughter who is a UK and US citizen, and we are having a second baby in July. My question is:

1. Once the baby is born our plan is to apply for the babies US and UK passports. Can I apply for the spouse visa before the baby is born as he will automatically have UK and US citizenship? Or will I need to apply for the spouse visa once we have his passports?

Thanks in advance!

Pulaski

I am confused about what you are asking.

Your USC husband will need a visa to be allowed to live in the UK no matter when or where your second child is born. Having a child who is British at birth affords no automatic immigration benefit to the child's mother or father, a parent still needs a visa, and the timing of the birth of your child is irrelevant to the application for a visa for your husband.

And assuming you yourself were born in the UK, any child of you and your husband will be a dual citizen in any case. .... In fact as a dual citizen, UK by birth in the UK, and naturalized USC, your baby will be a UK/US dual citizen no matter what the nationality of your baby's father.

pollybegoode

Hi Pulaski, apologies for my confusing post! What I am trying to ask is it is
- Will our unborn child need a UK passport to be able to move to the UK once he is born, or will a US passport suffice until we get situated in the UK?
- Is it advisable to apply for my husbands spouse visa before we have a passport in hand for the unborn child?

I hope this is a little clearer.
Thanks

Pulaski

OK, so two questions.

Your child will be admitted to the UK even without a British passport (so long as the child as "a" passport), and with your passport and their birth certificate they will be admitted and should not flagged as a visitor. If you can get a British passport for the child before you leave for the UK, great, but not having one isn't a show-stopper.

So far as a visa for your husband goes, I am not sure there's a connection, unless you are unsure when you will be able to fly because of waiting for a passport for your child? .... Personally, I'd go ahead and apply for the visa for your husband ahead of time, and give an intended date to enter the UK of one month (or longer) after due date for the child's birth.

BritInParis

Always get the British passport first. You’ll need the passport number for your husband’s application form. Be prepared for long processing delays for his visa and plan accordingly.

pollybegoode

Thanks Pulaski. This helps. We are concerned that if we apply for the visa ahead of time that we could run the risk of our baby not having a passport in time, but I think giving a departure date on the spouse visa in October would give us enough time.

pollybegoode

Hi BritinParis. So, in order for my USC husband to apply for the spouse visa we will need our new babies UK passport number? Even though the baby will be a UK citizen by birth?
Thanks for your help

Pulaski

I don't think it is "necessary", as there is no compulsion for anyone to have a passport, but BiP appears to think it would make things easier and/or quicker.

I don't know how not having a passport number for a child who isn't yet born would slow the processing of a visa application - what if your husband had applied six months ago - would his visa application have been delayed while you got pregnant? , but I will defer to his judgement.

BritInParis

Presumably the spouse visa application will be lodged after the baby is born. The husband will need to declare any dependants on the application form. Without a British passport number the assumption would be that the child would also require a visa.

reenie87

Hi everyone, hope it’s ok for me to jump into this thread. Our situation is very similar so it would be great to get further insight on this and know what you ended up doing Pollybegoode? I hope everything went well for you!?

I am British and my husband is Canadian. We live together in Canada. We are expecting our first child end of March 2021 and the intention is to apply for my husbands spouse visa prior to my due date so we can move home to the UK as soon as possible after the baby is born. We will apply for the baby’s British passport once he is born so we will not have to declare him as a dependant on my husbands application BUT... the application also asks “will you be travelling with any children”. If we all travel together then the answer will be yes. We will then have to provide the baby’s DoB, passport info etc.

This will significantly delay us submitting the spouse visa application as we can’t provide that information until he is born and until we have his passport. If my husband travelled separately without us could he answer no and therefore not have to provide any of that information? Are we breaking any rules by doing that?

BritinParis & Pulaski, I would really appreciate your thoughts on this? Thank you!

BritInParis

If you’re applying before your due date then can’t provide your baby’s details because he will not have been born yet.

reenie87

Thanks for the quick response.
yes exactly, but the questions ask:

1- do you have any dependant children? Answer is no.
2- will you be travelling with any other children? Answer is yes if we all travel together but at the time of application the child won’t be born so I won’t have any information to include.... so what do we do?
does that make sense?

SanDiegogirl

...... but they anticipate the child will be born before they return to the UK i.e the child's due date is end March 2021; they intend to apply before then and move over in June 2021.

So at time of application there is no child, however application asks if they will be travelling with children, which they will, and on arrival they have a child (without a Brit passport likely to have to prove child's entitlement to enter the UK? - although could enter as visitor and they get passport once in the country)

reenie87

Hi SanDiegoGirl!

Yes exactly, thank you for explaining. To clarify, we will get the baby’s British passport before we travel (after he is born) but as SanDiegoGirl mentioned we will have to prove the baby’s UK entitlement in the application (which we can’t do before he is born). Is it just simpler for my husband to travel separately?

BritInParis

If you’re applying before the baby is born then they don’t legally exist so can’t be included on the application. If they are born by the time you travel then so long as they have a British passport then there’s no issue.