GeneralPowerpoint

My wife and I are having our first child in the USA shortly, and then we'll be returning to the UK permanently at the beginning of next year.

The baby will be a British citizen but we'll probably obtain his American passport first and use that to travel unless there's reason not to.

Assuming he enters the UK on his American passport when we return, will he be admitted to the UK as a tourist and require a change of status or some kind of other action once admitted?

mikelincs

Yes, with a US passport he will only be a visitor and have to change status. Wouldn't it be a lot simpler to get him his UK passport?

GeneralPowerpoint

It's the timeframe I'm mainly concerned about. There really isn't a lot of time between the birth and our departure perhaps 16 weeks.

I was prioritising the American passport mainly for speed reasons. But I might be mistaken?

Lion in Winter

Even for a first passport and with covid, that does seem like it ought to be enough time to get a UK passport done, if you can swing just doing both applications at the same time.

BritInParis

16 weeks is more than enough time.

Lion in Winter

The only tricky thing, that I don't remember, if whether you have to provide for either or both of the countries a photocopy of the passport of the child's other country of citizenship. I remember having to declare another citizenship, but not whether a copy was required.

BritInParis

For a British passport you are supposed to enclose a copy of any foreign passport but since the baby won’t have either at the time of application I think it’s a moot point.

GeneralPowerpoint

Good to know thank you!

GeneralPowerpoint

Bumping this thread to add the final data point.

Arrived at Heathrow and no issues. Wife an dI showed our UK passports and showed our son's US passport. They waved us all through with no issue. Son's passport wasn't stamped.

SanDiegogirl

..... so it can be done

GyroMagician

Fantastic news! You give us all hope

GeneralPowerpoint

I should probably add that the officer concerned seemed to have just started his shift and was in a very good mood. So that might have helped.

BritInParis

Now that you’re back obtaining his first British passport should be a priority.

timdavies

Just found this post - thanks for the update! We're in the UK and our baby will be born any day, and we are hoping to make it to the US for Christmas (wife is a US citizen, so the child will be eligible for US and UK passports). We were planning on applying for both at the same time, but it sounds like if the UK one is slow, we may be able to leave and re-enter the UK with their US passport. If they do flag the US passport and no visa in the baby's passport, did you investigate how a change of status works? (hopefully, the UK passport would be waiting for us on return!).

SanDiegogirl

There is no actual 'change of status' if baby enters UK on US passport. You are just expected to get the UK passport asap.
Note that until such time as UK passport is obtained, child is in the UK as visitor, and, as such, theoretically but probably not practically, is NOT eligible for NHS.