nbrome

How on earth did you manage to get an Italian identity card for travel in Europe? Are you or the children also Italian?
Our cards always say on the back that they are not valid for travel abroad. We all have to have British passports to travel - even within the Schengen area.

JAJ

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Obtain...ports_overseas

If child is born in Italy, consular birth registration is also strongly recommended.

Lorna at Vicenza

Child born in Italy....... registered in Italian comune and Italian father.

LivingHere

Can I ask why? It's not clear to me on the link.
I have used Italian standard and Italian International Brith Certificates for official things back in the UK. Is it more for if you then move to another country?

Lorna at Vicenza

I should have said that this is only for my kids -

My own Italian identity card has a big stamp on the back of it saying "not valid for travel"

lex369

I got an italian travel pass for my son in Europe, but as you say, it's because he is italian. And it's valid for 5 years so I can wait for the British passport. I have registered all the other stuff at the comune.

Maybe this is a silly question but if we were all to ever go back to the UK to live does anybody know if I would be able to register his birth there or does it just remain in Italy?

Lorna at Vicenza

You should read this .........

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travelling-...register-birth

JAJ

It's proof of British citizenship, and can easily be replaced if lost.

Lorna at Vicenza

it's not cheap though is it ?

LivingHere

Isn't a passport proof of citizenship too? And you can get one of those without a british birth certificate

JAJ

Passports expire.

LivingHere

And both can get lost and then replaced. I still don't see the advantage of a birth certificate. Especially as I am an unmarried mother and need to go to our nearest consulate with the father of my children and pay someone to witness us sign a paternity document. And then pay for the priviledge.

Also a birth certifcate is issued by the country of birth and is not proof of citizenship.

TestaRossa

Can I make a suggestion? Ring the passport office in Rome. It will cost you to do this as it is a premium rate line BUT they are very good, very efficient and you will have all the answers to all the questions you are asking here and will know that you have the right answers.

The reason you have to be in this country or the UK when making the application is because of the verification photo - you can't have a person in the UK verify a photo I.D. when you are in Italy. Sometimes they ring and check out the credentials of the person you are using, so if it turns out they are, in effect, making a false declaration, which as they haven't seen you or the baby at the time of making their declaration they are, there goes your passport application! They will accept a verification of less than 2 years as well if you haven't known a professional that can sign, long enough.

JAJ

Replacing birth certificate = easy.
Replacing lost passport = hard, as all evidence of citizenship will need to be provided again. Not always easy or quick.

It's true for regular British birth certificates issued for those born in Britain.

But a British consular birth certificate (issued by a British diplomatic mission to those born outside the U.K.) is only issued to a child who is a British citizen => hence it is proof of citizenship.

Mick_P

Hope I'm not hijacking this thread, but given that its title is very broad, I thought it better than starting a new one.

A simple question: is it possible to drop off your passport application in person at the British Embassy in Rome and collect the new passport when it's ready? The reason I ask is that I want to avoid the €14.00 postage charge when I live in Rome and can easily drop it in.

I can find no reference to this particular method on the website, and I'm trying to avoid calling the €1.50/min helpline. So, has anyone out there actually done the transaction in person?

Thanks in advance.

Mick