mark.benedetti.moss

Hello,

Please can you help guide me as I am trying to get a UK passport for my little boy who was born in Italy in October 2006. He has travelled internationally before as we have had him added to my Italian wife's italian passport.

I am an British Citizen (born in England to British parents) who married an italian woman in England in 2004. We subsequently moved to Italy later in 2004 where I have residency but still retain my British Nationality. I changed my surname from "Moss" to "Benedetti Moss" on my passport in 2005, as the father gives his surname to children in Italy and we wanted to continue the surname Benedetti.

I wish to travel to the UK with my little boy this winter without having to have my wife travel also.

I have read the forums and I'd like to know if an italian ID card enough for him to travel. If I get my wife to come to the local comune to sign the forms then is an id card with "uso espatria" (ex-patriate travel) sufficient these days? This would be the fastest and cheapest solution. I do not intend to travel outside the EU!

or

1. Would you suggest I initially get an italian passport for him (and if I get an italian passport can he later obtain a UK passport to hold 2 passports)?
2. How should I obtain a UK passport for him? Should I go to england/liverpool alone and have an interview? Should I get the UK passport from the consulate in Rome/Paris? I have parents living in the uk so i could use their address.

I have been told that the first thing I need to do is register his birth with the consulate so that he is held on UK records as a Britsh Citizen for the future. Not sure this is true.

Thank you so much in advance for your help

Mark Benedetti Moss

37100

An I.D. card is only available from 15yrs. A 'lasciapassare per minorenni' is sufficent for your childs immediate needs. You can obtain this from the questura. Look up Polizia di stato and it will give you all the info.
You do not need to register him with the British Consulate. The only real advantage is that you will be given a british document however, you're local town hall can supply an international birth certificate in English. You can either do his passport in England (others on this site have done this but may be on hols) or send off to Paris. We can no longer use Rome. He can also have an Italian passport but if you do not intend to travel outside the E.U. it is just an added expense.
Sorry, have to dash because O.H. is painting the room around me.

ellybelly

My daughter was born in England(I'm British and my late husband was Italian). She has 3 children all born here in Italy. All 3 have British passports which she got here and they use them to travel by plane. The eldest has been to England but they all travel from Milan to Naples and vice versa while she has only got an ID card at the moment.I hope this helps.

Lorna at Vicenza

Mark,

The only thing you need at the moment to take your son to England is a
"certificato di nascità con fotografia". It is a bit like an Italian identity card but it is for minors.
You go to the comune with 2 passport sized photos of your son, sign the papers and they will get it stamped etc. at the questura.

It is valid for 5 years.

I have 2 kids here born to an Italian father. I am British. The kids are Italian citizens so their "certificato di nascità con fotografia" is automatically valid for 'uso espatrio'.

My kids have travelled to Engand many times on these cards and we have never had any problems. They do not have British passports yet but I intend to get them one and they have never been registered at the consulate as it is expensive and not relly necessary as they are entitiled to a British passport anyway.

ellybelly

You forgot to say that both parents have to be present at the comune when the documents are signed for a child passport or id card.

37100

Sorry, I wasn't very clear but dear hubby really was painting the room around me.
I also obtained my son's i.d. from the town hall but you sometimes need a trip to the questura i.e. a parent refuses permission or separated/divorced parents etc. If not, it's easy peasy to do at the town hall and they come in all shapes and sizes so don't worry if your's looks different from another parents. My kids are now adults but we always used them even to go to ex-yugoslavia.

I said that there is no need to register your son with the british consulate but if you are considering moving back to th u.k. on a permanent basis it would simplify life a little. Neither of my sons are registered but the eldest has a shiny cert. stating that his is a u.k citizen because when he was born there was no automatic right through the female line.

duffer

Yep, this is the easiest and cheapest option for now. It lasts 5 yrs and is good for travel within the EU. You both have to go down to the Comune and it might take a couple of weeks. Mine did not have a document number but it didn't present any problems at Gatwick either way.

mark.benedetti.moss

Thanks to everyone who took the time and effort to help me out. I will be visiting the comune in the week starting Mon 21st next week and I will post my results to hopefully confirm your informed opinions.

There has been a delay because we own a beach business and the sunshine won't stop here in Liguria! )

As soon as we close our summer season i'll get on the case and let you all know. Thanks again, this forum has saved me a lot of phone calls, office visits and money

Lorna at Vicenza

Hey - don't moan about the sunshine When you do get to England you'll probably get nothing but rain

duffer

Nothing but sunshine when I was over. The only day it rained we were away in Kent where it didn't! Fantastic. Best August weather in the past 5 years for me!

Patty

we got one of these 'white cards' for our 11 yr old very recently. The comune here in Piemonte sent us to the nearest questura. Then it took about 6/7 weeks to come back. Just to say that some places take longer than others.

Lorna at Vicenza

That's a really long time.
My comune, though tiny, goes to the questura once a week. They took in the forms one week, picked up the travel card the next week and I called into the comune the day after that and picked it up.

I was very glad that the comune goes themselves. The questura is roughly 30 km away and I hate all those that work in there after fighting with all of them over the years for the dreaded permesso.

duffer

Same with ours too. The comune sends them off once a week and gets them back once a week. Took about 3 weeks in all because we went just after the forms had been despatched. And it's all FREE OF CHARGE.
We could've gone to the Questura ourselves but that's in the centre of Vicenza and it's a nightmare.

Lorna at Vicenza

The people who work there are like something from a nightmare too and the supposed 'Ufficio Stranieri' was just a joke the last time I had anything to do with them !

Patty

Mind you - I had a heart stopping moment at St Malo ferry terminal. The french girl looked at my passport - fine........then she took my sons white card and started frowning - I explained what it is and so she then went over to a colleague and asked her about it - I was about to faint (thinking we'd be denied access and miss my sisters wedding and mums birthday) then she came back and said all ok. Then again going through the passport control to embark - same story again !! So I was mighty glad to get his new passport in the UK and use it on the way back !

I know I'm prone to a bit of exaggeration but underneath I was quite worried because the Channel Islands are NOT English and their laws and legislation is very different