winston_1

29 years ago I had this problem. My daughter was born in Malaysia, my wife Malaysian, myself British. My daughter had a Malaysian birth certificate but the British High Comm would not issue a British birth certificate without seeing mine which was in the UK.

So my daughter was added to my wife's passport (I believe now kids have to have their own passport). My wife and daughter subsequently entered the UK on this passport with no problem. A year or two later I applied personally at the passport office for a passport for my daughter. I took her Malaysian birth certificate, my wife's passport, my passport, birth certificate, and my late father's cancelled passport. The official just took a quick glance and that was it, 6 weeks later we had the passport.

Davita

I assume you mean you went to the UK passport office for a UK passport for your daughter.
If incorrect then should we assume your daughter is still Malaysian by citizenship?
If correct.... it will be interesting to hear how she dealt with the issue of dual-nationality.

winston_1

Indeed. The first time my wife renewed her passport my daughter was still added. The next time it came up for renewal she wasn't. She never applied for a Malaysian passport in her own right and never expressed an interest in doing so. Basically my daughters Malaysian citizenship no longer exists. She lives and works in the UK and is getting married to an Englishman this year. She has visited Malaysia on a number of occasions using her UK passport without problems.

Davita

Thanks for the info winston_1.
This happens to a few people...they have citizenships but, because they do nothing to benefit from that....like applying for a passport, it lays dormant although, legally, her Malaysian citizenship should have been revoked when she received her UK citizenship.
However...one never can foretell the future so if your daughter just keeps quiet and, at a later date, if UK has a civil war or revolution....... she might wish to re-acquaint herself with being a Malaysian citizen.

ruri

I'm a Malaysian and my husband is a British citizen by birth. Our daughter was born in Malaysia and is a holder of both Malaysian and British passport. Before applying for her BP I personally went to the immigration department in Kota Kinabalu to confirm if she can hold 2 passports until she is 21. They did say yes. My daughter has also entered the UK with her Malaysian passport and stayed for 6 months there before we decided to obtain her British Passport from Malaysia.

Davita

I don't understand....how did you obtain her British Passport from Malaysia?
Did you register her birth in the British Embassy in Malaysia and applied there for her UK passport...or you applied for her British Passport whilst in UK?

InVinoVeritas

Does you daughter hold a full British Passport or a British Overseas Citizen passport? The important difference is that the latter can be held by someone who has a Malaysian passport but the former cannot be.

ruri

Neither.

She has only Malaysian birth certificate and now every passport application outside the UK must be done online.

So my husband and I applied and paid online, I printed the declaration form here in Kota Kinabalu, got my counter-signatory who is a Sarawakian, a friend of ours for 10 years and has a professional job to sign and also certify my daughter's photo as per required by the HMPO. I gave all the required documents including certified translation to few of our documents, my husband's parents birth certificate and their marriage certificate too.

Then I posted everything to Liverpool as that is where I was instructed to send it to. 5 days later, they received the documents, another 2 days after, my daughter's British passport is printed and dispatched, and then 3 days later again, I received all the documents and her new passport here in KK.

First I wanted to obtain the ROA for her instead of getting the passport but the necessity of having to make an appointment and travel to Wisma MCA in Kuala Lumpur didn't really appeal to me.

Hope this helps

ruri

Well her British passport looks exactly like my husband's British passport

Davita

Are you saying your daughter only has a Malaysian birth certificate and that the UK issued a passport without her being recorded as a British citizen.
Am I the only one that finds that odd?

Also...have you informed the Malaysian Immigration that your daughter has acquired a UK passport and then seen if dual-nationality is accepted.

I've searched and cannot find any information that Malayia permits dual-nationality to anyone. I'd appreciate if such information, other than 'what someone said' was available.

ruri

Don't forget that her Malaysian birth certificate contains her father's name (who is a British citizen otherwise than by descent - that automatically made our daughter a British by descent by birth). And also we did not simply filled up the application and sent it without giving all proof that she is eligible for British passport.



You may want to do some reading regarding these process

https://www.gov.uk/overseas-passport...child/malaysia

https://www.gov.uk/check-british-cit...ry-1983/no/yes

Also we have consulted HMPO long before we made the application. So what do you find odd here?

InVinoVeritas

I think the point is that she is certainly eligible for a British passport but, in that process, she has to give up her Malaysian citizenship (and passport).

ruri

Sorry I completely missed this one. Yes I have of course gave a call to the immigration department in Putrajaya but I seem to not able to reach "the right person" as they say everytime.

But I mentioned to them of what I was told by the immigration department here in Kota Kinabalu regarding my daughter holding 2 passports, and all they say is "well if you were told so, then it is so".

I'm not completely ignoring this matter, to be honest I don't intend to have any trouble and I'm still calling to find all the information from their department.

Davita

ruri ....it isn't my intention to be rude or judgemental.... it is that everyone says they know someone who has a Malaysian passport and A. N. other, and so do I.
I would like to see the law in this regard as I believe, like IVV, that it isn't permitted under the Malaysian constitution and there is no dispensation for children of mixed nationality.
If I were you I wouldn't pursue any thing. Just keep 'mum' and your daughter will be fine and maybe later thank you for giving her dual-citizenship.

This has been an ongoing concern here in Indonesia where they HAVE changed the law to permit children of mixed Nationals to have dual until aged 18 but must change to one or the other by age 21. This was enacted as an amendment to the law recently.

quiltman

It is not a requirement for obtaining a British passport for the child to have its birth registered with the embassy. This can no longer be done at the Embassy and is done via the Foreign & Colonial Office. So long as the birth certificate shows the fathers details and is in English, or a certified translation , then this is acceptable. you can still register the birth via the FCO and this gives you a UK style birth certificate which is helpful if you wish to delay applying for a UK passport. Plenty of threads on this subject in BE.