LondonLou

I am from London, my husband is American. We were married in California 5 years ago. We have a son and are coming home for two months this summer. My son already has an American passport but we are going to apply for his British passport while back home. We intend to move back to London in about three years after having more kids. I want my husband and family to have the same rights and privileges as any U.K. citizen. Would having a second wedding in the U.K. benefit us legally? and what else could we do on this trip to help lay the foundation for moving back in 3 years. Thanks

Noorah101

Hi Lou, Welcome to BE.

No, getting married "again" in the UK won't help anything...you can only be legally married once, and you did that 5 years ago in California. That marriage is valid in the UK.

Do you all live in California right now? You said "coming home", but I think you meant "visiting the UK", since the USA is your home now, if you are a permanent resident.

Your son might need his British passport BEFORE arriving in the UK. If he is already a UK citizen, he should be admitted as such to the UK, not as a USC tourist.

The only way for your USC husband to have the same rights as a UKC is for him to become one, but there is nothing he can do towards that until he lives in the UK. So I don't think there are any steps you can take for that right now, you have to wait and start the process in 3 years when he actually lives full time in the UK. At THAT time, there might be a visa he needs to apply for in order to stay in the UK full time, so he can live and work there legally.

Are you a US PR or a USC yourself? You should get your US citizenship before moving permanently to the UK in 3 years.

Best Wishes,
Rene

jmh

I was married in NZ and it is legal in the UK, but it is worth checking when you marry abroad or you might end up like 'Mrs' Mick Jagger, whose marriage, it turned out, wasn't legal anywhere!!

LondonLou

Thanks Rene,
Yes, we live in San Diego (we were in Tempe before that).
I am a permanent resident right now but as of this year I am able to become a citizen (one of my new year resolutions). My son was born here so we got his US passport first, next we are looking to get his uk passport. Then when we come home I will apply for my citizenship here in the states.
My husband's company has an office in Basingstoke so I think that he shouldn't have any issues with working in the UK. I was told by a friend that he would not need a visa to work in England because being married to an English citizen is enough but maybe I should look into that more. I was also told that my son should only travel to and from the UK on his American passport not his UK one when he gets it, another thing to look into. I don't think that my husband would be willing to give up American Citizenship for UK citizenship, its a shame that he can't have the same duel citizenship that myself and my children can have, maybe that will change over time.

Lou

Noorah101

Just so you know, both you AND your husband can have dual US/UK citizenship.

Rene

Just Jenney

If by "coming home" you mean moving back to the UK and THEN applying for your US citizenship, that ain't gonna happen. If anything, you're at risk for losing your US permanent residence status if you go down that path. You'll have little basis for being a US citizen if you aren't planning on even maintaining your US resident status.

You should start the naturalization process now so that you have plenty of breathing room for when you want to move back to the UK in 3 years. (It took 17 months for my husband's naturalization application to be processed, although it takes other people less time than that.)

If his company sponsors a UK work visa for him, then that's probably true.

Your friend is wrong.

Again, this friend is wrong. When entering the UK, he should use his UK passport. When entering the US, he should use his US passport.

Wrong again. Both the UK and the US recognize dual citizenship. Some people on here have triple citizenship, even.

Whoever this friend is who's tellling you all these things is giving you all sorts of false information. I'm very glad that you're not planning to return to the UK for another 3 years, because if you were planning on leaving soon with the "information" you've received thus far, you would find yourself in a bit of a mess, I think.

~ Jenney

MsElui

your son will need to enter the usa with his american passport but can use any other passport hes entitled to for entry into other countries.

LondonLou

Jenney, I am glad that I joined this site. You know, once I got that green card I stopped paying so much attention to the whole immigration journey. I guess that I need to get back on this thing and navigate the waters a bit better.

Noorah101

Here's a "to-do list" for you:

1. Get your son his UK passport here in the USA before going on vacation this summer.
2. File your N-400 towards US citizenship as soon as you're eligible.
3. Do research on how your husband can live and work legally in the UK (so you will know ahead of time before you go in 3 years).
4. Enjoy your vacation this summer.

Rene

ian-mstm

No worries... he doesn't have to give up one for the other... and there are many of us who are dual UK/US citizens.

Ian

LondonLou

Does it make a difference getting my sons uk passport through the post office when I go back to the uk this summer or though the British consulate in DC?

ian-mstm

It doesn't really matter how you get him a UK passport. I'm not 100% sure, but if he is a UK citizen, he may be required to enter the UK with a UK passport. In which case, the Embassy in DC may be quicker.

Ian

Noorah101

I am thinking the one in DC is better, because then he'll truly be entering his country of citizenship (UK) as a UKC. Otherwise, he'll have it on record that he entered the UK as a USC tourist. Why not just go ahead and get it done before hand...one less thing to worry about.

Rene

LondonLou

Thanks everyone

notacrime

There is no such thing as English citizenship. As much as I'd love to be a Scottish citizen I'm not, I'm a British citizen, as are you.

My USC wife was able to get a UK spousal visa through the British consulate in LA, we were living in San Francisco at the time. It took about an hour. That visa allows her to work here in the UK. (The site uk-yankee.com is a better source of advice on such visas than this site.)

I am unaware of any requirement that a British citizen enter the UK using their British passport. I have been told informally that this is not a requirement, but I am doing more research into this too. Getting the passport through the post office takes about 2 weeks, and you'll need an address in the UK that the passport can be sent to.

Rene gave you a great list, you should follow that. You should definitely get your US citizenship sorted out before you leave the US for more than 6 months. Since you have been married to your USC husband for 5 years you are almost certainly eligible to naturalize now.