IconBoy

My two eldest preschool kids were born in UK and both have UK birth certificates and passports. My youngest (now 2) was born in California and has a USA passport.

I know I do not have to register my youngest child as British with the Home Office, but feel it would be wise to do so. I am not 100% sure of the complete way to go about doing all of this as some of the information regarding registering the child as British seems ambiguous. Spending nearly $3/minute on the phone is exorbitant, when you just have a couple of questions to clarify regarding the application.

The child was not registered as British when born. She is now 2 years old. Can I register her as British even though she is older than 1 year?
Can I apply for a British passport at the same time as registering her British?
Has anyone done this and perhaps can share some tips on what to do/what not to do?

I am renewing my eldest child's UK passport. Some of the documentation says I only need to send in her old passport. Do I therefore not have to send in her full birth certificate, wife's and I marriage certificate etc?
Trying to get this all sent in at one go so don't want to mess it up. Thank you for any help.
PS - Can I send in my own UPS/FedEx postage paid return envelope, or do I have to pay the $12 fee for the service the UK Embassy uses?

MarylandNed

For consular birth registration, all the information you need is here:

http://ukinusa.fco.gov.uk/en/help-fo...-registration/

Read the application form carefully regarding the requirements for US birth certs (must be full - not short form; also need hospital records if birth cert was issued more than 3 months after the birth; etc.)

Yes, you can apply for a British passport at the same time and just pay the $12 postage fee once - the application form even states this.

I don't see any restriction on the age of the person being registered. Did you read somewhere that you can't register the child after its first birthday?

The passport application forms are confusing because they seem to imply that you might need to send in supporting documentation even for renewals. However, here is a link that states otherwise:

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-...pics/documents

"If you are renewing a passport you will need to send in your old passport.

Supporting documentation is not required for renewal of valid or recently expired passports. The exception is where you have naturalised or registered as a British Citizen; in this case we require a copy of your certificate of naturalisation or registration.

If your passport expired over 10 years ago your application will be treated as a first time application, otherwise it will be classed as "recently" expired and dealt with as a renewal."

Just send in the $12 fee for postage. If you don't, you're asking for trouble and, quite frankly, for $12 it's just not worth the risk of hassle, delay and a rejected application.

jon_nyc

I got my US born 7 year old daughter a first UK passport last year, never registered her birth or anything like that. Only slight hiccup was they sent back some verification of marriage form, but it seemed like they'd pretty much already approved contingent on that, and the whole thing was done in less than 6 weeks from what I remember.

mwdake

My daughter was 20 years old before we even thought of getting a UK passport for her.
We never registered her when she was born.
We just sent off the application with the supporting documents and 6 weeks later her passport arrived.

It is my understanding that UK citizenship was her right and that getting a UK passport or birth certificate proves it. I guess my daughter was always a UK citizen or entitled to it and now that she has a UK passport she has proof of it.

Bob

you'll find plenty of threads that talk about the pro's/con's to registering the birth...mostly a future proofing task in case passport is lost/stolen years down the line when parents are dead.

IconBoy

Thanks very much everyone for your responses. I think I'll apply for passport as well as register her as British — just in case down the line there's a hiccup. It took me many years to finally get UK citizenship through my mom, so want my girls to not have the same problems. It does seem costly but in the long run it's worth it. I guess when your original passport wasn't easy to travel on, you realise what a blessing having that red "gold" is finally worth.

JAJ

You got British citizenship through your mother, if by that you mean you were born outside the UK ... so that means you're probably a British citizen "by descent" and hence your USA born child is NOT a British citizen (unless she can claim it from her mother).

What section of the British Nationality Act did you get your own British citizenship under?

If you're British by descent, forget everything on this thread about consular birth registration - it doesn't apply to you.

All is not lost, however - if you lived in the UK for 3 years, you can register your daughter as a British citizen under section 3(2) of the British Nationality Act, as long as it is applied for before she is 18.
http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/br...en/bornabroad/

You apply on Home Office forms, send the application to the Embassy who forward it to the Home Office for decision. After your child has a Certificate of Registration as a British citizen, then you can make the passport application.

IconBoy

Even though my mother is British, I actually got my British citizenship through Certificate of Registration and not descent. I therefore, if I understand it correctly, am eligible to pass on citizenship to my youngest daughter.

JAJ

Some forms of Home Office registration give British citizenship "by descent" depending on which section of the British Nationality Act that registration is effected under.

Look at your registration certificate, if it says (for example) "section 4C" then you're British by descent and need to follow the instructions above.

Section 3(2) registration may be an option for you (if you've live in the UK for 3 years), it gives British citizenship by descent. The alternative is section 3(5) registration, if you move back to the UK with your daughter for 3 years, which gives British citizenship otherwise than by descent.