British Expats - Help needed urgently

British Expats (https://britishexpats.com/forum/)

- South Africa (https://britishexpats.com/forum/south-africa-171/)

- - Help needed urgently (https://britishexpats.com/forum/south-africa-171/help-needed-urgently-915012/)

Kay_123

Jul 17th 2018 12:32 pm

Help needed urgently

Hello everyone
Some advise please - My son was born in South Africa, moved to the UK when he was 3 months old - he has obtained British Citizenship by registration but moved back to SA when he was 11 - he now wants to come back to the UK to live with me (he is 17 now), I need to renew his UK passport which I will do however the questions are about exiting SA

~ Does he need to have a current SA passport upon exiting the Republic as he only has a SA ID card.
~ I know he needs to produce his unabridged birth certificate & parental consent (as he is classed a minor in RSA)
~ He has dual nationality as he acquired both under the age of 18 so he need not worry about permission etc. ( I am correct I assume)

All the above seems sooo much hassle, or do I wait till he is 18 (in 15 weeks) & he can depart without consent and birth certificate BUT does he still need to produce a SA passport upon exiting even though he entered the Republic with his British passport (which is now expired)?

Complicated I know but anyone that can shed some light I would be grateful to you

ededed

Jul 18th 2018 7:53 pm

Re: Help needed urgently

Right - not great news, but.....he will need a valid passport to get out of SA - but he will also need a valid passport to get into the UK. If he doesn’t have a valid UK passport he will need to arrive on his SA one. I believe he will need a visa if his UK passport has expired as he can’t travel on it. Once here, he can get his UK passport and he’s home free.

Also - It doesn’t matter which passport he travels on, if he is under 18 he’ll need the unabridged birth certificate and parental consent if he isn’t traveling with both parents.

Hope this helps....

scot47

Aug 1st 2018 4:48 am

Re: Help needed urgently

Can a British citzen with dual nationality get a UK visa on that "other" passport ? I suspect not. This is the kind of quandary that you can get into when "forgetting" to renew a passport. Let this be a warning to others ! I spaek from experience with my own daughters who are also dual nationals.

Pollyana

Aug 1st 2018 5:06 am

Re: Help needed urgently

Quote:

Originally Posted by scot47 (Post 12541569)

No. If you are a British citizen you cannot get a visa for the UK as you do't need one.

tooboocoo

Aug 1st 2018 8:59 am

Re: Help needed urgently

It will 95% likely be quicker/easier to renew the UK passport and then depart on that, rather than wait for a first-time SA passport.

ededed

Aug 1st 2018 10:22 am

Re: Help needed urgently

Quote:

Originally Posted by tooboocoo (Post 12541658)

It will 95% likely be quicker/easier to renew the UK passport and then depart on that, rather than wait for a first-time SA passport.

Bingo. That’s a good shout.

BritInParis

Aug 1st 2018 12:30 pm

Re: Help needed urgently

Without a valid UK visa a SA passport holder won't be able to board a flight to the UK. As a British citizen your son is ineligible for a UK visa. Your son will therefore need his British passport in order to travel to the UK.

Section 26B of the South African Citizenship Act states:

Quote:

A major citizen who –

(a) enters the Republic or departs from the Republic making use of the passport of another country;
or

(b) while in the Republic, makes use of his or her citizenship or nationality of another country in
order to gain an advantage or avoid a responsibility or duty,

is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding 12 months.

So if you wait until he turns 18 your son will also need his SA passport in order to leave SA or risk a fine.

scot47

Aug 4th 2018 4:28 pm

Re: Help needed urgently

"If you are a British citizen you cannot get a visa for the UK as you do't need one."

And if you get one it is invalid ! So go and renew the UK pasport

Kay_123

Jan 7th 2019 4:40 pm

Re: Help needed urgently

Hi again
My 18 year old son lives in SA but a dual citizen i.e. UK and SA - he needs to renew his SA passport as he is coming to the UK however section D of the SA passport application form states 'have you acquired citizenship of another country on application' - does he say 'yes' to this? Then it asks for a passport number, is this is foreign passport number ie UK which has now expired and sitting at HMPO to be renewed!!!

Any information would be greatly appreciated if someone knows what the heck this means

He wants to take a chance and exit on his British passport only but its law that he must exit on a SA one....,

All times are GMT. The time now is 10:26 pm.