MarylandNed

You can complete and send in the citizenship application yourself - it's a simple process. You shouldn't need a lawyer unless you have problems during the process. For example, if they deny your application for some reason and you feel you need a lawyer to deal with it.

fatbrit

If your kid is born in the US with UK citizenship you can document this with the UK government in two ways: apply for a UK passport and make a consular record of the birth. I suggest if you have the opportunity you actually use both of them.

MarylandNed

You're entitled to your opinion - I just happen to have a different one. I'm simply letting people know that consular birth registration is not necessary for documenting UK citizenship. Even the UK authorities say it's not necessary. So people can decide for themselves if it's a good use of their money or not.

Bob

Yes, it has.

Still, problem is with a US birth cert being able to be adjusted, which is why they might not necessarily accept a US birth cert that has been issued after 3 months and then getting hospital records can be a hassle. Each state is different after all, and down this way, there's just the one, which states the parents names and location of birth of the child and there's no issuing date on the certificate, that gets stamped when you ask for a notorised copy from the town hall.

Also, you'd think having a UK passport the once would be good, but there's no guarantee that the information will be kept because most people can just get a birth cert to verify eligibility in the UK and with a passport that has been expired for a long period of time, or lost/stolen passport, you have to go through the hassle of showing eligibility again.

You've got the foresight to have all your documents and stored safely, but it's hard to keep track of everything if one is moving around a lot and doesn't have a bank lock box to keep it all safe in.

Bob

Those countries aren't going to have their birth certs challenged though, because they don't create new ones for adopted children, which is why they don't need a consular registration.

Bob

Poor form jumping into another persons thread, even with the best of intentions as it can lead to confusion on who is replying to whom etc.

Best off posting your own thread, so how you got your visa and Greencard, was it via work or marriage? Or were you under 18 and got it from parents etc...

fatbrit

I think you're just doggedly clinging onto an untenable position, really.

You've offered two arguments:

1. It's cheaper.
It may possibly be cheaper, although your position neglects to add considerable the cost of securing valuable documents for a lifetime. With the payment for your consular record of birth, the UK government is responsible for and incurs the cost of safely securing the records. Your argument also fails to acknowledge that these valuable documents may be destroyed or lost. We've already read on here of the British Embassy loosing the documents. If they lose your consular record of birth when applying for a UK passport, then it's no biggie -- just a few quid and you can have another copy. If they lose your US certificate dated within 90 days of birth (or whatever it is), you are then up the creek without the paddle.

2. FCO's lack of enthusiasm.
With the valiant exception of the sterling Dean who has helped many out on this board, have you ever actually seen the FCO be particularly enthusiastic about anything? I'm sure they're as unhappy about issuing paperwork as they are doing anything else. It really isn't going to be their problem if your delightful offspring can't document their UK citizenship when they need to later in life.

MarylandNed

I've heard this before and I simply don't understand this argument. You think passport records aren't kept but that consular birth records always will be? Do you seriously think that in this time of advanced technology and heightened security awareness that passport records are somehow less important and less safe than consular birth records? I would say the opposite is true. The best way to document UK citizenship is to obtain a UK passport and keep it current. Once you have one you're in the system and can be looked up pretty easily.

fatbrit

It's already an issue if you fail to renew your passport:

"Renewing an old style blue passport

If you are replacing an old style blue passport your application will be treated as a first time application rather than a renewal. See section on First Time Adult Applications. This is because of the length of time since you last had a UK passport, the need to undertake background checks to confirm your identity and to confirm that you have not formally given up your British Nationality."
http://ukinusa.fco.gov.uk/en/help-fo...tyle-passport/

My last but one passport was blue. My current UK passport expired a while back and, being issued at a British embassy in a very small country, doesn't even have the machine readable data at the bottom, never mind the RFID big brother garbage. I mailed it yesterday with the fee, forms and photos -- don't fancy an application from scratch again.

Bob

It's not so much that it might not be kept, though it hasn't in the past, it's that they are not obliged to look for the information of old passports and as barmy as it seems, this has been an issue that has come up. If you've lost your passport you have to file proof from scratch again, sure they should look your deets up of previous passports, but they aren't required to do so and they haven't in the past for people, requiring fresh proof of entitlement to citizenship, especially when a passport might have been issued in error, which is more of a problem for those born in territories and former colonies admittedly.

So while getting a passport now is a great idea, it's more expensive and not the best bang for buck as it won't be valid for long on a new born and a US passport is still needed for travel.

It's also a record the child will have access to in the future if they need, whilst your citizenship proof might well not be if they needed proof in the future.

Getting the actual consular birth cert I agree is a waste of money though, considering you can get one in the UK whilst on holiday for a few squid.

Spreading your bets on the proof of citizenship, for not that much money, certainly compared to a pretty useless passport is a much better investment of money if you can afford it.

Bob

Blimey, that must have been issued a while back....as the last embassy to issue none machine readable passports was the Saudi Embassy and even they updated things a few years back...just in time for them to not issue them any more when they centralised everything

fatbrit

1999. They didn't even have the ability to produce them -- had to apply at the embassy, then wait while they shipped the details and photo to a neighbouring one to get it actually printed.

MarylandNed

I understand the arguments about consular birth registration. If it wasn't so damned expensive I might have considered it myself for my US born daughter. However the cost to register and the fee for the actual certificate is outrageous IMO. It's not necessary and I hate to hand over money when I don't have to. So I simply chose a different route - I obtained multiple copies of my birth certificate and those of my wife and daughter for a fraction of the cost.

bruceba

I think it is a waste of money also.
My birth certificate that I used was issued 43 years after I was born. No problem getting a U.K. passport
Birth certificates in Quebec (for example) that were issued before 1994 cannot be used for UK passports.

fatbrit

Misleading. The UK Passport Service in Washington does not accept US birth certificates as proof of a link to a natural parent, unless the birth certificate was issued within 3 months of birth.

Either you weren't born in the US, or you proved a link to a natural parent by other means, or you applied before this policy came into force. I have no idea which.