kazzy48

parental rights can anyone help

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hi can anyone help me please, my daughter went to america 5 years ago on a wv, she married within 90days.(without a K1) since then they have had a daughter who is 4. the relationship looks like its coming to an end, my daughter wants to return to England with her daughter, but my grandaughter has no passport and my son in law wont sign anything. although hes told them to leave.
my question is ............. with my daughter being british her husband american what rights does my daughter have, and how can she bring her home with her. is my grandaughter half british and half american will she need a duel passport, please please can someone help.

Giantaxe

Your daughter should seek legal advice. Divorce/Custody laws vary from state to state, but if your son in law is not willing to permit his daughter to leave the country (not sure about this, you say "told "them" to leave but then say he "won't sign anything"), she's almost certainly going to have to convince a divorce court that such a custody arrangement is in the best interests of the child. Given the child has lived her whole life in the US, I doubt that will be an easy thing to do. Otoh, if the father truly has no interest in the child, sad though that probably is, things would presumably have a rather different complexion. Also note that some states do not allow a child to go out of state without court permission during the divorce process.

The child will hold both American and British citizenship and is thus entitled to passports from both countries.

Elvira

THIS IS A DUPLICATE THREAD - can one of the moderators close it.

Please can peeps answer here to avoid confusion:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...=1#post6116664

lapin_windstar

Hi Kazzy

I know it's very scary (and you might be a long way away from your daughter and grandchild right now ), but try not to panic.

If your granddaughter was born in the US, she is entitled to US citizenship: http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/usc...0045f3d6a1RCRD

If your granddaughter is the daughter of a UK citizen, she is also entitled to UK citizenship: http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/bri.../bornoverseas/

That having been said, the important consideration for your daughter is going to be whether the terms of her custody arrangement (if any) will allow her to remove her daughter from the US. Sometimes they are not even allowed to leave the state, let alone the country. A qualified lawyer where she lives is the best person to help with that. There will also be lots of official advice online, but make sure it is relevant to her state: what is right in New York may not be true in Florida.

Good luck.

NC Penguin

This is closed because it is a duplicate thread. Please post responses here:
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...=1#post6116664

Thanks.