Ja5on

So my wife is due in around 5 weeks and I was looking up registering the little tyke with the UK embassy....I have noticed that there are a bunch of fees and I don't really understand the point in applying for it, I do get that maybe in a number of years I will be dead and it could be a pain for my child to find my birth cert/passport, but is that the only plus side?

I'm thinking of just waiting till they are a little older and getting them a UK passport just in case they need it for anything. But for right now I don't see the point in shelling out $173 to register the birth.

The main reason for my post is that I have a habit of being wrong about things and would like someone to point out why I am an wrong and tell me why I should get it done! Thanks.

BTJ

See here for arguments either way.

ian-mstm

Generally speaking, only grandmasters have the foresight to plan the end game when they first start to play.

Ian

Ja5on

Maybe I should ask Dr who!

fatbrit

Why should you provide the little brat the guaranteed right to work or live in one of the world's richest unions? Don't waste your money, mate!

jackattack

So in researching this a little further, I saw that there was references to getting a birth certificate "for a few squid" when back in the UK. Can you help me understand how I might do that? I did click over to the UK gov website but it looked like it was just for re-ordering birth certificates (and other things) that had perhaps got mislaid.

I am UKC with Green Card and my daughter was born in the US. She has a US passport and I did not register her birth with the British Consular Office when she was born. So technically she should easily be able to get a British Passport if I just fill out the right forms. However having just renewed her US passport, I don't really want to go through the hassle of getting a UK one (and she prob will just travel on her US one anyway), at least until she gets to age 16 and can keep it for 10 years.
So my question is, I'm heading back to the UK this summer for 6 weeks in the hope that my parents will be able to help me get some sleep after I deliver my new twins (aarrgghhhh) and I wondered about getting birth certificates (hopefully for one 5 year old and two newborn infants) while in the UK. Can someone direct me to the right place to start filling out the forms?

fatbrit

Once registered, the certificate is available from GRO the September following the date of registration.

You can register in London or at a UK embassy abroad.

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-...tering-a-birth

Ja5on

Good point. The baby isn't going to make my life any easier so why should I make theirs!? I think I'm gonna treat myself to some video games with the money I am saving!

fatbrit

Yeah, probably best. They just sh!t and eat a lot when they're born, anyway. And it all costs money. Maybe just dump it at a local gas station and you'll save yourself a packet. You can always reclaim it later if you need someone to take the trash out, mow the lawn, or get your beers from the fridge.

Bob

If you can afford it, it's about $170 to register the birth, it's worth it.

Don't bother with the certificate, as you can get that from any birth/deaths registry in the UK while on holiday for a fiver. This saves you about $100.

The baby only needs a US passport to travel, so this will also save a huge chunk of change on a passport that won't last very long.

Is it worth it, that's up to you. It does make getting a passport easier in the future if a UK passport is lost/stolen or expired more than 10 years, it'll need to be applied for from scratch, which if you're dead might be hard to do. At the moment it isn't a problem for the kid to get your birth certs from the UK, but this might not be the case in the future for instance.

Ja5on

Thanks Bob. One last question, can I get the birth cert at anywhere that does them? The last time I got one for myself I had to travel back to the city I was born. Also can someone else pick it up for me? Like grandparents ect.