Sylwia,
We've "almost" got into a situation like that. Our son has Polish and Japanese passports and the latter has no middle name at all while the former has his Polish middle name. So, I wrote a ridiculously lengthy (and utterly absurd) letter like this:
"(Quote)
Date:#######
To: Caseworker, HMPO
Subject: Missing Middle Name in the Japanese Passport
I understand that the current Home Office guideline [1] requires British and foreign passports to carry identical names of the holder, and some applicants have been requested to add their middle name(s) to their foreign passports.
“10. Holders of non-British passports and national identity cards must also provide evidence they have amended the details in other passport(s) and any national identity cards they hold.(...) The names used in these documents take precedent to names used in other supporting documents, such as marriage certificates and deed polls.”
Middle names do not exist in Japan for any official or legal purposes including birth registration, and it is evidenced by the obvious fact that the attached Japanese passport says “Given name” in singular, which logically means that the Japanese passport has been designed to show only one given name and, as such, the “Given name” on a Japanese passport and the “Given names” on a British passport are mutually neither comparable nor compatible. It is wholly meaningless to be alarmed by a minute difference between two items that are, quite apparently, defined differently in the first place. Should the Japanese passport read “Given names: ######”, it would be perfectly reasonable to have it amended or cancelled.
As I understand it, the policy has been made to stop criminals from creating new identities [2]. As our son already has two valid passports and one of them shows his middle name, additional passport with the same middle name will neither create nor eliminate any identity. Besides, his Polish EU/EEA passport is as usable as his British passport for any purposes in the UK from opening a bank account to proving his right to reside and work with the only one exception of proving his British citizenship otherwise than by descent.
If it is procedurally unavoidable to record in his British passport the absence of his middle name within the territory of Japan, the observation page of his British passport should perhaps be amended (e.g. “THE HOLDER IS ALSO KNOWN AS (First)(Given) ON PASSPORT ZZ1234567 ISSUED BY JAPAN”) so that even the most imaginative soul will be prevented from seeing any duplicate identity out of the two names of extreme similarity.
Please note that the guidance booklet for overseas applications [3] currently states:
“You should check the requirements for the country you are in for when and how a name can be changed as this may not meet UK requirements. If you live in such a country, HM Passport Office will issue your passport in the new name with an observation to say that the holder is also known by their original name.”
I believe the same consideration should be given to in-country applications.
Yours faithfully
(First)(Given)
Reference
1. Change of name guidance – version 1.0, valid from 17 February 2015
2.
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/crac ... -detection
3. Applying for a passport from outside the UK; Helping you fill in the application form, page 4
(End of quote)"
And, we received his passport with no further evidence. I must admit that it was the most ridiculous piece of bureaucratic monstrosity that I've ever created.
If I were in your situation, I'd probably throw a towel in and get a letter confirming British nationality status using Form NS instead, because I also know a bit about the unwieldy bureaucracy on the Polish side and wouldn't even dream of getting anything out of them.
--
Yoshi
).
