Citizenship of Child of ILR holder parents

[chetkav]

We are married couple from non-EU country. We hold ILR issued in March 2006. We are expecting child in next few months.
Query:-
1) What will be the citizenship of the "yet to be born" child when born?
2) The child will get which passport - British OR will get the passport of the parents' country.

[olisun]

We are married couple from non-EU country. We hold ILR issued in March 2006. We are expecting child in next few months.
Query:-
1) What will be the citizenship of the "yet to be born" child when born?
2) The child will get which passport - British OR will get the passport of the parents' country.

British, British, British

[sakura]

We are married couple from non-EU country. We hold ILR issued in March 2006. We are expecting child in next few months.
Query:-
1) What will be the citizenship of the "yet to be born" child when born?
2) The child will get which passport - British OR will get the passport of the parents' country.

The child will have British citizenship if at least one parent holds ILR - which you do, so s/he will be a BC at birth. Check out the BIA website for all this - or do a search on this board because there are loads of similar queries. Will the baby be born in the UK? Also - you've had ILR for over a year - any intention of applying for naturalisation? It'll cost you a whole lot more now...(unless you received ILR in an exceptional circumstance and need to wait 5 years?)

[Dawie]

We are married couple from non-EU country. We hold ILR issued in March 2006. We are expecting child in next few months.
Query:-
1) What will be the citizenship of the "yet to be born" child when born?
2) The child will get which passport - British OR will get the passport of the parents' country.

The child will definitely be a British citizen if born here in the UK, but it could also be a citizen of your country if your country allows dual citizenship. Which country are you from?

[John]

Let's get this right. The child will be British as soon as born, assuming the child is born in the UK. That is, the born-in-the-UK child will be British as soon as born, even without the need to Register the child as British. Merely a question of using a passport application form in order to get the child a British passport.

Born outside the UK? The child will not be British. Indeed it will be necessary to obtain a passport (obviously non-British) for the child and then apply for a Child Settlement visa, and given the parent's settled status, that would be issued as ILE.

Then when either/born parents apply for Naturalisation as British the child can be the subject of a Registration application.

[VictoriaS]

If the child is born outside of the UK and you then bring him / her back to the UK, and you are clearly still settled here, then it may be possible for you to get him registered as British under a concession, even though he was born overseas. You would need to show that the trip abroad for the birth was only a short trip, and that you intend to remain with the UK as your home.


Victoria

[chetkav]

The child will be born in the U.K.
So, going by advice of all you friends it is sure that the child will be British Citizen.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH Olisun, Sakura, Dawie, John, VictoriaS.

Chetkav

[Christophe]

The child will be born in the U.K.
So, going by advice of all you friends it is sure that the child will be British Citizen.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH Olisun, Sakura, Dawie, John, VictoriaS.

Chetkav

That's right. Bear in mind too that, depending on the citizenship laws of the country of citizenship of the child's parents (i.e. of you and your spouse), the child may also be a citizen of that country (or countries).

[chetkav]

As Sakura sugested, I checked with BIA website. It says tthe following:-

Children who are born in the United Kingdom or a qualifying territory

5. Children who are born in the United Kingdom or, on or after 21 May 2002, in the United Kingdom or a qualifying territory (see Note C) will always be British citizens otherwise than by descent if, when the child is born, one of the parents is:

a British citizen (it does not matter whether the parent is a British citizen by descent or otherwise than by descent); or
settled in the United Kingdom (see Note F); or
(if the birth occurred in a qualifying territory on or after 21 May 2002) settled in that territory (see Note F).

Notes

C. The British overseas territories are currently:
Anguilla, Bermuda, British Antarctic Territory, British Indian Ocean Territory, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, St. Helena and Dependencies, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, Turks and Caicos Islands, and Virgin Islands.

The "qualifying territories" are the British overseas territories except for the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia.

F. People are normally regarded as settled in the United Kingdom or a British overseas territory if they are ordinarily resident there without being restricted, under the immigration laws, as to how long they can stay there.

[JAJ]

If the child is born outside of the UK and you then bring him / her back to the UK, and you are clearly still settled here, then it may be possible for you to get him registered as British under a concession, even though he was born overseas. You would need to show that the trip abroad for the birth was only a short trip, and that you intend to remain with the UK as your home.

Victoria - assuming you mean child being registered without a British citizen parent, have you any reference for that in the Nationality Instructions? I'm not saying it isn't in there but I've never come across it before now.

[VictoriaS]

I'll do a search in the nationality instructions when I get a chance, but I had a case like this a few years ago, and I'm pretty sure the situation hasn't changed. The parents were clearly settled in the UK, I seem to remember that the mother was on holiday and complications arose so she couldn't fly back to the UK. When the child was born and she flew back, they made the application and it was granted, though I don't know if it was by descent or other than.

Victoria

[JAJ]

I'll do a search in the nationality instructions when I get a chance, but I had a case like this a few years ago, and I'm pretty sure the situation hasn't changed. The parents were clearly settled in the UK, I seem to remember that the mother was on holiday and complications arose so she couldn't fly back to the UK. When the child was born and she flew back, they made the application and it was granted, though I don't know if it was by descent or other than.

I see nothing to that effect in the Nationality Instructions. Normally the deal is:

- if neither parent is British, child must wait until one parent naturalises; or
- if one parent is already naturalised British, child will be British by descent.

Of course, it's always possible that the registration was done by mistake in a particular case.

Registration as a British citizen under section 3(1) confers British citizenship by descent if either parent is a British citizen when child is born - and "otherwise than by descent" in all other cases.

[VictoriaS]

I got the impression at the time that it was discretionary, so I'm not surprised it's not in there. I may have got someone on a good day.

Sorry I can't give evidence on this - it was a couple of years ago.


Victoria

[JAJ]

I got the impression at the time that it was discretionary, so I'm not surprised it's not in there. I may have got someone on a good day.

Registration under section 3(1) of the British Nationality Act 1981 is always "discretionary" but there are policies to determine how this discretion should be exercised.

You may well have got someone on a "good day". Note that even if a person is naturalised or registered as a British citizen in contravention of the law or policy, that is not a basis for the Home Office to be able to legally "re-open" the application later on. Only if there is some evidence to suggest a nullity, which is rare.