Right of Abode

Dear Experts,

My wife and myself entered UK around May2010 on a Tier 2 VISA. My first son was born here in UK on 20th August 2010 (4 months on arriving UK).

My wife, son and myself got our ILR around Apr 2015 and we are now eligible for citizenship.

My second son was born here in UK on 14 Feb 2015 (3 months before).

Can you please let me know if both of my sons are eligible to apply for Right of Abode in UK and what are the pros and cons of applying for Right of abode instead of applying for a British passport.

Many thanks in advance for your advice and help.

Your children are not British Citizens, so no, they can't have right of abode.

You will need to register each one separately on form MN1 as British citizens under section 1(3) of the nationality act, which is an entitlement to register due to being born in the UK.

Once registration is approved, only then can they apply for a British passport.

For children born after 1983, only British citizens have Right of Abode.

What is your current nationality and the nationality of your wife and children?

A CoE-RoA (which I think is what you have in mind) is a vignette attached to the non-British passport of a dual British/other citizen. It is only possible if the person has two (or more) nationalities.

But many nationalities do not allow dual citizenship. So, if your (or your child's) current citizenship is from India, Japan, Malaysia or most countries in Asia, you/they will not be able to get a CoE-RoA as your/their other citizenship will expire when you become British.

secret.simon wrote:For children born after 1983, only British citizens have Right of Abode.

What is your current nationality and the nationality of your wife and children?

A CoE-RoA (which I think is what you have in mind) is a vignette attached to the non-British passport of a dual British/other citizen. It is only possible if the person has two (or more) nationalities.

But many nationalities do not allow dual citizenship. So, if your (or your child's) current citizenship is from India, Japan, Malaysia or most countries in Asia, you/they will not be able to get a CoE-RoA as your/their other citizenship will expire when you become British.

Both children born before OP got ILR, only option is MN1.

CR001 wrote:Both children born before OP got ILR, only option is MN1.

True. But CoE-RoA is an option if the children are Pakistani (which does allow dual citizenship), but not if they are Indian (which does not), for instance.

Hence the children's current nationality is quite relevant.

secret.simon wrote:

CR001 wrote:Both children born before OP got ILR, only option is MN1.

True. But CoE-RoA is an option if the children are Pakistani (which does allow dual citizenship), but not if they are Indian (which does not), for instance.

Hence the children's current nationality is quite relevant.

Agree but CoA is still only possible after MN1, which would render the Indian nationality null and void surely.

CR001 wrote: Agree but CoA is still only possible after MN1, which would render the Indian nationality null and void surely.

Agreed. That is why I said that CoE-RoA is not an option if the children are Indian.

Let's wait for the OP to advise on what the nationality of his children is.

Dear Friends,

Thanks for your reply.

As per the details in the following links Children born in UK to Parents with ILR are eligible for ROA.

My second son was born in UK when my wife and myself had an ILR, Does this not make my second son eligible for ROA??

http://www.immigrationboards.com/britis ... 19338.html

http://www.immigrationboards.com/britis ... 48408.html

and we are from INDIA.

MOH444 wrote:Children born in UK to Parents with ILR are eligible for ROA.

Correct, if the children are born in the UK AFTER one of the parents has got ILR.

However, if the children are born BEFORE one of the parents have got ILR, they must be registered as British citizens on Form MN1.

Registration as British citizens extinguishes their Indian citizenship. That extinguishes their right to an Indian passport. CoE-RoA requires an existing non-British passport.

As the children would not have a non-British passport, the only option is a British passport. CoE-RoA is not an option.

The explanation that I have just given above is virtually the same as the one in the link that you provided in your earlier post. Did you actually read the whole thread?

You have to surrender the children's Indian passport within 3 years of their registration. Any travel using their Indian passport beyond 90 days of registration will incur fines and possible problems in future. So, once the children are registered, it would be best to immediately apply for their British passports.

I believe the children would be eligible for OCI, but I am not sure.

MOH444 wrote:As per the details in the following links Children born in UK to Parents with ILR are eligible for ROA.

My second son was born in UK when my wife and myself had an ILR, Does this not make my second son eligible for ROA??

You need to provide accurate information. You state above that your second son was born when you had ILR. In your opening post you wrote :

My wife, son and myself got our ILR around Apr 2015 and we are now eligible for citizenship.

My second son was born here in UK on 14 Feb 2015 (3 months before).

So which is correct? All the advice already given to you is based on the Feb 2015 birth date and April 2015 ILR date.

Dear All,

My apologies, I have made a mistake in the year, sorry,

My second son was born on 14th Feb 2016 and not 2015, apologies again for the confusion.

My first son, Wife and myself got ILR around April 2015.

I suppose my Second son is eligible for getting Right of Abode. I am not sure about my first son. Is there a way i can get Right of abode for the first son aswell.

Also please let me know the process to get Right of Abode and are there any timelines for the same.

Many thanks everyone for taking time to answer the queries

Your first son is not British so cannot get RoA.

See also CoE-RoA.

My Second son is eligible for RoA right??

Can you please let me know the process to get this.

I have just got his birth registered for now in UK and have a Birth certificate. I do not want to make a mistake which may cause problems in getting RoA.

vinny wrote:See also CoE-RoA(CLICK).

Please do click on vinny's link. Your child will need a passport for RoA.

Can I ask why are you so keen on getting CoE-RoA on an Indian passport rather than a British passport?

Remember that your child will need a British passport to enter any other country in Europe.

Thanks Vinny, CR001 and Simon.

We have not decided on staying here in UK permanently. But want to keep the option for sometime until we make a decision.

Could you please let me know the advantages and disadvantages of choosing RoA over British Passport for my kid.

Any children of yours born in the UK after you got ILR will have both British and Indian citizenship at birth.

They can get an Indian passport and CoE-RoA, which will allow them to live in and visit both India and the UK, but not any other EEA country.

Such children will have to choose whether to retain their UK citizenship within 6 months of their 18th birthday, else they will automatically lose their Indian citizenship.

If you apply for a British passport on their behalf before their 18th birthday, they automatically lose their Indian citizenship. Conversely, a British passport would make it easier for our children to visit EEA countries.

Concerns have been expressed in other threads on these forums that it is impossible to prove the British citizenship of children like yours, who are born in the UK after their parents have got ILR, because ILR records are destroyed after a certain period of time. In such a case, a British passport would be a more secure way of retaining British citizenship than a CoE-RoA.

Thanks Simon.

If i take RoA for my kid now and wish to get him British passport an year down the lane, is this possible or we need to compulsorily hold on to RoA until he is 18 for him to take a decision.

He can get a British passport at any time (before or at 18 years of age), but once he gets the British passport, he can not go back to a CoE-RoA. It is a one-way street.

He will also have to surrender his Indian passport if he gets a British passport.

Can someone answer my question please.

I thought I had.

MOH444 wrote:If i take RoA for my kid now and wish to get him British passport an year down the lane, is this possible or we need to compulsorily hold on to RoA until he is 18 for him to take a decision.

secret.simon wrote:He can get a British passport at any time (before or at 18 years of age), but once he gets the British passport, he can not go back to a CoE-RoA. It is a one-way street.

He will also have to surrender his Indian passport if he gets a British passport.

MOH444 wrote:If i take RoA for my kid now and wish to get him British passport an year down the lane, is this possible or we need to compulsorily hold on to RoA until he is 18 for him to take a decision.

My understanding is that he would be refused a passport on the grounds of holding a valid C of E to R of A. Perhaps I have it wrong, and on being granted a British passport the certificate would be cancelled as the foreign passport will have been held by the Passport Office during the issuing process.

MOH444 wrote:p.

My second son was born here in UK on 14 Feb 2015 (3 months before).

Did you mean 2016 and not 2015 as this is crucial