Help on Right of Abode

[lou-kei]

Can anyone help?!

I am finding alot of conflicting information regarding my Right of Abode.

I have an Australian passport with the Right of Abode certificate inside. My passport expires in August and my Right of Abode is only valid for the life of the passport. I know I can easily renew my passport from the UK but that I must reapply for the Right of Abode, and the fact that I have been issued one before doesn't guarantee me one again. Has anybody else had any problems getting another Right of Abode? The application seems to relate more to someone who has not been to the UK, would it go against me if I have been living/working here for 9 years.

I plan to return to Australia permanently in mid/end 2009. I also heard that as long as I don't leave the country and try and reenter then I can continue working here. Is this right and/or legal?

I am probably eligible for ILR but I'm returning to Australia next year so it doesn't seem like the best option.

Anyone got any help/advice?

[Christophe]

Having had a right of abode certificate doesn't guarantee you another one, but if you are entitled to the right of abode you have, basically, a legal right to it. (Had the first certificate been issued in error, for example, you wouldn't be guaranteed another one simply because you had had one before. And under recent anti-terrorism legislation, it is possible for the right of abode to be withdrawn in the same way that British citizenship can sometimes be withdrawn: for "ordinary people", though, these things are not a concern.)

And it will make absolutely no difference that you have already been in the UK for 9 years.

The certificate of entitlement to the right of abode expires with the passport's expiry and ceases to be valid for presentation at a UK port of entry. However, the expiry of the passport (and therefore the certificate) does not signify that your right of abode as such has expired (since it is lifelong), so yes, you could continue to live here and work here without getting a new one, but you would not be able to re-enter the country as a right of abode holder. It is also possible that you might want to prove your entitlement to be in the UK to someone other than an immigration officer, and a valid certificate in a valid passport would obviously be the easiest way for you to do that.

But if you have been here for 9 years, why don't you apply for naturalisation as a British citizen?

PS: I guess this thread really belongs in the UK immigration forum...

[Mr Rusty]

I am probably eligible for ILR but I'm returning to Australia next year so it doesn't seem like the best option.

If you have Right of Abode, you don't require Leave to Enter or Remain, so ILR is not appropriate in your case.

As Cristophe has indicated, your Right of Abode doesn't lapse simply because your passport has expired, any more than a British Citizen would cease to be British because his passport had expired. It's simply a matter of having a document to prove your status when you're crossing a border. You should be able to have your ROA endorsed in a new Australian passport at any time. If you have a foreign passport containing ROA, you can not be issued with a British passport as well. You have to opt for one or the other.

[Christophe]

If you have a foreign passport containing ROA, you can not be issued with a British passport as well. You have to opt for one or the other.

I think it's actually the other way around: if you have a British passport you cannot (now) have right of abode certificate placed in a non-British passport. I don't think that a British passport would not be issued to someone who was entitled to one but who already had a right of abode certificate in his or her non-British passport.

But as I mentioned above, the OP might want to consider the possibility of naturalising as a British citizen (or even registering as one, if eligible to do that): there would be pros and cons of both avenues but either way it would probably be more useful to her to have British citizenship than right of abode without citizenship. (Of course, she may already be a British citizen but simply have chosen not to get a British passport...)

[Mr Rusty]

If you have a foreign passport containing ROA, you can not be issued with a British passport as well. You have to opt for one or the other.

I think it's actually the other way around: if you have a British passport you cannot (now) have right of abode certificate placed in a non-British passport. I don't think that a British passport would not be issued to someone who was entitled to one but who already had a right of abode certificate in his or her non-British passport.

That's right, but if you applied for a British passport they would want to cancel the ROA in your foreign passport

[Hamayun]

Hi,

I am in a similar situation. I have an Indian passport with Right of Abode that has expired.

I am joining a new job and need to give them proof that I have no restrictions on working in the UK.

Can anyone help me find the legislation that proves I am allowed to work here?

Thanks.

[UKBAbble]

If you have right of abode it is for ever. If the vignette has an expiry date it is irrelevant.

[Hamayun]

Thank you so much for your advice.

I was panicking as I am joining a new job and they want proof that I am allowed to work and stay here.

Thank you!!!