Determination of BC - Born & Adopted Abroad in 1950/1953

[CR001]

Hi Moderators and Guru’s

Really sorry for this long post but thought it best to put as much detail in as I can.

This query is for my mother, who is currently on a UK Ancestry visa.

My mother was legally adopted in 1953 in South Africa by a British woman and a South African man (married). My mother and her adopted mother lived in the UK circa 1955 to 1958 and my mother travelled to the UK on my grandmother’s British passport at that time.

Historical facts that we have for my mother etc are :

Mother – Born in South Africa in 1950 and placed in foster care in 1951 with my grandparents before the legal adoption. Adoption completed in July 1953 and we have all these records including the changed birth certificate.

Adoptive Mother (my grandmother) – born in the UK in 1921 to a British mother (unmarried). I have these birth certificates already. Adoptive mother (my grandmother) moved to South Africa circa after the second world war. British citizenship was NOT renounced.

Adoptive Father (my grandfather) – born in South Africa in 1904 to British parents – I have my great grandfathers’ British birth certificate (born 1872 in London) and trying to get the date and certificate of his marriage but believe it to be circa 1902 and the wedding took place in London before they moved to South Africa in circa 1903.

The records from South Africa from so far back are virtually non existent and the BHC in Pretoria have not kept records dating back to then of British birth registrations and told us all a few years ago that records were probably sent to the UK.

Would my South African born grandfather have been British by Descent as he was born to British parents?

What we are ultimately trying to establish is if my mother is British and entitled to apply directly for a British passport by virtue of being legally adopted and would have been British from birth if her adoptive mother had given birth to her. Also, the fact that her grandparents along both adopted maternal and paternal lines are British might have some significance. Or would she need to naturalise?

The other aspect we have found is the ‘double descent’ citizenship but I don’t quite understand all the jargon used in this section of the research I have done.

I have suggested to my mother that we apply for ‘Determination of Nationality Status’ and submit all the documents and details that we have with a covering letter OR apply directly for a passport with all the documents and details we have.

Suggestions / comments very welcome.

Thanks

Char