Our foreign-born children aged 12 and 11 have lived in the UK since July 2013
They entered the UK with an entry clearance linked to my (their mother's) ancestry visa. My visa and the children's entry clearance expire soon (29 June 2018).
I have recently been granted Irish citizenship so have settled status now and, therefore, no need to apply for ILR.
The children's father is a British citizen by descent and was at the time of their birth.
We satisfy the three-year residency criterion and so the children can apply under section 3(5) for British citizenship.
We cannot submit their application right now, however, because my foreign passport demonstrating my residency is with the Irish embassy as part of my passport application.
We are concerned about the legal status of our children post 29 June 2018 when their entry clearance will expire, they will be living in the UK (and will have been living here continuously for nearly 5 years), their mother has settled status and their father has settled status being a British citizen by descent. It is a timing issue as we cannot apply for citizenship for them as my documentation to support their application is tied up with the Irish embassy.
It is also unclear to me whether we need to apply for ILR for the children as although this seems 'recommended' on sites I read for foreign-born children there is nothing in the guidance for a section 3(5) application that suggests this is necessary.
So the concerns are:
1) We cannot submit a citizenship application for our children (which they qualify for) at the moment as my paperwork to support it is tied up with the Irish embassy but their entry clearance expires on 29 June 2018. What risks does this pose for our children/us when it is the case both parents have settled status?
2) Is there reason in these circumstances (I.e. is it therefore necessary) for us to apply very promptly for ILR for the children when it is actually the case they are eligible for citizenship? Obviously this would be very costly.
3) Can the citizenship application be confidently submitted when I get my passport back from the Irish embassy even though it may be within 28 days of their entry clearance expiring or after it has expired?
So grateful to anyone who reads this lengthy post and who is able to help us with information
.