The UK government currently receives around 200,000 successful applications for British citizenship each year, with citizenship by birth being a commonly successful pathway. Read this article to learn more about what citizenship by birth is and the process for applying for UK citizenship by birth.
When you decide to apply or register for UK citizenship by birth for yourself or your child, it is a great idea to get help from an immigration lawyer or advisor who can guide you through the process.
Defining Citizenship by Birth in the UK
If you or your child was born in Britain or on British territory, citizenship by birth may apply. This is particularly the case if the applicant’s parents were British citizens or had settled status at the time of birth.
You don’t always have to apply for citizenship by birth as it is often applied automatically. This is the case on most occasions for those born on or after 1 January 1983. Births in the UK before this cut-off date are also often grounds for automatic British citizenship. That is unless your father was a foreign diplomat in the country when you were born. Similarly, being born to a father that was an ‘enemy alien in occupation’ of the Channel Islands during the Second World War.
You won’t always have been automatically made aware of your citizenship status. Rather, you can ask for a letter confirming your citizenship: an ‘immigration status letter’. You can also find out if you are a citizen by birth automatically by applying for a passport.
Applying for a Passport After Citizenship by Birth
Having successfully obtained citizenship by birth for yourself, you can apply online for a British passport. During the application process, you will need to confirm your identity. This requires a British citizen referee who has known you for two years or longer and has a job. Your referee will be contacted by the Passport Office when they are processing your application.
Alongside contact information for your referee, you will need to submit any valid passport you have for a non-UK country and evidence you are a British citizen.
Once you have submitted the application, you will usually need to wait three weeks, but this can be longer if the Passport Office is dealing with a backlog. Applications with discrepancies will also take longer to be processed.
A standard application fee also applies to all citizens. This is £88.50 for applications made online and £100 for paper applications. The fee is slightly higher if you require a frequent traveller passport with more pages.
What You Need to Know About Getting a Passport for your Child
Children who have obtained citizenship by birth can also access a British passport, although there are further application requirements.
You must make the application on your child’s behalf if they are younger than 16 years old. However, the application will need to be signed by your child if they are between 12 and 16 years old. Both parents’ signatures must also be on the application. If this is not possible, you must explain why.
Furthermore, when making an application for a child, you will need to provide an adoption or birth certificate to prove you are the child’s legal parent.
Children’s applications for a passport after acquiring citizenship by birth have a lower application fee, although the three-week processing time still applies. The fee will be £57.50 for applications made online, and £69 for paper applications.
Citizenship by Birth Outside of the UK
In some cases, those born outside of the UK can access citizenship by birth. The 1981 British Nationality Act has provisions for this if one or both of the applicants were British nationals when they were born.
Such citizenship is usually not applied automatically, and you must go through the registration process. There are some further requirements to be aware of when making this registration:
- Both parents need to have lived in the UK for three years or longer when the application was submitted.
- Applicants over ten years old must be of ‘good character’.
This registration process is not always necessary. If both parents were born in the UK, citizenship is applied automatically.
Citizenship by Adoption
The citizenship by adoption process is similar to the citizenship by birth process due to the 2002 Adoption and Children Act.
The act applies if at least one of the adopted parents were British citizens at the time of adoption or if the child was under a UK court’s parental order on behalf of a UK national.
Citizenship by adoption is particularly strong because it applies for life. Should the adopted child’s adoption or parental order cease to be in effect, they will be allowed to keep their citizenship.
Securing Citizenship by Birth for Your Family
As has been seen in this article, citizenship by birth is not always automatic. Rather, many cases require you to go through a stringent registration process to get citizenship, and an application process to acquire a British passport. However, it is certainly worth the effort to have British citizenship, giving you or your child access to full rights in the UK and the ability to travel in many countries without requiring a visa.
If you have difficulties with registering or confirming your citizenship, it is common to make use of an immigration lawyer or adviser. These professionals can guide you through all the legal processes as efficiently as possible and appeal on your behalf if your registration is rejected.
