Registering a Child & Tax Benefits

[Msenangu]

I would really appreciate a clarification of the following issues if you can please:

My wife, our child, and myself got ILR earlier this month.

1) I understand we can register the child as a British Citizen now. What does this registration mean? Will the child be issued with a British Passport together with her registration certificate? If yes, why do the rules then say that a child can only apply for naturalisation upon reaching the age of 18? Is it better for the child to wait for one year so that she can get naturalised with us?

2) I also understand we can now get child benefits. If I apply for benefits now, they can be backdated for 3 months. This means that I will be given benefits for periods that I was not supposed to receive public funds ( i.e. March and April months - as I only got ILR in May). Will I be committing fraud if I get March and April benefits? Is this likely to affect our naturalisation?

[JAJ]

1) I understand we can register the child as a British Citizen now. What does this registration mean?

Child will become a British citizen.

Will the child be issued with a British Passport together with her registration certificate?

If you want the child to have a British passport, a separate application for a passport is needed. British citizens are not obliged to have passports.

If yes, why do the rules then say that a child can only apply for naturalisation upon reaching the age of 18?

Because children are registered, not naturalised (registration is effectively simplified naturalisation).

Is it better for the child to wait for one year so that she can get naturalised with us?

If you have only one child, you may as well apply for child's citizenship now.

[Msenangu]

JAJ,

Thanks a lot for the very helpful answers.

Do you know where I can get an answer to the question below. Have tried to search on this board but can't see a relevant response.

"I also understand we can now get child benefits. If I apply for benefits now, they can be backdated for 3 months. This means that I will be given benefits for periods that I was not supposed to receive public funds ( i.e. March and April months - as I only got ILR in May). Will I be committing fraud if I get March and April benefits? Is this likely to affect our naturalisation?"