ILR/Citizenship application for Child born outside UK based on parents ILR and citizenship status

[navtanwar]

Hi all ,

I wanted to clarify the correct route for citizenship for my daughter born in 2020 in India. She currently has Indian passport.

At the time of her birth , father (me) had ILR status following Tier 2 skilled worker route ( granted ILR in 2017 )
Mother was on dependent visa sponsored by father.

Daughter , Indian citizen , applied for Indian passport in 2020 and travelled to UK on a dependent visa which was renewed with mother's dependent visa in 2021.

I now have a British passport which was issued in 2022.
Mother has successfully applied for an ILR in Dec 2023, whereas daughter (now 3yrs+) is still on dependent visa.

Daughter's visa expires in Mar 2024.
Is she directly eligible for naturalization/British Citizenship now.
1. Can we avoid fees for ILR application? ( that's why did not include her with mother ILR application)
a) Can she apply directly for citizenship . If so, what form should I use. OR
b) Can she apply for CoE for right to abode, so she can decide which citizenship she needs when 18y.

Additionally, we are expecting second child , who will also be born outside UK in 2024 . What would be the best route for second child , to be able to travel to UK quickest (dependent visa or citizenship or CoE for right to abode) ? Indian passport from experience of elder daughter took couple of months to arrive.
British passport would probably be the slowest gathering from other threads.

Please advise.

Regards
Nav

[alterhase58]

Both children will need to register a British "at discretion" form MN1 as they are/will be born outside the UK.
See the guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... 1-guidance
If born in the UK they'd be British automatically, as you had ILR before their birth

Daughter's visa expires in Mar 2024.
Is she directly eligible for naturalization/British Citizenship now.
1. Can we avoid fees for ILR application? ( that's why did not include her with mother ILR application) No - children born abroad are expected to hold ILR.
a) Can she apply directly for citizenship .No. If so, what form should I use. OR
b) Can she apply for CoE for right to abode, so she can decide which citizenship she needs when 18y. No - needs to be Britis for CoE.

[meself2]

Both children will need to register a British "at discretion" form MN1 as they are/will be born outside the UK.
See the guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... 1-guidance
If born in the UK they'd be British automatically, as you had ILR before their birth

Would child that is about to be born in India now not be British by descent already, as child's father is British?

[alterhase58]

Both children will need to register a British "at discretion" form MN1 as they are/will be born outside the UK.
See the guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... 1-guidance
If born in the UK they'd be British automatically, as you had ILR before their birth

Would child that is about to be born in India now not be British by descent already, as child's father is British?

Ooops sorry - missed the British Passport bit, you are correct of course.

[meself2]

What would be the best route for second child , to be able to travel to UK quickest (dependent visa or citizenship or CoE for right to abode) ?

Since child would be born to a British citizen, child will be British by descent after birth - can't issue a visa to a citizen.
Not sure what you mean by "citizenship" here - child will be a British citizen already.
Most likely CoE-RoA is the best option, but I can't comment on the intricacies of being a British-Indian child.

[navtanwar]

thanks vm @alterhase58 & @meself2

To summarise,

1) For child about to be born, CoE-RoA will be quick vs applying to British passport , ( visa isn't an option as child would be already a British Citizen as father is British) .

2) For elder child, ( born in India , when father had ILR)
2a. Need to apply for ILR before visa expires in Mar-24.
2b. Wait for 1y and apply for naturalization after 1y period .
2c. Apply for British passport after naturalization if child needs to travel abroad and return.
ILR fees and naturalization fees will be incurred.

3) If we extend the dependent visa for the child again, can we apply for naturalization certificate for the child along with mother's application for naturalization next year. Mother recieved ILR this month I.e. Dec 2023 , so she will be applying for naturalization next year or after.
If 3) is valid approach, which would be cheaper 2) or 3).

Apologies in advance , if my previous question was unclear or if my understanding of your responses had gaps.

[meself2]

You can't avoid ILR fees for oldest child (unless you want to apply for your daughter's citizenship in 2030, once she resided in the UK for 10 years, but you'll waste more money on extensions then).
Also can't avoid paying registration fees, because, well, that's what you're aiming for - to register her.

You should be able to apply once child gets ILR, under "children applying in line with parents".
I'm not sure if she can apply for ILR when her mother gets it - she might be, but I'm not exactly knowledgeable in this area, others will advise.