Am I already a British Citizen?

[Infamy]

Hello all, I had a question in regards to naturalisation and the possibility that I am already a citizen of the United Kingdom.

The facts are:

1) My mother was born in India and was naturalized as a British Citizen in 1967 when she arrived in the UK along with my Grandparents (she was 3 years of age)

2) I was born in Canada in 1988 after my mother's marriage (which took place in the UK in 1987)

3) I entered the UK in 1994 and was given Indefinite Leave to Enter at that time and I have lived in the UK ever since (I have never had any issues as this is the equivalent of ILR, correct?)

4) My mother never registered me as a British Citizen when I was a child or applied for a British Passport

My questions are;

1) Based on my understanding as I was born abroad to a British Citizen who obtained her citizenship otherwise than by descent, have I been a British Citizen since birth?

2) If this is the case, am I able to register as a British Citizen even though I am now an adult? Do I have to naturalize on the basis of my ILR instead? If neither of these are necessary do I just apply for a British Passport and state that my mother was British otherwise than by descent before the time of my birth?

3) Where can I obtain evidence of my mother's naturalisation from 1967? I have the original documentation of my grandparent's naturalisation and their old British Passport's aswell, and some old British Passports of my mothers (none that pre-date my birth however). What other evidence or documentation will I require to prove that my mother was British before my birth and therefore apply for a passport/registration/naturalisation?

I appreciate that these are a lot of questions but I would appreciate any help that you all can give, thank you very much for taking the time to read my post

[John]

My mother was born in India and was naturalized as a British Citizen in 1967 when she arrived in the UK along with my Grandparents (she was 3 years of age)

I suspect you might mean Registered as British, not Naturalised as British, as she was only a child at the time.

Where can I obtain evidence of my mother's naturalisation from 1967?

Is your mother still alive? If so, are you still in contact with her? If so, can you ask her for further detail?

[Infamy]

John, you are absolutely correct. I spoke to my mother today and I reviewed the documents that I have in my possession.

She was registered as a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies in February 1967 on the same day as my Grandparents. I only have the document of registration for my Grandmother. These registrations took place at the High Commission in New Delhi.

I also have my mother's Landed Immigrant Status card from when she emigrated to Canada (before my birth) which states that she is a citizen of UK & C and notes her UK Passport Number. I also have access to my mother's current UK Passport.

[rajaiizahir]

You can consult 'Confirmation of Nationality Status' page of UKBA website. It explains if you already hold a British Nationality status. I, however, understand that you are already a British national on the strength of your mother's nationality who is a citizen otherwise than by decent and capable of transfering the nationality up to one generation. If you have birth certificate explaining various details, you can directly apply for a passport without looking here and there.

[John]

Infamy, one thing you might consider doing is to read the Guide NS, then complete the Form NS , but appreciate that there is a £86 fee for making that application.

[Infamy]

Thank you very much for your insight John and Raj.

I will now consider a) Making an application for Confirmation of British Nationality (Form NS) and then applying for a UK passport through the IPS, or perhaps applying for the passport directly as, after gathering much information, I am convinced that I am indeed a British Citizen by descent.

In this regard, my only concern is the documentation I would need to provide for either process (Form NS or Passport Application).

The documents that I have are;
- Birth Certificate from Ontario, Canada
- My mother's Canadian Landed Immigrant Status card from 1974 which states both her UK passport number and that she is a citizen of UK & C
- My mother's current UK passport
- My mother's birth certificate from New Delhi, India
- My grandmother's Registration as a Citizen of the UK & C under the British Nationality Act 1948 document from 1967 at the High Commission in New Delhi (this was the same day as my mother was registered although that document has since been lost)

Would these documents be sufficient to prove that a) I was born after my mother obtained British Citizenship and b) that my mother obtained her status otherwise than by descent (I suspect it would have been impossible for her to obtain it by descent as her parents were Indian Nationals with no ties to the UK)?

[John]

The only slightly confusing aspect is that you have said :-

My mother was born in India and was naturalized as a British Citizen in 1967 when she arrived in the UK along with my Grandparents (she was 3 years of age)

-: but later you confirmed you meant "Registered" rather than "naturalized". Nevertheless I don't understand "when she arrived in the UK". Do you literally mean "when she arrived", or some time later, after a period of years?

Still trying to understand the process by which your grandparents got Naturalised, and your mother Registered as British.

[Infamy]

John, my mistake. I did not clarify this earlier. My mother and grandparents were not naturalized. They were all registered under Section 6 (1) of the British Nationality Act 1948 upon application at the British High Commission in New Delhi and they arrived in the United Kingdom shortly thereafter.

My issue is that I only have the original stamped application of registration for my Grandmother and nobody else; as these have been lost over time and my Grandmother was the only one that still had hers in her possession.

[John]

I suspect your mother would have been Registered under section 7. As per British Nationality Act 1948.

Further, it appears that your mother became a CUKC otherwise than by descent. If that is the case then it further appears than you became British by descent on your birth in Canada in 1988.

[Infamy]

Indeed. It was my grandparent's who were registered as CUKC's under section 6 (1) while my mother and uncle were registered under section 7.

In this respect, I understand that I was a British Citizen at the time of my birth. However I am still unsure as how I will be able to prove this without the original certificate of registration for my mother. I suspect that proof of this would be required for Form NS or a First Adult Passport application. I have a friend who works for the National Archives and I have been told that they do not keep records of registrations from High Commissions, only naturalisations made within the UK.

Is there anything else I can do?

[John]

It is for that sort of reason why I think it would be worth spending £86 going through the NS procedure mentioned earlier.

[Infamy]

Right. I suppose I was under the impression that without the said documents I would not be able to go through the NS procedure.

However, I suppose if I provide whatever documents I do have then £86 is not a big loss should I receive a response that there is not enough documentary evidence to establish my nationality.

Thanks again for all the help, and have a happy new year!

[gracie]

hello all... i just want to ask if my twins are already a british citizen? they were born last year (December 2011). My husband is an Australian citizen and was born in Edinburgh in 1949 and lived there until he was 14 and migrated to Australia. our twins are now australian citizen by descent and filipino by birth since i gave birth in the Philippines. i am just confused if we still need to apply for our twins' british citizenship or are they automatically a citizen so we can get a passport for them too? i already checked uk immigration website re citizenship but i am confused. can anyone shed light on this matter. Thank you in advance.

[Backer]

hello all... i just want to ask if my twins are already a british citizen? they were born last year (December 2011). My husband is an Australian citizen and was born in Edinburgh in 1949 and lived there until he was 14 and migrated to Australia. our twins are now australian citizen by descent and filipino by birth since i gave birth in the Philippines. i am just confused if we still need to apply for our twins' british citizenship or are they automatically a citizen so we can get a passport for them too? i already checked uk immigration website re citizenship but i am confused. can anyone shed light on this matter. Thank you in advance.

Since their father was born in the UK it seems your twins are British citizens from birth and can apply directly for a British passport

[gracie]

hello all... i just want to ask if my twins are already a british citizen? they were born last year (December 2011). My husband is an Australian citizen and was born in Edinburgh in 1949 and lived there until he was 14 and migrated to Australia. our twins are now australian citizen by descent and filipino by birth since i gave birth in the Philippines. i am just confused if we still need to apply for our twins' british citizenship or are they automatically a citizen so we can get a passport for them too? i already checked uk immigration website re citizenship but i am confused. can anyone shed light on this matter. Thank you in advance.

Since their father was born in the UK it seems your twins are British citizens from birth and can apply directly for a British passport

thank you for your reply. just a follow up question though:

1. would it be a conflict if our marriage was registered 15 days after our twins was born? because i read it somewhere that even if one of the Parent is british ciizen by birthright, if at the time of child's birth and parents are not yet married and would need to apply for citizeship by descent?

2. also they already acquired australian citizenship, would that be a conflict since they are on dual citizen already(me being filipina) and still applyng for british citizenship?

thanks again for time. God Bless

[Backer]

1. would it be a conflict if our marriage was registered 15 days after our twins was born? because i read it somewhere that even if one of the Parent is british ciizen by birthright, if at the time of child's birth and parents are not yet married and would need to apply for citizeship by descent?

No. Since 2006 there is no requirment for parents to be married. The children are British (by descent) from birth. You can apply for a British passport anytime for them.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/briti ... noverseas/

2. also they already acquired australian citizenship, would that be a conflict since they are on dual citizen already(me being filipina) and still applyng for british citizenship?

I repeat, they are not applying for British citizenship since they are already British and there is no problem from the British side about multiple citizenships.

[gracie]

1. would it be a conflict if our marriage was registered 15 days after our twins was born? because i read it somewhere that even if one of the Parent is british ciizen by birthright, if at the time of child's birth and parents are not yet married and would need to apply for citizeship by descent?

No. Since 2006 there is no requirment for parents to be married. The children are British (by descent) from birth. You can apply for a British passport anytime for them.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/briti ... noverseas/

2. also they already acquired australian citizenship, would that be a conflict since they are on dual citizen already(me being filipina) and still applyng for british citizenship?

I repeat, they are not applying for British citizenship since they are already British and there is no problem from the British side about multiple citizenships.

Thanks a lot backer! Your reply is highly appreciated and definitely gave me better understanding about this matter. Thank you so much and God bless you always!