# South African Passport Renewal with dual UK Citizenship



## deonvdb (Jan 15, 2011)

Hi All,

I've got dual SA and UK Citizenship. My SA Passport is expiring soon. I went to the SA Consulate in London recently, but we now have so many issues getting the passport renewed. They want proof of British Citizenship and want a copy of my Certificate of Registration or Entry of Birth. I don't have this and don't know where to get this. I was born in SA and moved here in 2010. My mother applied for my UK Passport, but can't recall ever registering me with the UK Embassy in SA. 

What am i to do as nobody seems to be able to help. I'm planning a trip to SA this year. Would i be able to enter and leave SA on my British passport???

Please help


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## Helie12 (Aug 18, 2013)

I would love to know the answer to this as I'm currently having exactly the same problem!!! I've also got dual UK and SA citizenship and am trying to get my SA passport but was told i need to produce my certificate of registration of birth. I can't find how to get this document any where and I've no idea what to do. If anyone knows, please help!!


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

I think what they mean is your SA birth certificate. Surely if you were born in SA, your birth must have been registered locally and you should be able to get certificate from the registrar. I don't know anything about how to apply for SA passport so it's only an educated guess.


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## Helie12 (Aug 18, 2013)

Joppa said:


> I think what they mean is your SA birth certificate. Surely if you were born in SA, your birth must have been registered locally and you should be able to get certificate from the registrar. I don't know anything about how to apply for SA passport so it's only an educated guess.


I had my full original SA birth certificate when I went to the SA embassy in London but was told I also needed a certificate of registration of birth as proof of how I got my British citizenship. No help was given about how to get this magic document!


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

So how did you qualify for British citizenship? If by descent you need to show your parentage, and possibly their claim to UK citizenship such as birth in UK. If your SA birth certificate shows both your parents, then you may need their birth certificate as well.


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## Helie12 (Aug 18, 2013)

Joppa said:


> So how did you qualify for British citizenship? If by descent you need to show your parentage, and possibly their claim to UK citizenship such as birth in UK. If your SA birth certificate shows both your parents, then you may need their birth certificate as well.


Through descent - my father is British. My birth certificate shows both my parents, their nationalities and where they were born. I also had both of their birth certificates and showed the officer at the embassy but he wasn't interested in their birth certificates. I also had copies of their SA passports, ID books, etc but it made no difference.


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

So they want British birth certificate for you? You don't need to register your birth at the High Commission and for those born in a Commonwealth country, it's not even possible:


> You can’t register the birth with the UK authorities. However, the birth certificate you are given in South Africa will be recognised and accepted in the UK, so this isn’t necessary.


UK High Commission, Pretoria

So I don't know what they are talking about.


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

SA High Commission London says:


> Holders of foreign citizenship MUST provide proof of how they acquired such citizenship by either:
> 
> A Registration - Provide your unabridged birth certificate reflecting the birth places of parent(s) and certificate of registration of birth. Under circumstances where even the parents acquired such citizenship through descent, a letter from the relevant authorities of the country concerned will suffice.


I still don't know what they are talking about. Surely birth certificate and certificate of registration of birth are one and the same thing? If you were born in SA, you will only have SA birth certificate.


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