# Children born in UK to US parents....



## US to Maidenhead (Oct 9, 2009)

My wife and I are living in the UK on work sponsored visas.

We are thinking of having children over here and wondering if the child will have dual citizenship. We here a lot of rumors on both "yes" and "no", but looking for more solid replies. Does anyone know if our children born in the UK will have dual citizenship if we are both US citizens?

Thank you!


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

US to Maidenhead said:


> My wife and I are living in the UK on work sponsored visas.
> 
> We are thinking of having children over here and wondering if the child will have dual citizenship. We here a lot of rumors on both "yes" and "no", but looking for more solid replies. Does anyone know if our children born in the UK will have dual citizenship if we are both US citizens?


Only if one of you have indefinite leave to remain. If you are on a time-limited visa, then no, your children will only have US citizenship. The law changed in 1983.
UK Border Agency | If you were born in the United Kingdom or a qualifying territory

One tip: before taking your new-born out of UK, make sure you get their US passport and their UK visa (leave to remain as a dependant), or else you will have a big problem when trying to bring them back to UK.


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## Punktlich2 (Apr 30, 2009)

Joppa said:


> Only if one of you have indefinite leave to remain. If you are on a time-limited visa, then no, your children will only have US citizenship. The law changed in 1983.
> UK Border Agency | If you were born in the United Kingdom or a qualifying territory
> 
> One tip: before taking your new-born out of UK, make sure you get their US passport and their UK visa (leave to remain as a dependant), or else you will have a big problem when trying to bring them back to UK.


If a child is born in the UK to parents neither of whom is a UK or Irish citizen and neither of which has indefinite leave to remain, and neither of which, being an EU/EEA/Swiss citizen has been registered for 5 years UK Border Agency | Applying under European law then that child will not be a British citizen at birth.

However, if the child resides in the UK for the first ten years of life, or if either parent becomes settled (gains ILR) during the child's minority, the child may register as a British citizen. In the first case (10 year residence) through felicitous drafting of the law it is a lifetime right to this "potential citizenship".

From 1983 until the entry into force of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 2004 there was a workaround, used by the Chen (Zhu) family: a baby born to alien parents in Northern Ireland had the right to Irish nationality, and under the Ireland Act 1949 an Irish citizen is not deemed an alien in the UK. celex-txt - 62002J0200 -

No European country now grants its nationality without condition to persons born to aliens in its territory although France, Germany and perhaps other countries in addition to the UK afford potential citizenship under certain conditions.

When the green paper came out for the British Nationality Act 1983 the government at the time said that no baby born in Britain would ever be deported. I understand they have not kept that promise, but it's hard to tell since if the parents are deported the child will usually be deported with them unless left with relatives.


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