# US/UK dual citizenship for baby born in UK



## WPL (Aug 18, 2013)

Hello all, 

I have a question on what the position is with respect to a baby born in wedlock in the UK with One parent a UK citizen and the other a US citizen. Born parents currently reside in the UK. 

We'd like the child to have dual citizenship and two passports. Given he has been born in the UK, I assume obtaining the UK passport would be straightforward. However, we're looking to travel to the US very soon and understand it makes most sense for the child to enter the US initially using a US passport.

Does anybody have any thoughts on the following:
1. Is the child able to obtain two passports/become a citizen of the US and UK?; and
2. What is the most sensible way to achieve the above?

Many thanks in advance for helpful replies!

Best, 

WPL


----------



## MarylandNed (May 11, 2010)

The child is a citizen of the UK. Read this:
UK Border Agency | If you were born in the UK or a qualifying territory

The child might also be a citizen of the US but there are residency requirements that need to have been met by the US citizen parent. Read this:
USCIS - Citizenship Through Parents

By the way, if the child is a US citizen, it MUST (by US law) enter the US on a US passport.

Both countries allow multiple citizenships so the child can be a citizen of the UK and US and hold both passports. My 4 children are all citizens of Ireland, UK, Canada and US. Some countries restrict multiple citizenships but none of those do.


----------



## WPL (Aug 18, 2013)

Superb. Many thanks.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Key thing for getting a US passport is to take the child to the US Consulate and get both a consular report of birth (not required, but it comes in VERY handy), and apply for his or her first passport. For the passport, both parents need to be present. (Besides, just think of what a cool souvenir you'll have - very first passport with that baby picture in it!)
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## WPL (Aug 18, 2013)

Thanks, Bev.


----------



## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

And get that child a U.S. Social Security number as well so the American parent can potentially file for a child tax credit.


----------



## jennieo330 (Jan 21, 2010)

*UK passport already being processed*

Hi, we are in this same scenario, however we went ahead and applied for the UK passport but have not yet registered our daughters birth with the US embassy. We are planning to visit the states in March on her UK passport. Should we wait until after that trip to begin the US embassy process for her US passport? Any thoughts?


----------



## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

All U.S. citizens must enter the U.S. with a U.S. passport. Not a U.K. passport. I can cite the relevant portion of the U.S. Code if you want.

Get your daughter a U.S. passport if you want to bring her to the U.S.


----------



## jennieo330 (Jan 21, 2010)

BBCWatcher said:


> All U.S. citizens must enter the U.S. with a U.S. passport. Not a U.K. passport. I can cite the relevant portion of the U.S. Code if you want.
> 
> Get your daughter a U.S. passport if you want to bring her to the U.S.


Thanks! We wouldn't have known that...hope we can get it sorted soon!


----------



## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

You can. Get the process going right away.


----------



## jennieo330 (Jan 21, 2010)

Bevdeforges said:


> Key thing for getting a US passport is to take the child to the US Consulate and get both a consular report of birth (not required, but it comes in VERY handy), and apply for his or her first passport. For the passport, both parents need to be present. (Besides, just think of what a cool souvenir you'll have - very first passport with that baby picture in it!)
> Cheers,
> Bev


Bev, (or any others who have done this!) I want to be sure I have the documents necessary for the CRBA in regards to my US residency - how much is necessary to take? Do you think my passports (old & present) as well as school diploma/transcripts will suffice or do I need a lot more? I was born & bred in the states, didn't move until I was 32!

Thanks


----------



## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

The old passports are probably less interesting but can't hurt. Have you got a few years of old W-2s you could bring? Those plus your transcripts should be perfectly fine for proving you were a U.S. resident for at least the minimum period of time.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

jennieo330 said:


> Bev, (or any others who have done this!) I want to be sure I have the documents necessary for the CRBA in regards to my US residency - how much is necessary to take? Do you think my passports (old & present) as well as school diploma/transcripts will suffice or do I need a lot more? I was born & bred in the states, didn't move until I was 32!
> 
> Thanks


Some of the US expat groups recommend even airline boarding pass stubs to prove when you were in the US. Get as creative as your stash of documents allows. But you only have to prove something like 4 years after you turned 14, I think it is. 
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## MarylandNed (May 11, 2010)

jennieo330 said:


> Bev, (or any others who have done this!) I want to be sure I have the documents necessary for the CRBA in regards to my US residency - how much is necessary to take? Do you think my passports (old & present) as well as school diploma/transcripts will suffice or do I need a lot more? I was born & bred in the states, didn't move until I was 32!
> 
> Thanks


Your US (state & federal) tax returns should suffice - assuming you filed US tax returns up until you left. School records wouldn't hurt either. The more the merrier to be honest. Someone once told be that when dealing with bureaucracy you should use a nuclear bomb to kill a fly! It's advice that has stood me in good stead over the years.


----------



## jennieo330 (Jan 21, 2010)

MarylandNed said:


> Your US (state & federal) tax returns should suffice - assuming you filed US tax returns up until you left. School records wouldn't hurt either. The more the merrier to be honest. Someone once told be that when dealing with bureaucracy you should use a nuclear bomb to kill a fly! It's advice that has stood me in good stead over the years.



THanks - I filed my taxes online in 2006, 2008, and 2009 and have copies of these electronic returns, but not of my W-2s. I also have my University diploma - and my high school transcripts. 

Do you think this will suffice? I only have 10 days before my appointment and not sure what else I can gather before then!


----------



## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

A little thin perhaps, but give it a try.


----------



## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

jennieo330 said:


> THanks - I filed my taxes online in 2006, 2008, and 2009 and have copies of these electronic returns, but not of my W-2s. I also have my University diploma - and my high school transcripts.
> 
> Do you think this will suffice? I only have 10 days before my appointment and not sure what else I can gather before then!


You have your passport, your birth certificate - take whatever you can round up. You are dealing with US public servants not ogres. Please keep us posted.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

As far as your old passports go - if you have the one with your original visa for the UK, that should do nicely. Shows what year you left the US for the UK - the high school transcripts should prove your residence in the US up to about age 18, which gives you a good 4 years after age 14. 

Just think about what it is you're trying to prove (i.e. residence in the US long enough after the age of 14 to transmit your citizenship to your child). You don't really need the tax returns from after you moved to the UK, it's more the period before your move that they'll be interested in.
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## jennieo330 (Jan 21, 2010)

Ok we had our embassy appointment today and were successful! The proof of residency I took was the following:

- high school transcripts
- university diploma
- about 6 years of W-2s

No questions, plus we were in and out of the Embassy within 90 minutes. 

We applies for CRBA, passport and social security. They said we should receive her passport and documents in 2-3weeks. 

Thanks for your help here!


----------



## monk (Feb 6, 2014)

We are in the same boat here. Baby is only 2 months old, can we not just wait until we return from the US to register the birth at the US embassy and get her citizenship? 

Surely baby is not a US citizen until he / she has been registered at the embassy - the citizenship has to be 'claimed' before it takes effect does it not?


----------



## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

No. Get your baby the CRBA, SSN, and U.S. passport before you go.

If you have time to get your baby a U.K. passport, you have time to get him/her a U.S. passport.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

monk said:


> We are in the same boat here. Baby is only 2 months old, can we not just wait until we return from the US to register the birth at the US embassy and get her citizenship?
> 
> Surely baby is not a US citizen until he / she has been registered at the embassy - the citizenship has to be 'claimed' before it takes effect does it not?


Not the way the law works. Baby needs a passport (or papers from the Embassy if the child really was stateless). Where the US is concerned, a baby eligible for US citizenship IS a US citizen from birth (and must enter the US on his or her US passport). Just check the Expat Tax section for loads of folks who "just found out" they are considered US citizens and subject to US taxation!

The registration is only a formality - to get the child a passport and apply for a social security number. 
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

To expand on this point, this is not something a caring parent ought to neglect for long in my view. Documenting your baby's citizenship(s) is very important, in part because we're all mortal, and in some scenarios (particularly involving fathers) it can get much harder to document a citizenship if the parent(s) is(are) not around to help. Lack of documentation (including parental DNA for testing in some cases) could also in some instances impact how your orphan child's case is handled if you should leave this earth prematurely. I leave it as an exercise to the reader to imagine those scary possibilities.

U.S. citizenship when born in the U.S. is very easy thanks to the Fourteenth Amendment, assuming birth in a hospital anyway. That birth gets recorded nearly "automatically," and U.S. citizenship is thus documented. Birth of a U.S. citizen abroad is inherently different and comes with some greater risks of parent(s) dropping the ball.

I realize there are some adult U.S. citizens who may not be thrilled with their possession of U.S. citizenship for whatever reason(s). And that's fine. That said, I think it's very fair to say that adult and baby calculations are very, very different. Protecting a child's access to and rights associated with the world's largest economy (the United States) is important to that child's future potential. When that child becomes an adult (age 18), if that young adult feels differently, renunciation of his/her U.S. citizenship is an easily available option.

I feel the same way about the vast majority of other citizenships, by the way. This isn't unique to U.S. citizenship. I feel that documenting all the child's citizenships is a fundamental, basic parental responsibility firmly in the child's own interests. There may be a few exceptions among the world's citizenships, but U.S. citizenship is not one of them.

Yes, to bring your U.S. citizen baby into the U.S., currently documented or not, you must get your baby a U.S. passport (i.e. document that U.S. citizenship). That's the law, and it's unambiguous. But set the law aside for a brief moment. Why on earth as a (mortal) parent would you even think of taking the risk of international travel with your baby (or even waiting a long time) without documenting his/her citizenship(s), particularly the Western and generally full-of-infinite-potential citizenships? Your baby's citizenship(s) is(are) valuable.


----------

