us/uk dual citizenship

[Isaac Mitchell 0]

I am 22 year old US citizen with a british father who currently lives in the UK. I would like to obtain dual citizenship with the us and uk but am having a hard time figuring out if this is possible and where to begin. If anyone has some info on the subject or could lead me in the right direction i would appreciate it

[hhN400 3]

I am 22 year old US citizen with a british father who currently lives in the UK. I would like to obtain dual citizenship with the us and uk but am having a hard time figuring out if this is possible and where to begin. If anyone has some info on the subject or could lead me in the right direction i would appreciate it

If you father is a naturally born British citizen and your parents were married at the time of your birth, then you are already a British citizen. Just apply for a UK passport as formal proof.

See: http://en.wikipedia....nationality_law

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

helpful information to be found here:

http://ukinusa.fco.gov.uk/en/help-for-british-nationals/passports/faqs-usa-canada1/general/dual-nat-child

[Isaac Mitchell 0]

what if they were not married?

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

Jus sanguis, the transfer of blood, happens regardless of a marriage certificate.

One more note: there's no way to obtain "dual citizenship." You ARE already a US citizen, and you ARE already a British citizen. The latter case just needs to be documented.

Edited October 18, 2010 by Just Bob

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

Jus sanguis, the transfer of blood, happens regardless of a marriage certificate.

Actually I think you'll find that not to be the case for children born before 2006 to a British parent. If were not married, and did not subsequently marry, the child would have to have been registered with the Home Office by the age of 16 in order to become a citizen.

[hhN400 3]

Jus sanguis, the transfer of blood, happens regardless of a marriage certificate.

It seems, it's not so simple if Isaac's parents were never married. In any case, this is not a question for this forum which deals with US citizenship.

Issac,

Assuming you live in the US, you should contact the British Embassy and enquire whether you're eligible for a British passport. They can tell you exactly what papers you need to prove eligibility.

[warlord 73]

I know two friends (One who has a dutch mother) and another person I knew (friends ex girlfriend whose dad was English) and both of them stated that in order to get citizenship they had to apply before they were 24 years old. Both found this out after the fact and said they can no longer apply for dual. They had never lived over there at all and both were going to derive their citizenship from their parents.

I haven't looked into this at all, but two different people telling me the same things about two countries in Europe made me wonder what exactly that was all about...

[VanessaTony 3,567]

From here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_nationality_law#From_1983

"As a general rule, an unmarried father cannot pass on British citizenship automatically in the case of children born before 1 July 2006. Although, if the parents marry subsequent to the birth, the child normally will become a British citizen at that point if legitimated by the marriage and the father was eligible to pass on British citizenship. Further, if the unmarried British father was domiciled in a country that treated (at the date of birth of the child born before 1 July 2006) a child born to unmarried parents in the same way as a child born to married parents, then the father passed on British citizenship automatically to his child, even though the child was born before 1 July 2006 to unmarried parents.[3] Such countries include Jamaica and New Zealand,[4] Brazil[5] and Hungary.[6] Failing that, the child can be registered as British if it would have been British if parents were married and application is made before the child is 18."

Your only hope is the part I have bolded... unless you think you can get your parents to marry until you get a passport

Edited October 19, 2010 by Vanessa&Tony