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British Citizenship by Birth

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British Citizenship by Birth in the United Kingdom is dependent on your Date of Birth or the UK Nationality Status of either parent on your Date of Birth. The rules are:

• If you were born in the UK BEFORE 01.01.1983, then you are a British Citizen.
• If you were born AFTER 01.01.1983, then you qualify as a British Citizen at birth if one of your parents had "Settled" status in the UK.

Birth in the UK before 01.01.1983 is straightforward. You are automatically considered British by law, you have British Nationality and you are entitled to hold a British Passport.

Birth in the UK after 01.01.1983 is more complex. One of your parents must have been "settled" in the UK for you to claim automatic British Nationality. Settled status is achieved in the following ways:

• A British Citizen (irrespective as to how this achieved)
• A permanent resident in the UK (who holds a visa status of "Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR)" or the equivalent)
• An EU Citizen who has resided in the UK for a period of time 

If you are British through birth in the UK - either by birth before 01.01.1983 or by birth after 01.01.1983 to a "settled" parent - then you are classified as "British Other Than by Descent", which means that you can pass British Nationality to your children, irrespective of where they are born.

Click here for more general rules on British Nationality.

The solutions that WhatPassport.com have discovered under this category, including the criteria and requirements for British Nationality by Birth in the UK, are:

 

BIRTH BEFORE 1983

British Citizenship by Birth (in UK before 1983): Applicant born in UK (including Northern Ireland) before 01.01.1983.

 

BIRTH AFTER 1983 TO EU PARENT

British Citizenship by Birth (1981-1-1c) EEA National Parent: Applicant born in UK (including Northern Ireland) after 01.01.1983 and before 02.10.2000 to an EU National. EU National must have been ordinarily resident and from "old" EU countries. Birth after 02.10.200, EU parent must be "settled" or become "settled" after the birth. 

British Citizenship by Birth (1981-1-3b)-EEA National Parent: Applicant born in UK (including Northern Ireland) after 01.01.1983 and before 02.10.2000 to an EU National. EU National must have been ordinarily resident and from "old" EU countries. Birth after 02.10.200, EU parent must be "settled" or become "settled" after the birth.

 

BIRTH AFTER 1983 TO "SETTLED" PARENT

British Citizenship by Birth (1981-1-1a)-British Parent: Applicant born in UK (including Northern Ireland) after 01.01.1983. to a parent was British Citizen at time of birth. 

British Citizenship by Birth (1981-1-1b)-Parent Resident: Applicant born in UK (including Northern Ireland) after 01.01.1983. to a parent who was "settled" in the UK at time of birth. This includes Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), Armed Forces Exemption, or Right of Abode. Applicant under 18.

 

BIRTH AFTER 1983 AND UNDER 18

British Citizenship by Birth (1981-1-3a)-Parent becomes Resident: Applicant born in UK (including Northern Ireland) after 01.01.1983. to a parent who is ordinarily resident. Applicant must be under 18. 

British Citizenship by Birth (1981-1-4) Child Residency: Applicant born in UK (including Northern Ireland) after 01.01.1983. to a parent who was "settled" in the UK at time of birth. This includes Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), Armed Forces Exemption, or Right of Abode. Applicant under 10. 

British Citizenship by Birth (1981-1-2) Abandoned: Child found abandoned and born after 01.01.1983. If parents are not found, the child is classified as British.

 

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