Do I have to send my U.S. passport if I apply for a British passport?

Question

First off, I'm a Dual-Citizen of the U.S. and Britain (born in England of American GI's before 1982). So I am going to apply for my British passport for the first time and I am confused as to whether or not I need to send them my current U.S. passport, or if that stipulation is only made for current British passports about to expire (which I obviously don't have being that this is the first British passport for which I am applying). In addition, in Section 8 it states that "I am, today, in the country of application and will be at the time of issue" which is obviously note true if I am applying from the U.S. Do I write n/a next to this or do they not care? Please reply only if you know from experience the answer, please don't guess.

Answer 1

At the top of the first page the form says "You must be in the country where this application is being made."  So, you are in the U.S. and you will be applying to the British Embassy in Washington D.C., as that is who issues passports to British citizens in the USA, therefore you are in the country of application, and presumably will be at the time of issue.

On their FAQ page it states that Britain does not have a problem with people holding multiple countries passports, so you need not forfeit your US one to get a British one.

If you have other questions you should call them and ask rather than risk your application being rejected and losing your fee.

Answer 2

"I am, today, in the country of application and will be at the time of issue"

I understand this as "I am in the united states, and will still be here once my passport is ready and issued. After that I am free to go wherever and do whatever".

You will be applying for the first time. You will need to prove your British Citizenship. For this, you will need a registration of birth, (Birth certificate). You will -not- need to supply your American passport, as it is completely irrelevant if you are an American citizen or not for the purpose of obtaining a British passport, because the right to a British passport flows from British citizenship.

So in the end, you -must- prove that you are a British citizen (in your case, that you were born in England, and before 1983). If you have had no previous passport, the UK authorities will know that (they will see they have issued you no prior passport). They will ask the other documents in place.

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