I want to live/work in the Uk for a year.My father is English-we both reside in USA-What do I need to do?

Question

I know there is a way for me to gain citizenship through ancestry, however I am a but clueless on what exactly I need to do. My father keeps insisting that if I just fly over with my passport and copy of his birth certificate the Home Office in London will just stamp it and I will be good to go and will be able to legally get a job. But he hasnt been over there in at least 20 years and I dont want to just rely on that. Do I need to file paperwork online before I venture over the pond to England, or is my father right-can I just pop in the home office once in London and have my American passport stamped with my fathers provided birth certificate?!?!?!? please help me

Answer 1

You need to speak to your nearest British Embassy to discuss whether or not you qualify for a British passport.  

http://www.britainusa.com/sections/artic...

Fronting up to the Home Office with your father's birth certificate & your American passport won't get you anywhere.  Even if you don't qualify for a British passport, in order to live long term or work in the UK you'll need to have arranged your visas & other documentation before you arrive in the country so you'll still need to make contact with the British Embassy.  

Find your nearest Embassy:

https://fco-stage.fco.gov.uk/en/about-th...

Answer 2

you should call the British embassy and ask them..

Answer 3

Well I'm British and not an expert but from what I know you would probably need to get your British passport in order to get past passport control at Heathrow.  If your dad is a British citizen you will be entitled to one as you will have dual nationality.

I'm not an expert but from what I understand, you should be able to obtain this from the British Embassy.  You will most likely need to supply your father's passport/birth certificate and your own.

In order to work legally in the UK you will need a National Insurance Number (I think this is like the Social Security No in America) which you would get from the Inland Revenue (like the American IRS).  If you are coming here with a British passport then you would need to apply for your NI number before you could legally get a job.  So you'd need to look into this as well.  Can't advise you on exactly how to do this, although I know someone just like you from the USA who had a British father and came to live and work in the UK like you want to do and these are the steps she had to follow - get her British passport and then her NI number so she could work.

Just turning up with your dad's birth cert is too risky, could be a real gamble if they don't let you past immigration at Heathrow!

So call the British Embassy and get their advice first!

Good luck!

Answer 4

Phone your nearest British embassy, you certainly won't be able to just pop in to the Home Office and all be ok.

Answer 5

Whoa.. if you just fly over to the UK with your dad's birth certificate plus your passport you're going to have an extended stay at border control/immigration over there (which can result in you being deported as you will be at risk of overstaying). In order to prove that you are British you actually need to have proven (in advance) a legitimate link for you to have British citizenship.

Now I presume your dad is British born. What I recommend is that you get your birth certificate, your parents marriage certificate plus your dad's birth certificate and APPLY for a British passport BEFORE YOU GO to the UK. This will ensure that you can work in the UK and the EU and bypass immigration control and get rid of that so-called visit to the Home Office. It will also give you plenty of peace of mind.

http://www.britainusa.com/sections/artic...

Link goes to the Home Office and will help you determine whether or not you are British.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/britis...

Answer 6

He's wrong. You get on a plane and fly over here without visas etc. and they'll send you on the next plane back. You won't be allowed entry into the country, let alone be allowed to pay a visit to the Home Office. Contact your local UK embassy, who will be able to give you advice, and sort out visas etc. for you.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office will tell you where your nearest embassy is

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/about-the-fco/e...

Answer 7

Not so simple as your father makes out.

!) is your father still a British citizen? Check his passport to see if it says he has a right of abode in the UK, just having a British passport does not make this automatic.

2) You need to apply for a British Passport. You can do that at your nearest embassy or consulate.

3) Are/ were your parents married?

If you enter the UK on a USA passport you will be treated the same as every other US citizen, ie you will have no automatic right to work in the UK.

Answer 8

was your father born in UK? bec. british can pass their citizenship only one generation if born outside UK. example if your granddad is british and your dad was born outside UK, your dad is british, then you were born outside UK, you are not.  but if you dad was born in UK, you are entitled to a british passport and better apply before leaving US

Answer 9

as your father is british by birth then your automatically able to get a british pasport with some red tape of course.

Answer 10

your father is wrong, you cannot just fly to the UK and become a citizen, there are many procedures to go trough,you need to check with the UK embassy in the US first,

here is the link to citizenship:

http://www.britainusa.com/sections/artic...

see if you already qualify under the law of the UK,