Automatic British citizenship is not guaranteed to children born from outside of UK, in this case, in Thailand to British parents as stipulated by the Nationality Law of Britain has stipulated. Yet still, the child may still be able to acquire such citizenship through other venues.
A common question on matters pertaining to citizenship is whether children born to British citizens by descent or otherwise than by descent may be able to obtain citizenship. Again, qualifying circumstances surrounds the two possible options. Nonetheless, the differences of the two must be clarified:
By Descent
- British nationals who got their citizenship by descent are those persons who inherited theirs from their relatives.
- Children born from these parents do not automatically obtain or inherit British citizenship.
Otherwise than by Descent
- British citizen parents who got their citizenship through otherwise than by descent have greater chances of inheriting their British citizenship to their children.
To compare the two, a child of citizens who obtained their British citizenship by otherwise than by descent have greater chances of gaining British citizenship than those whose parents obtain theirs by descent.
Qualifications by Descent
The child, born in Thailand, may be registered as a British citizen if a parent of his was born to a British national who obtained his citizenship by otherwise than by descent. The application must be done before the child’s 1st birthday. Also, the parent of such child must qualify for the mandated period of living in the United Kingdom which is at least 3 years before such child was born.
The other option now involves both parents of the child. These parents, together with the child, must be living in the United Kingdom for at least 3 years. Also, the application must be lodged before the child turns 18 years old.
If the child is granted citizenship through the 1st option, on usual circumstances, he is not qualified to pass on his British citizenship to his children in the future. On the other hand, if he is able to gain his citizenship through the 2nd option, his children in the future will be able to inherit his citizenship.
Immigration Lawyers
Filing an application to register a child born in Thailand or in other foreign countries involves a complicated process that consulting with immigration lawyers with extensive backgrounds in Thailand and UK’s citizenship laws would be highly encouraged.
This is to ensure that the parents are following the process to the letter and are complying with every documents and that these documents do contain the appropriate information.
