Daughters of unmarried parents speak of passport rule chaos

Two women who have lived almost all their lives in Britain have had their lives thrown into chaos by the new border control rules for dual nationals because their French mothers were not married to their British fathers.

- Lisa O'Carroll

Both women have been forced to prove their right to British passports as a result of archaic laws, which did not accord automatic citizenship to the children of unmarried British fathers in dual national relationships until the law was changed in 2005.

The women are among hundreds of people who have been affected by the new border rules for British dual nationals requiring a British passport or certificate of entitlement of abode costing £589 that must be shown to enter the UK.

Simon Cox, an immigration barrister at Doughty Street Chambers, said parliament abolished other kinds of discrimination against the children of unmarried parents in 1987, but did not change the law for British citizenship until 2005.

“Since then, children of unmarried parents have been able to rely on their father’s British citizenship, but it wasn’t until 2022 that parliament created a remedy for children of unmarried British fathers born before 2005,” said Cox.