British Citizenship after surrogacy
Your child must have British citizenship before applying for a British passport. There is a large fee to this, and the process can take months.
If it can be proven that your surrogate is single and the biological father is British (the legal father) then he passes British citizenship automatically to the child. In those cases, you do not need to make a separate application for British citizenship for the child. You may instead proceed with your application for the child’s first British passport.
In other cases, you will need to apply for British Citizenship for your child. These cases include where one of you is British but not the biological connection.
You are advised to get evidence that your surrogate is single. Ideally, this will be an official certificate of no impediment dated before an embryo transfer. If she is divorced or a widow, get copies of the divorce decree, marriage certificate and / or the death certificate for her husband. I have acted in cases where the passport office has not accepted the single status of the surrogate and therefore citizenship had to be applied for at a later stage.
Do not underestimate the need for legal advice about returning to the UK with your child. The process should be prepared for at the beginning so that you can prepare in good time.
Please call surrogacy lawyers for advice on 01727 884 688 or e-mail Harjit directly on harjit@surrogacylawyers.co.uk
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I provide legal advice on surrogacy based on the law in England and Wales.
I have acted for clients working with many agencies across the world. I will not recommend any surrogacy provider, destination, agency or clinic. If my advice concludes that you can become legal parents following the arrangement you are considering, it should not be taken as advice to proceed. If I have acted for couples who have entered into similar arrangements, you should not take that as advice to proceed. You must always do your own due diligence on any agency / destination. A successful arrangement for someone else won’t always mean a successful arrangement for you. I will not take part in any negotiations for your surrogacy arrangement nor, will I review your surrogacy contract.