Can children born in the UK obtain British nationality? 90-day rule and £1,000 new fee
The child was born in a hospital in London, with the certificate stating "Place of birth: London." Many parents keep this paper, thinking that the issue of identity is thus resolved - until three years later, when they want to take the child back to their home country for a visit, and discover that the child has no documents allowing them to leave and return.
The UK abolished the "jus soli" (birthplace citizenship) on January 1, 1983, . From then on, whether a child is British depends on one thing: whether the parents had status at the time of birth .
Is British nationality automatically granted at birth? The key is whether the parents had permanent residency at the time of their birth.
Under section 1(1) of the British Nationality Act 1981: A child born in the UK automatically becomes a British national if at the time of birth at least one parent is a British citizen, or has already been settled.
"Settled" refers to a status that is no longer subject to immigration conditions, including ILR (Permanent Residence), EU Settled Status, and Right of Abode. The most common pitfall here is that Pre-settled Status does not count as settled; Skilled Worker, Dependent Visa, Student Visa, Graduate, BNO, and other visas are time-limited residency and do not count either.
The time point is accurate to "the day of birth." If the parents' permanent residency approval letter is dated one day after the child's birth, the child will not automatically be a British citizen - only the second option remains.
How can the child apply for British citizenship later? MN1 registration fee is reduced to £1,000
This is the reality for most Chinese families in the UK: when the child was born, the parents were still on a work visa or spouse visa, and after a few years, the parents obtained ILR.
At this time, Article 1(3) of the Nationality Law applies: a child born in the UK who has a parent/guardian who obtains permanent residence or British nationality after the child's birth will have the right (entitlement) to register as a British citizen using Form MN1 to apply. Note two hard conditions - must be submitted before the child reaches 18 years old; if the child is over 10 years old, it also needs to meet the good character (good conduct) requirement.
This year there is a real good news: from April 8, 2026, the fee for children's naturalization will be reduced from £1,214 to £1,000, which is one of the few items that have decreased in this round of fee adjustments (the same batch ILR increased to £3,226, and adult naturalization increased to £1,709). Additionally, if the family really cannot afford it, they can apply for a fee waiver.
Have the parents never obtained permanent residency? The child can obtain British nationality after living in the UK for 10 years, but cannot leave the country for more than 90 days each year.
This is a bottom-line channel that many people are not aware of: Section 1(4) of the Nationality Act: A child born in the UK, who turns 10 years old , and who has not left the UK for more than 90 days each year during the first 10 years after birth , can apply for naturalization using Form T — this does not take into account the parents' status .
The key is the three characters "every year": it's not 90 days in total over 10 years, but calculated annually. Exceeding the limit in any single year may cause problems. The child spent a 14-week summer vacation in China when he was six years old, which had already exceeded the limit. The Home Office retains the discretion to grant exceptions in special cases, but must specify the reasons, not automatically approve. Therefore, from the day the child was born, entry and exit dates should be recorded.
Three Ways to Obtain British Citizenship for Children Born in the UK (Recommended to Take Screenshot and Save)
| Path | Trigger Conditions | Key Limitations | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| British nationals by descent s.1(1) |
One parent was a British national or had settled status on the day of birth | Pre-settled, work visa, spouse visa do not count | £0 (apply directly for passport) |
| register for naturalization s.1(3)·MN1 |
after birth, one parent obtained ILR or British nationality | must be submitted before 18 years old; check character for those over 10 years old | £1,000 (4/8 price reduction) |
| lived in the UK for 10 years s.1(4)·Form T |
born in the UK and aged 10 or over, regardless of parents' status | first 10 years each year leave the UK for ≤90 days | £1,000 |
💡 Add: Children registering for citizenship do not need to take Life in the UK, nor do they need B1 English - these are the requirements for adults applying for citizenship. Only if the child is over 18 years old before making the decision, they will need to take the oath and pay £130 fee for the ceremony.
The child did not automatically obtain British nationality, does he need to apply for a visa immediately? It must be handled before exiting the country.
Here is a commonly misunderstood point. A child born in the UK and who has always remained within the UK territory, will not become an illegal resident because of "no visa". However, once the child leaves the country once, upon returning, he or she must have a valid entry permit - which means that must obtain the dependent status before taking the child abroad for the first time.
Usually applied for within the UK as a dependant child under the main visa of the parents, with the visa duration aligned with the parents'. The fees are subject to the fee table effective from April 8, 2026. An additional one-time payment of £776 per year for each minor dependent is required for the entire visa period. Do not forget that the time the child stays as a dependent also counts towards the years accumulated for applying for the same batch of visas with the parents in the future.
How to arrange the order of permanent residency and British nationality to save the most money? Three actions you can take today
1️⃣ Check the date of the permanent residency approval of the parents, and compare it with the child's birthday . If the approval was before the child's birth, the child is likely a British citizen and can directly apply for a British passport without paying any registration fee.
2️⃣ After obtaining , don't wait until the child is nearly 18 to use . MN1 is based on s.1(3) "right to reside", which becomes invalid after the 18th birthday. After that, only adult naturalisation is possible, costing £1,709, and requiring the Life in the UK and English tests. Doing it earlier saves not just money.
3️⃣ From now on, the days of departure for parents and children will be counted separately . The rule for parents is no more than 180 days within 5 years for every 12 months, while the rule for children is no more than 90 days per year for the first 10 years. These two sets of rules are not interchangeable; mixing them is the easiest way to get into trouble. For families with many dates and long time spans, you can use 永居计算器 APP to accurately calculate each line down to the day.
If your situation is in a gray area - for example, if your parents' permanent residency approval and your child's birth are only a few days apart, or if your child leaves the country for just a few days over 90 days in a certain year - it's worth spending a little money to get clear answers first. On justiscript.com, £5 will allow a British practicing lawyer to give a written response within 24 hours on a specific issue, available in both Chinese and English, which is more reliable than finding answers on forums.
This document is for reference only. For specific issues, please consult a licensed attorney.
[Source of Data] gov.uk/government/publications/visa-regulations-revised-table/home-office-immigration-and-nationality-fees-8-april-2026 · gov.uk/government/publications/children-nationality-policy-guidance
Make my own judgment: Among these three paths, what is most regrettable about is always the second one . The parents have obtained permanent residency, and the child clearly has the right to register, but because they thought "it's not urgent," they delayed until the child turned 18, resulting in an extra £709 cost and having to take two exams. The price of £1,000 is a new rate that was just lowered in April, so it's best to handle it as soon as possible.
The above table of three routes is suitable for two types of people to refer to: families where the child was born in the UK but the parents have not yet obtained permanent residency, and families who are hesitating "whether to take the child back to China to live for a period of time" — the 90-day column is worth saving and reviewing carefully.
Also want to ask you: What kind of visa did your child's parents have when the child was born? If the 90 days have already been counted, which year was the most stressful? Let's discuss in the comments section. I will pick some typical cases to elaborate on.
Here, we break down one permanent residency rule every day - the number of days spent abroad, how to arrange the list of required documents, and when the fees will increase, all explained using the original text GOV.UK and real numbers.
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