A child may be a British citizen at birth if:

• The surrogate mother is unmarried
• An intended father is also the biological father of the child
• That intended father is British

The British father needs to be ‘British otherwise than by descent’, which means that if he was born abroad, he must not have ‘inherited’ his own citizenship from a parent.

If the child is British at birth, they will be entitled to apply for a British passport.

A child may not be British at birth but the intended parents may be able to apply for British citizenship for the child in the following three scenarios:

Scenario one

• The surrogate mother is married
• An intended father is the biological father of the child
• That intended father is British otherwise than by descent

Scenario two

• An intended father is not the biological father of the child
• That intended father is British otherwise than by descent
• That intended father has been recognised as the child’s father in its jurisdiction of birth
• The surrogate mother has consented to this recognition at least six weeks after the child’s birth

The above scenarios are very generalised indications of when an application for British citizenship is likely to be successful. There are additional, less common, circumstances in which an application could be made.

The application process generally takes around four-six months, after which the child will qualify for a British passport.

Scenario three

• The intended mother is British otherwise than by descent
• She has been recognised as the child’s mother in its jurisdiction of birth
• The surrogate mother has consented to this recognition at least six weeks after birth

The above scenarios are very generalised indications of when an application for British citizenship is likely to be successful. There are additional, less common, circumstances in which an application could be made.

The application process generally takes around four-six months, after which the child will qualify for a British passport.

The child may qualify for a visa in the following two situations:

Scenario one: British/settled parents

• At least one parent is the child’s genetic parent
• A ‘parental order’ is likely to be made in favour of the intended parents
• The intended parent(s) can show they will be able to maintain and accommodate the child

Scenario two: Settlement Scheme

• The surrogate mother is unmarried
• An intended father is also the biological father of the child
• That intended father has status under the Settlement Scheme

It is important to remember that a visa nearly always needs a passport, without which it won’t usually be possible to make the application.

The duration and cost of the visa will depend on the circumstances of the family. Scenario one is generally very costly and could result in a one-year or a permanent visa. Scenario two is generally free and will result in the child being given permission in line with that of the relevant father.

If the family falls within none of the above categories, then it may still be possible to make a visa application, but it is significantly more complicated. The Home Office could well have concerns about whether the intended parents will qualify for a parental order, which in turn could affect their willingness to grant a visa.

There are also situations where a child qualifies for a passport from a ‘non-visa national’ country, such as the USA, Colombia or an EU state. In these cases, intended parents may simply be able to request entry on arrival in the UK. However, it is important to note that this is entirely at the discretion of the border official, who is within their rights to refuse entry. This is because such entry is usually only granted for the purpose of ‘visiting’ the UK.