My ex is applying for EU settlement for our British Child...

[SOSyoucandothis]

Opinions please.
I'm British, my whole family is.
My child (now 6) was born in a EU country. I won't name, but it's like and is close to France. We moved back to England when he was 6 months. He's a British Citizen by birthright via me. Ex (his dad) is from the country he was born. Let's say he's French.

We separated after we moved to the UK. I was granted custody in a Child Arrangements order and he sees his dad regularly. His dad got EU settled status to stay in the UK.

Weirdly, his dad - my ex - has this week applied for our child to have EU settled status and keeps demanding I send him documents.

I have repeatedly told him to withdraw the application. Our child is a British Citizen, goes to a British school, has a British passport. But he is ignoring me and proceeding with the application.

There is absolutely no need for him to do this and I don't really know what to do about it.

Bizarre. What documents is he asking for, and can they be used for something else?

That doesn't apply to Irish passports.

Oops, yes. Just realised I misread as obviously the child doesn't need EU settled status.

Is he wanting to try and apply for benefits for your child perhaps? What documents has he asked for?

Unless there is a genuine risk of your ex attempting to to illegally remove your child to this EU country, YABVU. It's part of your child's heritage whether you like it or not and likely a net positive to attain EU Citizenship providing future opportunity. My kids could claim Irish passports through OH and I would allow it in a heartbeat if OH wanted to do it.

Apologies, just read more of the thread about the EU Passports already in place. Sounds like ex got his admin wrong and is being pig headed.

Don't let him do it, I would be concerned he's planning to flee with the child.

OP has clarified, child has dual citizenship and the father holds the EU passport. He seems to think he needs settled status in the UK.

I'd bet pp is correct, at some point the father, travelling with the child on the EU passport, has been questioned by BC and is confused.

If this is the case, the easiest way round it for him is to take a photocopy of the British ppt when the child is travelling on the EU one. That's what my daughter does, this avoids questions and her UK ppt getting stamped going into the EU and the EU one getting stamped coming into the UK.

His application will just get rejected as unnecessary.

"EU settled status" means "right to remain in the UK permanently". So pretty much the opposite of fleeing abroad with the children.

Anyway, if he wanted to run off with the children, he could just use their EU passports.

I’m going with ‘what else can he use the documents for’?

Either he’s being stubbornly foolish doing something unnecessary , or he’s doing something else you wouldn’t like.

You know him, which is most likely?

Its a good thing your child can have an EU passport surely?

If he can get an EU passport through his dad, then grab the opportunity with both hands. He will certainly thank you for it in the future.

He's got an EU passport. He's confused and thinks the child needs settled status.

Which documents is he asking for, and what else could they potentially be used for?

Is it the birth certificate he's asking for?
As part of the process they need to send something in to show proof of relationship.
Basically if he sends that in the application will become voided anyway as they'll see he was born in UK.

Just ignore him. Keep telling him it's not needed calmly

There is nothing to apply for your child so your ex must be confused. I would just ignore him as there's nothing to be sent.

Does he want settled status in his own country so he can take him to live in France permanently

PPs are right, your child doesn't need settled status. The only thing I could imagine is that your ex wants to have paperwork in place in case your child lives with him fully at one point or travels frequently, he only has settled status, he doesn't have access to the child's British passport and needs something to prove that he and the child are both entitled to be there.

If your ex would leave the UK with your child for a holiday and returns on the EU passport it will be logged and stamped. If your child doesn't have a settled status he could be deemed illegal if he is going in and out after 90 days.

Ideally if you leave the UK and travel to a EU country you should always have both passports, you leave the UK on the UK one, enter any EU country with the EU one, leave it again with the EU and enter the UK with the UK one.

As a child with non British parents, even if naturialised later, it is very difficult to prove that you are British, we had this with DD as child of EU parents. Her having a UK passport all the time in addition to her EU one is vital. Brexit made a mess with these things.

What would happen if you are dropping dead today? Who has access to your and the child's documents and would they share it with your ex without issues?

Could you ensure your ex has at least copies of the child's documents and if he goes on holiday with him, he has both passports? And before anyone screams, not every non-resident parent from another country automatically plans to live back in their homecountry with the child.

Settled status in the UK is not needed if a child with the EU nationality is living in said EU country.

And you loose settled status if you live permanently somewhere else.

OP I think I see what he is trying to do. You say the father only has the child's EU passport. Does he perhaps want proof in the EU passport that the child has settled status in the UK so that there aren't issues at the UK border when travelling back from abroad?

We tried doing this and unfortunately it doesn't work like that. We always have to travel with both sets of passports now.

As said already, border control request for Settled status when travelling into the UK on a EU passport. My dcs have dual nationality (Uk/EU) and we are now taking both passports to prove their British citizenship as we have been advised by them. Perhaps a photocopy of their UK passport will do the trick?

He may not be incorrect, I have relatives with dual EU / UK & 2 passports . One of them who was born in the UK had difficulty at immigration not long ago returning to the UK despite showing UK passport.

Not quite sure what the explanation was but they ended up having to get settled status as well.

I think your DC will be British citizen by descent if born outside UK. This means if your DC married non-british citizen and has children outside UK they will not be British citizens. This means your grandchildren would not qualify to live in UK or student loans etc.

It's not possible to get settled status if you already have a UK passport.