Applying for my UK Passport | Dual Citizenship NZ + UK

**Skip to steps three, four, and five if you just want to know how to get the passport and don't care for my blabbing**

Today my application for my first UK passport was approved and I have never drawn a deeper breath. The entire process was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life. Technically, I guess, I have always been a dual citizen of New Zealand and the United Kingdom but the difference now is that the UK government actually know me!

If you're thinking of heading down this path then read on....because there is a lot to learn!!

Step One

Okay, the first thing I did was read the crap out of all the information on www.gov.uk. I don't know if this was a good or bad thing in the end....even though I one hundred percent knew I was in fact a British citizen I came away from it unsure on whether I actually was. It seems the UK Gov like to state things in the most contradictory of ways. It got worse as I progressed as well. Once I had rung mum a million times to confirm she was in fact British herself (that is how much doubt this website created for me) I decided that I was as well and I went ahead with the application.

So, how do you know you're British? Well, if you were born before 1983 in the UK then you are. If you were born after 1983 and before 2006 to a British parent then you are. If you don't meet those specific criteria you'll have to do your own research cause I literally didn't look into any of the other eligibility criteria. For me, my mum is British born and bred before 1983 and I was born to (wait for it) my mum - a British parent - in 1992. First step, done.

Step Two

Next step, decide to go ahead with the application. At this stage I was weighing up whether I would go the passport or ancestry visa route. Ultimately, I don't really know why the visa was even a choice! In what world would a visa be better than literally just getting a passport. Just FYI though, the ancestry visa is based off a British grandparent and costs about £1500 to get. It lasts for five years. Awesome option for people who don't have British parents and want to stay for longer than two years on the generic "Tier 5 visa" that most Kiwi's get.

I choked on my tea when I saw the £1500 price tag pop up and it was immediately clear to me that the passport was the way to go at a mere £105.

Step Three

Now I was ready to collect my evidence to prove myself as a true Brit. To save you the contradictory reading I have complied a list of everything you will need. Make sure you have it all before you begin your online application!

• Your full birth certificate

• A full colour copy of every page of your current passport (I did this and then actually chucked my actual passport in last minute as well)

• A full birth certificate of the parent you are applying through

• A marriage certificate for said parent if their birth certificate surname does not match your surname

• It also asks for said parents current or most recent British passport - I did not supply this cause mum never actually had one, children flew on their parents passports back then. I wrote them a note explaining this.

• A marriage certificate (or name change certificate) if you have changed your name

• A government issued form of ID with your new name

• An approved document showing your new name in use (i.e. a bank letter, tax certificate, or employment record)

• Two approved passport photos (make sure you say you need British size) that will be signed by your countersignatory with the official wording provided to you once you do your application

• You countersignatory's full name, DOB, current passport information (more info on who this person can be below)

• A colour copy of their passport ID page

This is where it gets niggly, potentially, if you have changed your name. It is ILLEGAL to hold two passports in different names. If, like me, your NZ passport is in your maiden name and you apply for your British passport in your married name you have made a mistake. That was me. Thanks Aunty Sue for pointing that one out for me albeit a bit late. To save you the stress I went through. Apply initially in your maiden name (and then you can forgo providing a bunch of evidence as well or get a new NZ passport in your married name). Luckily, if you make a mistake on your application you can supply a handwritten letter in your courier package stating the mistakes you have made..... "Dear HRH Passport Office, I made a mistake. My surname is not actually Reeve it is Watts. I got confused...". Maybe a bit more serious than that though. I still sent my marriage cert away anyway just so they didn't think I was trying anything dodgy.

IMPORTANT Note: all documents must be originals (except yours and your countersignatory's current passports). HRH does NOT accept copies!!! I said earlier I ended up sending my actual passport...that is because of the mix up with my surname; I really didn't want them thinking I was committing some sort of fraud. Also, no where does it state that the passport copies need to be signed by a JP but I did get the copies signed any way - better safe than sorry.

Countersignatory requirements: your countersignatory has to be a very special person. They need to have known you personally for at least 2 years but not be related or in a relationship with you, they need to hold a passport of the commonwealth (ideally British), and they need to be a person of "good standing in the community" or work within an approved profession. Think teacher, doctor, priest, police, lawyer.

Step Four

Go online and apply for passport. It will ask for you to type out all of your personal info, your parents info, and your countersignatory info. Once completed you will be prompted to pay (£105) and then you will need to print the declaration form. At any point during this process you can save your application and come back to it - handy if there's info you need to confirm.

Your declaration form needs to be signed by you and your countersignatory. Write on it in black pen. It says that on the form but I may have missed that the first time. Oh, and also sign within the boxes. It also says that on the form. I may have missed that the first two times. Read the form properly.

Get your countersignatory to write their blurb on the back of your two passport photos: "I verify this is the true likeness of Miss Nicole Elizabeth Watts. Date. Sign. Full name of countersignatory". Find someone who has tiny handwriting!

Step Five

Put declaration form, passport photos, all of your evidence, and a lot faith into a courier bag and ship it HRH passport office in Liverpool. NZ Post has a cool package deal that I used - $50 for courier, insurance, and passport photos to British standards.

Send your life away and wait.

My package arrived in Liverpool about five business days after sending it, my application was processed and approved (with no further evidence required) within two days, and it is now all being sent back - I'm hoping and praying!