Tier 2 dependant child born in UK - no passport

[Mulletman]

Hi everyone

I am a South African citizen who has been in the UK since May 2016 on a tier 2 (general) visa, with my wife who is my PBS dependant. I am in the process of extending our visas which expire in June 2019.

Our first child was born in the UK at end of December 2018. I am trying to obtain her visa at the same time as extending mine in order to pay the IHS, as I understand she is only entitled to NHS for 3 months post birth until a visa is obtained. We have no immediate plans to take her out of the country for the foreseeable future (at least 12 months).

However after applying for her South African passport last month, I have been told by the consulate this will take 8 months to receive. The only document I have for her is a UK birth certificate. I have seen the extract on the UK.GOV website which states I can apply for permission for her to stay, and it mentions that a UK birth certificate is required, with no mention of a passport.

However the legal team at my employer who are assisting with the application have advised me that a passport is definitely required per the home office rules, and that the text on the website is purely guidance and that the application is likely to fail if I don't include a passport. They are citing the general immigration rules stating proof of identity is required for all applications, and that a UK birth certificate is not sufficient.

Does anyone have any experience with this? Seems a bit illogical to force me into obtaining a visa for my child that I don't require as I am not taking her out of UK, in order to obtain NHS cover as there is no alternative means of paying the surcharge, and then to also require a passport for the application when she was born here and had no need for a passport to enter the country! Also seems unfair to reject an application when someone has merely followed the guidance on their own website!

Thanks very much in advance for any help

[CR001]

You don't need the passport. Many have applied without one and been successful.

[Mulletman]

Thanks very much for your response

My question would then be how do I satisfy the immigration rules which state a visa application is only valid if it is submitted with proof of identity?

This is essentially what I am being advised by my company - that the application will fail despite the website only asking for a birth certificate, because the general immigration rules require proof of identity and as such any application I make on behalf of my daughter will thus be invalid from the start.

Thanks