Guidance

Parental responsibility: birth parents, adoption and surrogacy (accessible version)

Updated 10 October 2024

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Version 5.0

This guidance tells His Majesty’s Passport Office staff how to establish parental responsibility for birth and adoptive parents and parents whose child is born through surrogacy

About, Parental responsibility: birth parents, adoption and surrogacy

This guidance tells HM Passport Office staff:

  • how birth and adoptive parents get parental responsibility

  • how to confirm a birth or adoptive parent has parental responsibility

  • to use the surrogacy guidance to establish who has parental responsibility for a child born through surrogacy

Contacts

If you have any questions about the guidance and your line manager or senior caseworker cannot help you or you think that the guidance has factual errors then email HM Passport Office’s Guidance team.

If you notice any formatting errors in this guidance (broken links, spelling mistakes and so on) or have any comments about the layout or navigability of the guidance then you can email HM Passport Office’s Guidance team.

Publication

Below is information on when this version of the guidance was published:

  • version 5.0

  • published for Home Office staff on 27 September 2024

Changes from last version of this guidance

This guidance has been updated to make it clear:

  • how birth fathers gain parental responsibility in the UK through marriage and what documents are needed to confirm parental responsibility

  • that parental responsibility can only be taken away by a court order and we must see the court order removing parental responsibility before we can proceed without it (see Removing parental responsibility from parents)

Parental responsibility: birth parents

This section tells HM Passport Office staff how birth parents of children born in the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man get parental responsibility

You must not assume the people named as a mother or father or parent 1 or 2 on a birth register in the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man have parental responsibility (PR) for their child. For example, a father may not have PR if their child was born at a time when unmarried fathers did not get PR.

In the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man, both parents named on the application and the child’s full birth certificate (if we have it as part of the application) will have PR, if they:

  • were married or in a civil partnership with each other (or in a civil partnership) at the time of:

    • the child’s birth

    • conception or later (Scotland only)

  • were married after the child’s birth:

    • in England and Wales and the birth was re-registered

    • in Northern Ireland and the father was living there at the time of his marriage

  • are not married but the father has a court order or PR agreement that gives him parental responsibility

  • are not married but both parents registered the birth on or after:

    • 15 April 2002 (in Northern Ireland)

    • 1 December 2003 (in England and Wales)

    • 4 May 2006 (in Scotland)

    • 4 January 2010 (in Guernsey and Alderney)

    • 1 November 2013 (in the Isle of Man)

    • 2 December 2016 (in Jersey)

Rules for birth registration in the UK

A registrar will only register a birth in the UK if the information they receive fits the criteria of the:

For example:

  • a child’s parents must be married (or in a civil partnership) if they want to register a birth without the other parent’s involvement.

  • a registrar will only add an unmarried father’s details to the birth record if he either:

    • was present at the birth registration

    • provided the registrar with either, a declaration of parentage or court order naming him as the child’s father

If someone gives incorrect information to register a birth, the registrar can, in certain circumstances, re-register a birth with the correct information or restrict a birth record until the issue is resolved.

How a re-registered or corrected birth affects PR

If a birth is re-registered or corrected, the parents named on the original birth certificate will still have PR (if they already held it). Only a court can remove PR from a person once they have it.

When a birth is re-registered the parents named on the new certificate may not have PR. You must check where the child was born to confirm if the parents get PR:

If the birth has been re-registered, you must check:

  • who were named as parents on the original full birth certificate (by asking the customer to send it to us) and consider the original father’s rights, if:

    • the change affects the child’s claim to British nationality

    • the child has a change of name or gender (see Authorisation and consent)

  • the person consenting to the application is named on the re-registered birth certificate

If the birth has been re-registered and you need additional consent from a parent who has been removed from the original record you must ask the customer for the original certificate (or a copy of it from the registrar’s office) and that person’s consent. You must check their consent is genuine when you receive it. Before you ask for additional consent you must consider if asking for it will place the customer or child at risk of harm (see Safeguarding: consent issues)

If the customer gets a copy of the original birth registration it will show that it has been re-registered. For example, the certificate will show:

“Re-registered under section 10A of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 on…”

However, fathers may not get PR, through the registration alone, if the birth certificate shows the birth was registered or re-registered:

The courts must have been involved if the birth has been registered or re-registered under Sections 14A. If the birth certificate refers to section 14A (in section 11 and 12 on the certificate), you must ask the person consenting to the application to send in the court order so we can check they have PR.

Legislation under Section 14A only covers birth registration in England and Wales. It is not retrospective and only affects birth registration in England and Wales on or after 1 December 2003. Before the 1 December 2003 unmarried fathers did not automatically get PR for their child.

Removing parental responsibility from parents

Parental responsibility, once granted, cannot be removed without a court order. A parent cannot relinquish (give up) their parental responsibility, re-registering a birth.

You must ask for the court order if a parent had PR but the other parent now states they have sole parental responsibility. Divorce, separation or lack of contact does not remove PR from a parent who already holds it.

If a birth certificate (issued in England and Wales) has been re-registered under section 14A to remove a parent’s PR this will be shown in a marginal note on the birth certificate. If there is no marginal note the parent will retain PR even if they are no longer named on the certificate.

Parental responsibility: birth mother

In the UK, Channel Islands and Isle of Man, the person named on a child’s full birth certificate as the birth mother (parent 1) will have PR (unless it was removed by a court order, for example, or if she is a surrogate mother). See how to confirm parental responsibility.

Parental responsibility: father

Most fathers of children born in the UK have parental responsibility, and we will accept they have PR if they are named on a UK full birth certificate. However, there are times when a birth father may not have parental responsibility, for example, if the child was born:

If the mother is in a marriage or civil partnership to a member of the opposite-sex, at the time of her child’s birth, her husband or male civil partner is regarded as the father for nationality purposes. However, the husband or male civil partner will only have PR if the relevant rules in the country of birth apply or he has a court order.

PR for birth parents: England and Wales

Parents who were married to each other (or in a civil partnership) at the time of the child’s birth will both get parental responsibility (PR) for their child. There is no need for the father to be named on the birth certificate if he is married to the mother at the time of the birth (a marriage or civil partnership certificate is needed for passport purposes).

It is a legal requirement for parents who marry after the birth to re-register their child’s birth. A father who did not have PR prior to his marriage to the mother will only get PR after his marriage, if the child’s birth is re-registered. You must ask for the re-registered birth certificate in this circumstance as the marriage or civil partnership itself does not give the father PR.

The Adoption and Children Act 2002 came into force on 1 December 2003 in England and Wales. It allows mothers and unmarried fathers in England and Wales to get PR if the registrar records their details in the birth register entry either at the time of the registration or later (re-registration).

The registrar will add the information if both parents are present at the registration or one parent provides a statutory declaration of acknowledgement of paternity from the other parent.

However, fathers may not get PR, through the registration alone, if the birth certificate (issued in England or Wales) shows the birth was registered or re-registered:

PR for birth parents: Scotland

In Scotland, a child’s father gets parental responsibility (PR) if:

  • he is not married to the child’s mother, but the child was born on or after 4 May 2006 and he was named on the birth certificate; or,

  • the parents were married to each other when the child was conceived or at any time afterward (regardless of whether he was named on the birth certificate), for example, this means if the father was married to the mother at the time of conception, but not at the actual time of birth, he would still have parental responsibility.

You must request the child’s birth certificate, contemporaneous evidence (if the father was not named on the certificate) and the parents’ marriage certificate, if you need to confirm the father has PR through his marriage.

PR for unmarried fathers in Scotland

The Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006 came into force on 4 May 2006 and allows an unmarried father to get PR for his child registered in Scotland, if his details are on the birth certificate.

An unmarried father can get PR by:

  • marrying the child’s mother

  • registering a parental responsibilities and parental rights agreement (made between him and the mother) in the Books of Council and Session in Edinburgh

  • a court order

An unmarried father whose child was born before 4 May 2006 will not have PR unless he has a court order or a parental responsibilities and parental rights agreement.

A birth in Scotland can be re-registered under Section 20 of the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act 1965, and the parents named on the original birth certificate would not lose PR and the parent added to the re-registered BC will have PR.

A birth in Scotland can only re-registered if the parents who hold parental responsibility agree to it, if neither parent holds parental responsibility a person who has parental responsibility can apply to re-register a birth.

PR for birth parents: Northern Ireland

Where parents are married at the time of the birth, the father will automatically get parental responsibility (PR), whether he is named on the birth certificate or not. A parents marriage certificate valid at the time of the birth will confirm the father’s PR if he is not named on the birth certificate.

Unmarried fathers did not automatically get PR until 15 April 2002. The Family Law Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 came into force on that date, it defines how an unmarried father in Northern Ireland can get PR for his child. Unmarried fathers of children born on or after 15 April 2002 will have PR if they are named on their child’s full birth certificate (see: Rules for birth registration). Where an unmarried father gains PR because of the birth registration, he will not lose it even if it is established that he is not the father and his details are removed from the birth certificate.

Unmarried fathers who were not named on the birth certificate and did not have PR from the birth registration will get PR after the birth if they marry the mother and they were living in Northern Ireland at the time of the marriage. You must ask for the parents’ marriage certificate and contemporaneous evidence to prove he is the birth father and was living in Northern Ireland at the time of marriage, if the parents have not re-registered the birth following their marriage.

To establish parental responsibility under the Family Law Act (Northern Ireland) for the father, you (the examiner) must have:

  • a full birth certificate issued in Northern Ireland:

    • naming the father

    • showing the registration took place on or after 15 April 2002

  • a marriage certificate and evidence the father was resident in Northern Ireland at the time of the marriage (if the father did not have PR at the time of the birth) for example:

    • a bank statement

    • utility bill

    • payslip or P60

A father may also get PR if he has a court order or a parental responsibility agreement with the mother.

A birth in Northern Ireland can be re-registered under the Births and Deaths Registration (Northern Ireland) Order 1976 and the parents named on the original birth certificate would not lose PR and the parent added to the re-registered BC will have PR.

PR for birth parents: Isle of Man

For children born in the Isle of Man before 1 November 2013:

  • married parents both have parental responsibility (PR) as long as their names are shown on the birth certificate

  • unmarried fathers did not automatically have PR (even if they were named as the father on the birth certificate), they can get PR with:

    • a parental responsibility agreement

    • court order

  • divorced parents will have PR, (unless there’s a court order) when both of the following apply:

    • they were married at the time of the child’s birth, or afterwards

    • their names are shown on the birth certificate

From 1 November 2013, married and unmarried fathers automatically gained PR, when they are recorded on the birth register and their details are shown on the birth certificate.

PR for birth parents: Jersey

Before 2 December 2016 in Jersey:

  • the father will have PR if both of the following apply:

    • he is registered as the father on the child’s birth certificate

    • he was married to the mother of the child, at the time of the child’s birth

  • an unmarried father has 1 of the following

    • a parental responsibility agreement with the child’s mother

    • a parental responsibility order through the court

From the 2 December 2016 any unmarried father will have PR if he is registered (named) on the child’s birth certificate, at the time of the child’s birth.

An unmarried father who was not named on the registration can get PR by:

  • applying to the court for an order, stating he has parental responsibility for his child

  • entering into a parental responsibility agreement with the child’s mother

  • asking the registrar of the parish where the child was born to re-register the child’s birth and entering his name on the birth certificate (for this to happen, the father will need to cooperate with the child’s mother)

PR for birth parents: Guernsey and Alderney

Married parents (whether married at the time of the child’s birth, or afterwards) will have PR. Parents who separate or divorce continue to have PR.

Parents can only lose PR if a court removes it, or the child is adopted (and in some exceptional cases of assisted reproduction).

Unmarried fathers will not have PR but can get it, if:

  • they marry the child’s mother (you must ask for the birth certificate and the parents’ marriage or civil partnership certificate)

  • the birth was registered after 4 January 2010 and they are named on the birth certificate (when the Children (Guernsey and Alderney) Law 2008 came into effect)

  • they enter into a parental responsibility agreement with the mother

  • the court makes a parental responsibility or residence order to the father

Parental responsibility: when a child is born or resident overseas

This section tells HM Passport Office staff about parental responsibility for children born or habitually resident overseas

The UK signed up to the Hague Convention ‘Convention on Jurisdiction, Applicable law, Recognition, Enforcement and Co-operation in respect of Parental Responsibility and Measures for the Protection of Children’ on 19 October 1996.

New provisions came into force on 1 November 2012 to allow parental responsibility in the country of habitual residence not just where the child was born.

When the child lives in the same country as their birth, you must check Knowledge Base to see:

  • if the information we hold, shows the person consenting to the passport has parental responsibility (PR)

  • if the documents are acceptable for passport purposes

When a child is born in one country but is habitually resident in another country, you must check:

  • Knowledge Base information to see if it is likely the person consenting to the passport has PR in the country where the child was born or in the country, they are habitually resident

  • if the customers documents are acceptable for passport purposes

You must raise a guidance query if we do not have parental responsibility information for a particular country (or territory) or the customer does not agree with the information in Knowledge Base. HM Passport Office will confirm the information with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and reply to your query.

You must refer the application to the Counter Fraud team if you are concerned someone has unlawfully removed a child from the country where they usually live.

How to confirm PR: birth parents

This section tells HM Passport Office staff how to confirm a birth parent has parental responsibility

When dealing with child applications, you (the examiner) must check the person who consented to the application has parental responsibility (PR) for the child. You must also check if additional consent is needed for the application and if it is, check the customer will not be put at risk of harm by asking for that consent.

You must check Authorisation and consent, Additional consent: overseas PR laws, if a parent applying for a child born (or habitually resident) overseas has PR under UK law but due to overseas laws may not have PR or you need additional consent and they cannot get it.

You must check:

  • for any court orders or information with the current or previous application that:

    • removes PR

    • gives the person consenting to the application PR

    • references a court order relating to PR

  • for information in the Knowledge Base relating to PR in the child’s country of birth or habitual residence, if they were born outside the UK

  • for any watchlist matches on the application relating to PR

  • UK Visas and Immigration systems if the child has registered as a British national and the parents have not provided a full birth certificate

Checking parents’ details: all applications

We ask the customer to give us their parents’ details on the application and we use these details for nationality and parental responsibility purposes.

You must check the parent (who we are taking parental responsibility through) is named on the application and the details match with the supporting documents or previous passport application.

You do not need to question the information given on the application if:

  • the only difference is the adding or removal of the parent’s middle forename (unless you have reason to doubt the information given)

  • the different details do not affect the British nationality of the customer (for example, when a claim is through Parent 2 but a renewal application does not include their details)

  • the different details do not relate to the person giving consent to the application

Where the details do not match, the differences may be explained in other supporting documents or on our passport records or UK Visas and Immigration records without the need to contact the customer. For example, you must check if the supporting documents or a linked application shows there is a change of surname through marriage or a clear link between the names, or our records confirm a parent’s change of name. See DAP: Change of parent details, for applications processed on Digital Application Processing (DAP).

Where the details are missing or cannot be explained, you must ask the customer for more information before you make your decision. For example, you can ask the parent for their birth certificate or evidence of how their name has changed, to link the details together.

You must case note the differences you have found and the information you used to clear the discrepancy.

POL (Post Office limited) clerks do not get parental responsibility training. They will not know if the documents can determine parental responsibility. POL errors only apply if listed documents for the chosen application type are missing.

What you must consider when checking parents’ details

If the personal details for the parent who applied (and gave consent) have changed and there is no evidence of how they have changed it, you must consider:

  • whether the birth has been re-registered naming different parents

  • if the change in parents’ details will affect the child’s claim to British nationality (for example, where a claim to British nationality was originally through one parent but a different parent’s details have been given on an application or a birth has been re-registered)

  • if this indicates potential fraud and must be referred to the Counter Fraud team

PR birth parents: first time applications

You can accept the mother or parent 1 has parental responsibility and can consent to a passport application, if all the following apply:

  • they are named on the full birth certificate (or full UK adoption certificate or full overseas adoption certificate and the adoption took place in a country where the adoption is legally recognised for PR)

  • their details are in the parent details section of the application

  • their details in the parent details section match the details on:

    • the full birth certificate

    • Life Events Verification (LEV) (if the customer sent a short birth certificate for a child born in England or Wales on, or after, 1 July 2009)

  • there is nothing to indicate their PR has been removed by a court order

  • the laws in the country of the child’s birth and habitual residence (including the UK):

    • do not stop the parent from having PR

    • allow them to act alone

You can accept the father or parent 2 has parental responsibility and can consent to a passport application, if all the previous points apply and either of the following apply:

  • they are married to the mother (or parent 1) at the time of the child’s birth or subsequently

  • the child was born at a time and in a place where an unmarried father or parent 2 will have PR

You must ask for the marriage or civil partnership certificate if the child was born before a date when unmarried father’s get PR.

You must ask for more information if you cannot confirm the person applying holds PR or the parents’ personal details on the application do not match the birth record.

PR birth parents: renewal and replacement applications

You must confirm the birth parent consenting to a renewal or replacement child passport has parental responsibility (PR).

PR birth parent: confirming mother or parent 1 has PR

The mother or parent 1 is the person who gives birth to the child unless the child is born through surrogacy and the commissioning parent or parents have a parental or adoption order. You must check the child’s previous applications on our passport and application records (you must not request previous application files) and accept the mother or parent 1 has PR, if all of the following apply:

  • the mother’s details in the parents’ details section on the current application match the details on the previous applications, or the difference can be explained through our records (or the documents provided)

  • there’s no evidence to suggest the mother or parent 1 has lost PR

You must add a case note to the application to record your decision when you have confirmed if the mother or parent 1 has PR.

You must ask for more information (for example, the child’s full birth certificate) if any of the following points apply:

  • you cannot confirm the person applying holds PR

  • you need additional consent, for example, to change a name, (also see, Safeguarding: consent issues)

  • you cannot confirm the mother or parent 1s’ personal details on the application using the supporting documents or previous applications

  • the mother or parent 1s’ personal details are missing from the application

  • the child is born through surrogacy

PR birth parents: confirming father or parent 2 has PR

Renewal and replacement applications do not automatically require the parent to provide evidence they hold parental responsibility (PR). In the absence of a birth certificate or other evidence of PR you must check the child’s previous applications on our passport and application records and accept the father or parent 2 has PR, if:

  • they applied for the first application and their consent was accepted by the original examiner and there is nothing to show their decision was incorrect; or

  • the case notes on the previous application confirm they have PR and how they got it (for example, a case note stating the child’s birth certificate showed they had PR); you must not accept the parent has PR without a case note confirming this, unless the following point applies,

  • the father or parent 2’s personal details match the details on the first application and there is no evidence to suggest they no longer have PR or never had PR (because they were not named on the birth registration) and either of the following apply:

    • the child was born after the date unmarried fathers got PR and there’s a date of marriage (or civil partnership) in the parent details section on the current or previous applications; or,

    • the child was born before the date unmarried fathers got PR and the mother confirmed the date of marriage on a previous application or you have the marriage certificate or it was received as part of a previous application

You must ask for more information if any of the following apply:

When you cannot confirm PR from the information given

If you cannot confirm the person applying for the passport has PR from the information given, (if dealing with a Digital Application Processing (DAP) application see DAP parental responsibility task) you must:

  1. Ask the customer to send us the child’s full birth (or adoption) certificate, or parental order (if we do not already have it). If the child has been registered as British see Child registered as British.

  2. Ask the customer for one of the following (depending on the circumstances):

  • signed and dated consent from a parent who has PR

  • the parents’ marriage or civil partnership certificate

  • any court orders that give them parental responsibility

3. Consider if the person applying can give consent as a guardian, for example:

  • in place of a parent (in loco parentis)

  • testamentary guardianship

  • because the child is in care

If you cannot obtain the correct consent from someone with PR, you must tell the customer to get a court order confirming a passport can be issued. If there are safeguarding issues around getting consent, see Safeguarding: consent issues.

Recording your decision: birth parents

You must add a case note to the application to record your decision when you confirm any birth parent has PR or you needed additional consent to issue the passport.

You must

  1. Add a case note:

  • as described in Authorisation and consent, to show the actions and decisions you made; and,

  • to record the name and place of birth of the other parent, if their details are included on the full birth certificate but not on the application (you must not request a full birth certificate for a renewal or replacement application solely to case note these details)

2. Scan the document that confirms parental responsibility (PR) if the How to keep scans of supporting documents guidance tells you to.

Parental responsibility: adoption

This section tells HM Passport Office staff how parental responsibility is given to an adoptive parent and how to confirm they have it

An adoptive parent will have parental responsibility (PR) if the adoption took place:

Even though the adoptive parent may have PR through the adoption you need to check if the child can claim nationality through adoption.

Parental responsibility: UK adoptions

For an adoptive parent to have PR, they must be named as the adoptive parent on either, the:

  • adoption order

  • full adoption certificate

The customer must send in the full adoption certificate, if they do not, you must ask for one, alternatively we can accept an adoption order.

If you have doubts about an adoption order, you must ask the customer to send us a letter from a representative of the local authority, confirming the details (using system letter 581). When you receive the letter from social services you must:

  • check the social services office exists and get a contact phone number (using external reference sources)

  • phone the local authority using the number shown on the external reference source and confirm verbally they sent letter

Parental responsibility: UK pending and interim adoption orders

If a child is subject to a Placement Order or has been ‘freed for adoption’ but the adoption has not yet taken place, you must ask the customer to send in a court order.

If the adoption is by a stepparent and the birth parent continues to have parental responsibility, the birth parent can consent to the passport application.

An adopter named on an interim order can consent to a child’s passport application, if they have parental responsibility, under:

The interim order confirms:

  • who has parental responsibility

  • what the child’s new name will be

  • how long you must issue the passport for

Pending adoptions: England and Wales

Local authorities may have parental responsibility, if:

  • they get a court order while the child is awaiting adoption

  • a Placement Order has not been issued

If a Placement Order has been issued and the child is living with the prospective adopters, they will have parental responsibility. The order places restrictions on parental responsibility and the ability to change the child’s name, without either:

  • the consent of the court

  • written consent of everyone with parental responsibility

Before you issue a passport, you must check the court order to confirm what restrictions are in place.

Pending adoptions: Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland, the prospective adoptive parents will not have parental responsibility until the adoption is complete.

The adoption agency or Guardian Ad litem (a guardian appointed by the court) has parental responsibility.

You must ask the customer to send you the freeing order to confirm who has parental responsibility.

Pending adoptions: Scotland

If there’s a court order declaring the child is free for adoption, parental responsibility transfers to the adoption agency until the adoption is finalised and the adoptive parents get PR.

Pending adoption: moving overseas

To take a child out of the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for the purpose of an overseas adoption, the prospective adopters, relatives or legal authority must have a parental responsibility order, granted under:

Parental responsibility: overseas adoption

How HM Passport Office deals with an application for a child adopted overseas depends if the adoption:

  • is legally recognised for parental responsibility purposes in the UK

  • allows an automatic claim to British nationality

Parental responsibility: Hague Convention adoption

You, the examiner, can accept a customer has parental responsibility if the Hague Convention Order names the parent who gives consent to the passport application.

See adoption guidance for an explanation of what a Hague Convention adoption is.

PR: overseas adoptions (non-Hague convention adoption)

You must check the table below to see if the adoption took place in a country legally recognised for parental responsibility in the UK.

To confirm a parent has parental responsibility in the UK through an overseas adoption, you must check the adoption order, was:

Evidence of an overseas adoption may be:

  • an entry from a public adoption register

  • a certificate signed by an authorised foreign government official

  • an adoption order from the local court

Legally recognised country for PR purposes

A

  • Albania
  • Andorra
  • Anguilla
  • Armenia
  • Australia
  • Austria
  • Azerbaijan

B

  • Bahamas
  • Barbados
  • Belarus
  • Belize
  • Belgium
  • Botswana
  • Bolivia
  • Brazil
  • British Virgin Islands
  • Bulgaria
  • Burkina Faso
  • Burundi

C

  • Canada
  • Cape Verde
  • Cayman Islands
  • Chile
  • China (the People’s Republic of) – see adoptions in China
  • Columbia
  • Costa Rica
  • Cuba
  • Cyprus (the Republic of)
  • Czech Republic

D

  • Denmark, Faroe Islands and Greenland
  • Dominican Republic

E

  • Ecuador
  • El Salvador
  • Estonia

F

  • Fiji
  • Finland
  • France
  • French Guyana

G

  • Georgia
  • Germany
  • Ghana
  • Gibraltar
  • Greece
  • Guadeloupe
  • Guinea
  • Guyana

H

  • Hong Kong
  • Hungary

I

  • Iceland
  • India
  • Ireland (the Republic of)
  • Israel
  • Italy

J

  • Jamaica

K

  • Kazakhstan
  • Kenya

L

  • Latvia
  • Lesotho
  • Liechtenstein
  • Lithuania
  • Luxembourg

M

  • Macedonia
  • Madagascar
  • Malawi
  • Malaysia
  • Mali
  • Malta
  • Mauritius
  • Mexico
  • Moldova (the Republic of)
  • Monaco
  • Mongolia
  • Montenegro
  • Montserrat

P

  • Panama
  • Paraguay
  • Peru
  • Philippines
  • Pitcairn Islands
  • Poland
  • Portugal, Azores and Madera

R

  • Romania
  • Rwanda

S

  • Saint Christopher and Nevis
  • Saint Vincent
  • San Marino
  • Senegal
  • Seychelles
  • Singapore
  • Slovakia
  • Slovenia
  • South Africa
  • Spain, the Balearics and Canary Islands
  • Sri Lanka
  • Suriname
  • Sweden
  • Switzerland

T

  • Tanzania
  • Thailand
  • Togo
  • Tonga
  • Trinidad and Tobago
  • Turkey

U

  • Uganda
  • United States of America (the)
  • Uruguay

V

  • Venezuela
  • Vietnam

Z

  • Zambia
  • Zimbabwe

How to confirm PR: adoptive parents

This section tells HM Passport Office staff how to confirm parental responsibility for adoptive parents

You must confirm the person consenting to the child’s application has parental responsibility (PR).

PR by adoption: first time application

If the customer sends in an interim adoption order, you must refer to pending adoptions.

You can accept the person who consents to the application has PR, if both of the following apply:

  • their details are given on the parent’s detail section of the application

  • they are named on an acceptable adoption order or full adoption certificate (you must have one of these for a first time application)

You must add a case note to the application to record your decision when you have confirmed the adoptive parent has PR.

You must:

  • ask for more information if you cannot confirm the person applying holds PR

  • ask for more information if the parents’ personal details on the application:

    • have changed

    • do not match the adoption certificate

    • are missing

  • check UKVI systems if the child has registered as a British national and the parents have not provided a full birth certificate

PR by adoption: renewal or replacement applications

If you are unable to confirm from the application and supporting documents the person consenting to the application has PR, you must check the child’s previous applications on our passport and application records (you must not request previous application files (PAF)). If the application was done on Digital Application Processing (DAP) and you cannot see the timeline details on our passport and application records, see Searches and checks: passport and application records. You can accept they have PR if all the following apply:

  • the details in the parent details section of the current application match the details on the previous application

  • the original documents list shows an adoption certificate

  • the case notes on the previous application confirm who has parental responsibility

  • there’s no evidence to suggest the parents named no longer have parental responsibility

You must ask for more information, if

  • you cannot confirm the person applying holds PR

  • the parents’ personal details on the application:

    • have changed

    • do not match the previous application or the birth (or adoption) certificate

    • are missing

  • there’s evidence that suggests:

    • they no longer have parental responsibility

    • someone else has parental responsibility

If you unable to confirm if the adoptive parents have parental responsibility you must check if anyone else has PR and is able to consent to the application, if not refer to loco parentis. You must remain sensitive to the circumstances (for example, do not use the term ‘loco parentis’ when contacting adoptive parents).

Recording your decision: adoptive parents

You must add a case note to the application to record your decision when you confirm the adoptive parent has PR or you needed additional consent to issue the passport.

You must

  1. Add a case note:

  • as described in Authorisation and consent, to show the actions and decisions you made; and,

  • to record the name and place of birth of the other parent, if their details are included on the adoption certificate but not on the application (you must not request an adoption certificate for a renewal or replacement application solely to case note these details)

2. Scan the document that confirms parental responsibility (PR) if the How to keep scans of supporting documents guidance tells you to.

Parental responsibility: surrogacy

This section tells HM Passport Office staff how to confirm parental responsibility when a child is born through surrogacy.

You, the examiner, must refer to surrogacy guidance if dealing with a child born of a surrogacy agreement.

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