A British father living in France was asked to undergo a £600 DNA test to prove paternity as part of his daughter’s British passport application, according to a case reported to the Guardian’s Consumer Champions.
The man, a UK citizen married to a French national, applied for a British passport for his teenage daughter in February. The child was born in Zimbabwe and holds only a French passport, while her two older siblings possess both French and British passports.
The application required submission of pregnancy photographs, family photos from birth to present, hospital records, and official translations of French marriage and birth certificates. During an official interview, the father was questioned about his job, commute, and house layout, but rarely about his relationship with his daughter.
Officials subsequently ruled there was insufficient evidence to prove paternity and suggested a DNA test costing £600, which would cause further delays.
The family needs to visit the father’s elderly, unwell parent in the UK but cannot risk travel because new post-Brexit rules, effective from February, bar dual nationals from entering the UK without a British passport. Foreign nationals may enter on passports issued by their country of residence, but British expatriates must obtain a £589 certificate of entitlement.
The father asked whether his daughter could travel on her French passport but received no clear answer. The family now faces spending Christmas apart from the grandfather.
Home Office guidance states that officials must assess passport applications on the “balance of probability” if an applicant declines a DNA test and must explain any refusal. The father said he was never told why his extensive documentation was deemed inadequate.
The Home Office declined to comment on the individual case but stated that additional evidence, such as a home’s layout, may be requested to add “credible authenticity”.
Shortly after the Guardian contacted the Home Office, the father was informed the application had been accepted, despite no new paperwork being requested since April.
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