Citizenship By Descent

Citizenship By Descent
Do you have a biological child born in Philippines who has at least one Australian Citizen as a parent? Would you like your Filipino child to obtain Australian Citizenship By Descent without a lot of hassle and stress?
If the child is born overseas and where at least one biological parent is an Aussie Citizen at the time of the birth, then the child will be entitled to apply for Australian Citizenship By Descent. The child will then be entitled to apply for an Australian passport, and can travel to and remain in Australia. No visa necessary ever.
This is a great option for those Australian men who have fathered children in the Philippines and wish that those children may become Australian Citizens and to enjoy all the rights of other Australians. Australian Citizenship is not automatic outside of Australia, and whilst it is an entitlement it is an entitlement that must be claimed with a successful application to the Department (Australian Embassy in Manila). It requires strong evidence of biological fatherhood, which may require DNA test evidence to backup of the claim.

Note that claiming to be the biological father of a child as an “act of chivalry” is not only fraudulent, it is also a criminal offense in the Philippines. Avoid the urge to do anything galant, and to say "I'll give the child my name" if the child does not share your genes. This is especially frowned open in the Philippines where actual paternity is taken very seriously.
When the case is genuine, Citizenship By Descent is a wonderful gift to bestow on your Filipino children as it is permanent. It does not require entry into Australia at any given point, and remains for the lifetime of the child. This option should be considered also when a partner visa application includes biological children. When the biological child of an Australian Citizen is granted Citizenship By Descent, they may travel to Australia with an Australian *passport without the need to be included as an applicant in a partner visa application, nor will they need to apply for a dependent child visa or child visa later.
*NOTE: Citizenship applications do not include a passport. This requires a separate application by yourselves.
DISCLAIMER
Information contained in this page is of a general nature. Informative, yes, but not a formula for preparing visa applications and should not be relied on as such. The devil is in the detail, rest assured. Australian migration law is complicated and Departmental decisions are inflexible and often final. Readers and future visa applicants and sponsors are advised to rely on professionals to ensure a happy outcome.
It should also be considered by those Australian men who reside full-time in the Philippines, so that their Filipino children may wish to exercise their right to live in Australia at a later time.
If you have a legitimate claim, we can prepare and lodge an application for the child.
To see if we can help you, please fill out our FREE ASSESSMENT FORM
Citizenship By Descent Pros and Cons

- Child never needs an Australian visa ever
- Citizenship is permanent
- Cheaper option than including child as secondary applicant on a partner visa, or applying for a child visa
- Child must be the biological child of an Australian Citizen at their birth
- Has a higher level of expected evidence than including in a partner visa application
- Requires organizing a passport application after the citizenship grant
- There are no bridging visas available for onshore Citizenship applicants, so onshore applications are inadvisable
Australian Citizenship By Descent From the Philippines FAQ
No, definitely not. The child must have at least one parent who is an Australian Citizen. Adding your name as the father, ie. “giving the child your name” sounds very gallant, and no doubt the intentions are wonderful. However it happens to be a crime.
Citizenship By Descent is quicker and cheaper. Need we say more?
It’s not standard, however they may ask for it if there is any doubt. More reasons not to try to be clever with switching babies or claiming to be a child’s father.
No, a passport is a separate application. And it’s one you need to do for yourselves.
If you apply for Citizenship by Descent for a child inside Australia on a tourist visa and the application takes longer than the tourist visa, you could mess everything up. There are no bridging visas associated with Citizenship applications.
No, not at all. The child may enter Australia and remain anytime at all, and will never need a visa.
Not at all. A child born to an Australian parent (either or both) inside Australia is an Australian Citizen the moment they pop their head out. It’s automatic.
Have A Citizenship By Descent Question Not Answered Above?

Now, over to you the client (or potential client)! We value our clients opinions, and we believe in keeping all well-informed. What would YOU like to ask about citizenship by descent? What do YOU think needs a bit more explanation? Ask below, and Jeff Harvie RMA will answer your question for you and for others wondering the same thing.
121 Comments


I am married to an australian citizen in sydney and i am a filipina....
We have a good relationship until after 2 years...he lost his contact to us....
I tried to contact him but to no avail...
My question is can i apply for my son's citizenship by descent even we lost contact on him?





I have the same situation with Jocelyn..I am a filipina (Filipino National). I was married in Sydney last Dec 28, 2017 to an Australian citizen..After 2 years, he lost contact with us, i tried to reach him but he seems ignoring me. Me and my son are living in Phils. My question is, can i ( filipina mother) apply for my son's citizenship by descent? he is 3 yrs old now, i have only copy of his passport, but i dont know his details when he was naturalized in Aust...Pls help, thanks






I have the same issue with Jenny,my daughter was acknowledged by her Australian citizen father so she have her last name he also had performed a DNA test when she was 3 month's old as it's one of the requirements for Australian citizenship application but thing's didn't work out for us due to some issues I had with him about women,how would I verify if he successfully submit that Australian citizenship application? And if ever it wasn't process can I apply in behalf of our child here in Philippine?

Just want some Clarifications.
If A Filipina Mother an Australian Citizen, is it much easier to apply my children who is currently in the Philippines a Citizenship by Descent?
I have included my Dependent Children in my application of Permanent Partner Visa from the beginning.
I have been here for 7 years and have live her without them so long.
My daughter is already 20 and son is 18 and still Dependent on me.
What is the best thing to do?


You don't need the father to apply. You may do that yourself. Your only issue is that you need to ensure you have enough evidence to prove that he is the biological father of the children, and that he is an Australian Citizen himself.







Good day! I just give birth for my daughter. My husband will apply for citizenship by decent.do we need to get her a Phil passport at the same time? Or just Australian passport for her after citizenship by decent grant?
Pls advice


So I am a little bit confused regarding this:
So after applying for Citizenship by Decent and it gets approved, since our son will be an Australian Citizen, How can we travel to Australia? Should I work for a Philippine Passport for him or an Australian Passport so we can travel to his father?




I have 3 children over 18 in the Philippines and would like to bring them over early next year and wanted to find out what cost are included in your fee if I chose to have you process their applications for Citizenship by Decent?




My girlfriend will give birth to our child in 2 months, we would like to apply Australian Citizenship by descent, as I am Australian.
My question is how old does the baby have to be before we can apply for Australian Citizenship, by descent



Good evening. I am a child of an Australian citizen. Am i eligible for Citizenship by descent?


1. does my child needs a filipino passport when we apply for exemption durig this covid?
2.do i need to apply for tourist visa while getting the exemption
i hope to hear from you


citizen by descent
how long it takes
my husband coming with until i deliver the baby


https://assessments.downundervisa.com

2. If ever i register my son in my name on his brth certificate was he still able or qualified for citizen by descent applications? Or better i wait from his father acknowledgement so my son can use his fathers family name.
3. If ever i can show evidence and God willing my son will be granted for citizen by descent.. my as his mother is not married to his father what visa should i get to back to australia or am i be carried by my sons citizenship as his mother since hisa minor.. thankyou sir for your help and answer its means alot and much appreciated..
GODBLESS YOU .and stay safe

Answer: You must register his birth in the Philippines! He will be a Philippines Citizen by birth first of all.
2. If ever i register my son in my name on his brth certificate was he still able or qualified for citizen by descent applications? Or better i wait from his father acknowledgement so my son can use his fathers family name.
Answer: Speak to the Local Civil Registrar about this
3. If ever i can show evidence and God willing my son will be granted for citizen by descent.. my as his mother is not married to his father what visa should i get to back to australia or am i be carried by my sons citizenship as his mother since hisa minor..
Answer: You won't get a visa simply because you are his mother. If your boyfriend intends marrying you, you can apply for a partner visa after that. But you won't get a visa because of the citizenship, sorry.






Thank you.

I am interested in applying for Australian Citizenship by Descent. My father is an Australian citizen and my mom (who is already deceased) is a Filipina. They were not married, but I was acknowledged by my father; there is an Acknowledgement of Paternity on my birth certificate.
But I am still using the surname of my mother. I would start doing the process of changing my surname to my father's as soon as this pandemic is contained.
But for now, I'd like to know if I can apply for a Citizenship by Descent if the surname I am still using is my mother's, which is different from my father's?
I'll appreciate your response. Thank you!



i have an Australian boyfriend now. and pregnant. we are okay with the australian citizenship by decent to our soon baby. and we understand the baby will not have problems in and out of australia. plan to give birth in aussie.
Our question is, what is going to be my visa and my 6 year old daughters visa. we have always been on a tourist visa and now of course we want to stay longer be a family unit in australia. I am not sure if i can apply for a partner visa I was previously married a long long time ago to a filipino when i was younger.
so what are our options. can i apply for other long term visas? like legal guardian or a 12 month tourist etc...? or as a mother of an australian baby, i can have other type of visas. please advise.

Be aware too that there are travel bans at the moment, so everything is more difficult at the moment. Suggest you get an assessment done (https://assessments.downundervisa.com)

I am a Filipina and my partner is an AU citizen but we are not married. We have a son who is 1yr and 6 months old born here in the Philippines. My partner was not here when I gave birth to our son due to pandemic. Our son is using my surname but would change it to my partner’s surname in the future.
My question is, can we apply for citizenship by descent even though our son is still using my last name?
can we apply it when we get to au or it’s best to apply it first before traveling to au?
Also, can I bring my other child (Filino child) with me under the same visa (Tourist visa) to au?
Your response will be appreciated!
Thanks in advance.



Cheers, Pete

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Further information
Want to read more about Citizenship By Descent from the Philippines? Check out some of our citizenship by descent BLOG posts below.
Citizenship By Descent. A great option.
Citizenship By Descent Applications

