My fiancee and I will be marrying early next year, I've read a lot of previous post on here with some great advice but not come across one with my particular situation. My fiancee has a 7 year old son who's father has returned to his home country Japan. Her son has his Fathers surname and is on his birth certificate. His father does not contribute to his up bringing. What are the requirements for her son to come with her to the UK with regards to his biological father? Does she need to obtain his permission, or because hes not a Philippine National can he come to the UK without needing any permission.
ok. are you fully aware of the cost implications--including visa fees and sponsorship financial requirements ?
Yes I am, I've been lurking on this forum for awhile, reading many post. So I'm aware of the Financial requirments.
ok--just that sometimes we get new members who really have no idea. not sure about your question about the absent fathers permission. i know written consent is required from filipino dads. i wonder if @ChoiAndJohn can offer an opinion
Hi and welcome here! Regards the boy's citizenship, the fact that the child's genetic father is Japanese is not an issue, the child is Filipino that is a simple fact if the mother is Filipino, under Philippine law all children of a Filipino citizen are considered to be Filipino no matter which country is their country of birth. Up to the age of seven the mother has full parental responsibility and control under Philippine law, I am not sure of the rules after age seven. I assume that your partner was divorced by the Japanese guy in Japan by his choice? If not you have real problems as your partner will not be recognised as legally free to marry, it all depends on whether they were married, if so who petitioned for the divorce and where. A Filipino can be divorced from a foreigner if the foreigner is the petitioner, otherwise divorce is impossible. When does the child turn eight?
My fiance was never married to the Japanese guy, so I'm hoping that will make it somewhat easier. Her son will be eight in September.
Hello. Since the mother was never married to the father, sole parental responsibility vests with the mother under Philippine law. Specifically, the Family code of the Philippines (Executive order 209) states that: Art. 176. Illegitimate children shall use the surname and shall be under the parental authority of their mother, and shall be entitled to support in conformity with this Code. An illegitimate child may only be legitimated by the subsequent valid marriage of the parents (art 177-178). The code also clarifies that an illegitimate child (art 165) is defined as follows: Art. 165. Children conceived and born outside a valid marriage are illegitimate, unless otherwise provided in this Code. (n) There is no age limit to parental responsibility. The confusion by others about 'seven years old' comes from art 102.6 and art 213 of the same legislation which deals with dissolution of absolute community following marriage and which states that: .... Children below the age of seven years are deemed to have chosen the mother, unless the court has decided otherwise. In case there in no such majority, the court shall decide, taking into consideration the best interests of said children. (n) the act goes on to further clarify that: Art. 213. In case of separation of the parents, parental authority shall be exercised by the parent designated by the Court. The Court shall take into account all relevant considerations, especially the choice of the child over seven years of age, unless the parent chosen is unfit. (n) However this only would be relevant in applications where shared parental responsibility exists following a valid marriage between the parents. That shared parental responsibility would exist whether the marriage was annulled or not ; whether the married parents were separated or not ; and indeed, whether the parents were married at the time of the birth, or afterward. This is not the case in your situation since your fiancée was never married, and so there is no legal basis to consider the child's age under your circumstances. It is also worth mentioning that the use of the fathers surname is a choice, not an obligation (article 174 of the code) and neither that, nor his being recognised on the birth certificate has any bearing on the matter. It is helpful that the father has returned to Japan and does not contribute to upkeep or decision making and does not have contact. Written consent is not required from the father under these circumstances. Consequently, your wife to be will merely need to show that she has been exercising the sole parental responsibility to which she is entitled under the law this can be achieved by presenting items like school records and medical records that show the children living with her at her address and confirming that she was named as the parent. I brought 2 children from the Philippines both of whom were aged over 12, under similar circumstances. I was told that it is slightly easier and less risky to be married to the Filipina and apply for spouse visa so that's what we did but @Methersgate applied successfully for a fiance visa with a minor child too.
Just to say that @ChoiAndJohn's explanation is precise and accurate. Corina arrived with her seven year old son on a fiancée visa. Amusingly, she chose not to take my name on marriage but he wants to!
It is not that uncommon for a child to take the dad's name but the mother refrains, one of my daughter Gemma's friends took her dad's surname 'Ure' when she was very young back in the early 1990's.
In our case, Corina went to the trouble of locating her son's biological father, who was more than happy to consent to his son moving to Britain, on the sensible grounds that I could offer the boy a better future. No money changed hands, but Corina feels that Kieran should know his biological father, and so we keep in touch now. We didn't get any form of document and none was needed. Kieran is just bored by the whole subject
Hi @a8amg we're on the same situation. I think it's good that on my son's birth certificate, father was marked UNKNOWN and that my boy has my surname. Please keep me updated about the steps you do to bring the child with you in UK. Do you need to adopt him first?
Yeah my future step son does have his fathers surname, but his father is not a Philippine national. I hadn't planned on adopting him! We're not getting married till next year, I'm just making myself aware of any potential problem before they happen. I will keep you updated.
In our case Kieran has his biological father's name on his birth certificate his passport and his BRP. He just prefers to use mine. After all, I have been "daddy" since he was two and a half.
