Registering child as a British citizen

Question

I'm looking to register a UK-born EU citizen child under 10 as a British citizen. He is not a citizen by birth (neither parent was settled at the time). They are both settled now meaning he can be registered under section 1(3) in form MN1.

Neither parent has a permanent residence document issued even through they have been resident for more than 9 years. My understanding is although they acquired it automatically, at least one of them has to apply for the certificate before the MN1 application to prove the child is eligible for British citizenship. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

But, the application mentions:

Date father became settled in the UK (for example, granted indefinite leave to remain)

and

Date mother became settled in the UK (for example, granted indefinite leave to remain)

So, if only one of them applies for a certificate (although both are settled), do I only fill out one of those fields, for the parent that has the certificate with the date they became settled in the UK and leave the other one blank?

Also, I'm confused about this part:

State if and when the child was given indefinite leave to enter/remain in the UK. If the child’s parent is an EEA national, a Swiss national or a family member of an EEA or Swiss national you should ensure that they qualify for permanent residence.

If the child is born in the UK and ordinarily resident for all his life, yet again like his parents, doesn't have a permanent residence document, do I just leave this blank because the application is based on the place of birth and parent's settled status in the UK?

Thank you for taking the time.

Answer 1

My understanding is although they acquired it automatically, at least one of them has to apply for the certificate before the MN1 application to prove the child is eligible for British citizenship. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Technically not necessary. But it makes the entire application sail through smoothly and practically removes all possibility of a 'mistake'. I have seen atleast one case where an MN1 application failed, the parents got their PR documents, and the application was then later approved. It just removes the burden of proof from the case worker.

So, if only one of them applies for a certificate (although both are settled), do I only fill out one of those fields, for the parent that has the certificate with the date they became settled in the UK and leave the other one blank?

Correct. As long as one parent qualifies, that is all that is required.

If the child is born in the UK and ordinarily resident for all his life, yet again like his parents, doesn't have a permanent residence document, do I just leave this blank because the application is based on the place of birth and parent's settled status in the UK?

Since the child was born in the UK, this doesn't apply to them. Just leave this blank. However their advice is still relevant. BE SURE you actually qualify for PR, because there are plenty of scenarios where you might not have without actually realizing it. Get that sorted first.