British-born man who has never left UK faces deportation

[róisín_dubh]

"A 28-year-old British-born man who has never left the country has spoken of his devastation after being told he will be deported to Portugal, from where his parents arrived more than 30 years ago, under a post-Brexit policy towards EU nationals convicted of crimes.

Dmitry Lima was born in Lambeth, in south London, does not speak Portuguese and has never travelled abroad but he was given a deportation order by the Home Office after serving a prison sentence for drugs offences and for carrying a Taser.

Lima, who had no previous convictions, is appealing against the deportation decision on the grounds that he is British and had not previously applied for a UK passport as he could not afford to pay the fees. “I’m British and I have never left the country – I just don’t understand,” he said."

more at https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/dec/27/british-born-man-who-has-never-left-uk-faces-deportation

[Celerity]

1. The UK (like most of the world outside of the Western Hemisphere), does not have unrestricted jus soli

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jus_soli

[róisín_dubh]

2. It's pretty crazy, I had no idea there were so many places...

that don't have jus solis. Being from the US, I pretty much assumed we got the idea from Europe, but clearly not!

I've been dealing with the Home Office and the immigration policies here are so friggin' draconian. I cannot wait to have my 5 year visa in my hand so that I don't have to deal with them for awhile.

[WestMichRad]

3. UK has restricted jus solis

Jus solis = birthright citizenship

This from Wikipedia:
All persons born in the British Islands before 1 January 1983 were automatically granted citizenship by birth regardless of the nationalities of their parents. Individuals born in those territories since that date only receive citizenship at birth if at least one of their parents is a British citizen or holds settled status. Foreign nationals may naturalise as British citizens after meeting a minimum residence requirement (usually five years) and acquiring settled status.

Mr. Lima was born after that cutoff date and neither parent was a British citizen, so he’s facing probable deportation. Should have become a naturalized citizen, too late now. Bummer for him.