UK Home Office demands DNA proof of paternity from non-citizen mothers

In 2018, British immigration officers demanded that the mothers of two children provide DNA samples in order to provide proof of paternity. The children both had British fathers and had previously been issued British passports, but their mothers were not UK citizens. In one case, the father had remarried and was refusing to supply a sample; in the other, a year's gap between birth and registration apparently led to the request, even though the child concerned was nine years old. Home Office guidelines say that DNA tests should not be compulsory. However, demands for these tests is rising as part of the "hostile environment" for immigrants. In these cases, the tests appear to be part of taking a harder line where a mother's right to reside in the UK depends on their child's citizenship.

https://www.ft.com/content/c98dbf6c-8503-11e8-96dd-fa565ec55929

Writer: Financial Times
Publication: Financial Times