Six months old, Italian citizens born in England to very Italian mothers and fathers but due to a strange twist of fate they cannot come to Italy because they won’t issue a passport in the UK. In fact, the two Roman twins Noah Axel and Sirine Agnese are prisoners.
The story that mother Alessia tells on Affaritaliani.it would make even the most diligent Bourbon official shudder, except that their “bureaucratic prison” is in Macclesfield, a small village in highly civilized England, a few kilometers from Manchester. And being born in the UK post-Brexit may mean the impossibility of crossing national borders.
The Italian red tape is added to the English red tape
The story of the twins Noah Axel and Sirine Agnese born last August to Italian (or rather, Roman) parents who moved to England 5 years ago deserves patience and maximum attention, because when the English authorities make a mess it adds chaos to the Italian who completes the work.
Mother Alessia says: “The first step, once their birth was registered, was to request an English passport for the two children; it was initially granted to Sirine but refused to Noah; in disbelief, we called the passport office to ask for explanations, since, having the same family history, we didn’t understand the reason for that rejection. It was explained to us by telephone that the passport granted to Sirine had actually been accepted by mistake, and that several documents were missing from the appeal; essentially that passport had to be considered null and void.”
What to do? Nothing, because the English surpass themselves
Mrs. Alessia again: “To our surprise, Sirine’s passport was sent to our home but, not being sure of its validity, we called again. This time they told us that it had been a “distraction” error in reading the documents and, given the issue of this passport, nothing could now be done to cancel it so we could keep it and even use it if we wanted. Total confusion. I decided to call the immigration office again asking what documents were needed to obtain the other passport and, once we knew what the missing piece was, we followed the instructions and presented the requested document, the one that should have allowed the issuance of the passport for Noah. Incidentally, it was explained to us that there was no refund. We never received a response.”
SOS Italian Consulate
Is it enough to turn to the Italian Consulate to resolve the story of messy bureaucracy? Not by chance, because it’s like going from the frying pan to the grill. And the story is tinged with madness: “Being Italian citizens, we also inquired about obtaining our country’s passport through the consulate: we naively thought it would be easier. To obtain passports for our children, they told us that it was necessary to register with the so-called AIRE (the registry for Italians abroad). I got it 5 years ago but my partner Martino didn’t have it, so he signed up in September. Well, that request of his would never have been examined by the consulate; after the damage, the insult: the application would have been considered expired on December 27th, without a reason, without notice and obviously without reimbursement. We had to start over.”
The Italian Consulate in Manchester observes opening hours similar to an ASL
For two parents who never give up on England, the obstacle course continues on Italian soil in Manchester, where the dream of a passport for the twins is shattered on stamped papers. Mother Alessia’s painstaking reconstruction continues thus: “Back in September, I sent all the documentation to the consulate in London, believing it was the only consular office still open in the United Kingdom, given that the one in Manchester was still closed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. . Once we realized the mistake (discovered through internet research) we immediately went to the consulate in Manchester, which is half an hour by train from Macclesfield. I would like to point out that the only way to ask the consulate for information is to do so in person as the telephone lines are only open for 2 hours a week throughout the UK. Once we arrived at the office, we went in to ask for information; the employee forced us to return to the street, even though he had seen that with us there were two newborns not even two months old and in a decidedly unpleasant climate. The same person came out of the consulate and replied to our questions that the Manchester and London consulates were not “communicating”, that they would send us back all the documentation but withhold the money (!); furthermore he told us that the wait for a passport for a minor was about 6 months”.
If the employees are asleep, stamps and requests are paid twice
The tragicomic story never ends, because the “mums abroad chat” comes into play which enriches the story with details: “While waiting, we spoke with other Italians asking for advice, timing and experiences regarding passports through the consulate. Many people complained about the fact that after 3 months the photos sent to the consulate expired, along with the bills paid at the post office (of over £100 per person) – continues the lady – practically the consulate, after months without giving any news or confirmation upon receiving the documents, he contacted the families again and requested a second payment and more photos, considering the previous request expired. In essence, the requests expired because they were not evaluated: the fault of a bureaucracy that was too slow, but in order to have these passports after 6 months, the families would still have to pay again, and again. We sent the requested documents back to London, but in the meantime yet another negative piece of news arrived: the English passport could no longer be requested, due to new legislation”.
“Come to Italy, we’ll take care of it”
The last resort for the English family is to pick up the phone and go directly to the Rome Police Station, Passport Office, where after many clouds the diligent officials come up with the solution: The situation has become paradoxical, incredible, certainly unacceptable. We took the Italian route again: we were advised to contact a police station in Rome directly and by telephone we were told what we should do. This was yet another dead end: we were told that it was feasible, that is, that two passports could be issued for the twins, as long as the two children were present. In short, we should reach Italy together with Noah and Sirine, but they can’t leave England! This whole absurd affair prevented us from being able to spend the holidays in Italy, with our family members. Now my partner Martino has sent the request to AIRE again, but we have been told that in the best case scenario it will be accepted not before 6 months”.
The surrender and the appeal
Mrs. Alessia’s letter ends with a dramatic appeal: “We are prisoners in England and cannot return to our home. Help”.
This article was sent to the deputy ministers and undersecretaries: Edmondo Cirielli, Giorgio Sili and Maria Tripodi and to the minister Antonio Tajani and to the Farnesina Crisis Unit at the email address [email protected]
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