Is Akaay, son of Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma, a British citizen by birth? Here are the rules

Star Indian batter Virat Kohli and Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma announced the birth of their second child, Akaay, via Instagram on February 20. The celebrity couple has kept their location under wraps for quite some time, with fans anticipating that they jetted off to London, last month, and Akaay was born there .

Going by the speculations about their UK visit, many wonder if the new-born will automatically acquire British citizenship for his birthplace being London. There are some fans, who believe Akaay will be granted British citizenship as his father, Kohli, owns a residential property in the UK capital. Neither of these facts, however, are enough for a child to earn citizenship in the UK.

As per the laws governing citizenship in the country, not every child born in the UK is eligible to claim citizenship. This can happen when one of its parents is a UK citizen or has been settled in the country for a prolonged period.

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A child can automatically claim citizenship only if he is born to one or both British parents. This rule also applies to children who are born outside of the UK but their parents are citizens of the country.

Akaay might not be eligible for UK citizenship by birth but being born in London will surely accelerate the acquisition process for him. To make it happen, he will need to stay in England until the age of 10 and after that, he will be entitled for registration as a British citizen.

Kohli and Anushka shared the news of Akaay’s birth through a joyous note on Instagram. They wrote, “With abundant happiness and our hearts full of love, we are pleased to inform everyone that on 15th February, we welcomed our baby boy Akaay & Vamika’s little brother into this world. We seek your blessings and good wishes in this beautiful time in our lives.”

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The power couple tied the knot in 2017 and welcomed their first child, Vamika, in January 2021.

As far as his career is concerned, Kohli has been out of the ongoing Test series against England. He first withdrew his name from the first two Tests due to personal reasons but later decided to skip the entire five-match series. Kohli is expected to return in the next edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), beginning in March.