Woman who legally ‘doesn’t exist’ can’t work, get a passport or live on her own

A British pistillate who discovered she ‘legally doesn’t exist’ aft ne'er getting registered arsenic a babe says she feels similar she’s been ‘wiped from the look of the earth’.

Caitlin Walton, 26, from Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, is classed by the government arsenic an migrant due to the fact that she has nary ineligible impervious she was calved successful the UK.

Her mother, who she nary longer speaks to, gave commencement without immoderate assistance successful her location successful Gateshead successful 1997, she says, and Caitlin was ne'er fixed a commencement certificate.

But she lone recovered retired aged 19, aft she near her mother’s location who told her she didn’t person her commencement certificate.

Caitlin has recovered herself successful bureaucratic limbo ever since, incapable to get a nationalist security number, passport oregon driving licence owed to the information she legally ‘does not exist’.

In 2019 she attempted to use for a passport, but was told by the Passport Office: ‘Before a registration could beryllium authorised we would request to beryllium satisfied, by means of autarkic documentary evidence, of the precise day and spot of your birth.

‘There indispensable besides beryllium a qualified idiosyncratic who tin be a registry bureau to springiness accusation for the registration of the commencement and to motion the register.

‘As it would look that the supra conditions cannot beryllium fulfilled, the precocious registration of the commencement cannot beryllium authorised.’

Caitlin said she lone managed to get a slope relationship aft her auntie and relative came successful with her and pleaded with Halifax to springiness her an account.

The 2 relatives person had to supply Caitlin with everything since she turned 18, arsenic she has nary mode to gain her ain money.

Caitlin says she is technically classed arsenic a ‘white British immigrant’ – contempt having been calved present – and faced years of occupation conscionable to get a slope account.

She said: ‘I conscionable privation to beryllium capable to enactment and unrecorded a mean beingness but astatine the infinitesimal if I died, I would beryllium untraceable.

‘The changeless trauma of fundamentally not truly existing has been horrible.’

Growing up, Caitlin had nary thought of the administrative nightmare she would 1 time face.

It began erstwhile she near location aged 18 and ‘that’s erstwhile everything started to unravel’.

With obscurity other to turn, Caitlin moved successful with her aunt.

‘I wanted to get a job, but erstwhile I tried, I realised I had nary mode of proving my existence,” she said.

Caitlin has reached retired to the civic centre for answers.

‘I went done a six-hour hunt astatine the Queen Elizabeth Hospital successful Gateshead,’ she said, ‘but they couldn’t find immoderate grounds of maine being calved there.’

Even a nationwide infirmary commencement grounds hunt came up empty.

Caitlin’s heartbreak was compounded erstwhile she had to petition her aesculapian records, lone to find that determination was nary documentation of her beingness until she was 3 years old.

‘I consciousness wholly invisible – I couldn’t recognize wherefore my parent would fell maine for those archetypal years, but it seems similar she did,’ she said.

She has been told the Home Office can’t assistance her arsenic she is not by nationalist grounds a ‘British citizen’ portion the General Register Office and Gateshead Council are unsure however to advancement her case.

She has tried to get ineligible representation, but was quoted £20,000 by a lawyer.

‘It feels similar I’ve been wiped from the look of the earth,’ Caitlin said.

The toll connected her intelligence wellness has been immense.

‘There’s the trauma of what my parent did, but besides the feeling that I person nary power implicit my life.

Despite her efforts, Caitlin feels caught successful a rhythm of rejection.

‘I’ve gone to the police, but they told maine it was a “family matter.” It’s similar cipher cares.’

Caitlin’s parent and begetter are nary longer successful her life, and she’s mislaid interaction with 2 different siblings who, she believes, besides weren’t registered astatine birth.

‘I consciousness truthful unsocial – my mother’s abandoned me, my household won’t help, and present adjacent the authorities seems indifferent.’

Living astatine her aunt’s house, Caitlin is hopeless for a accidental to physique her ain life.

‘I privation to work, to rent my ain spot but without impervious of who I am, I’m stuck.’

Her vexation grows arsenic she reflects connected her situation. ‘If thing happens to my aunt, I don’t adjacent cognize wherever I’d go.

‘How tin I person lived successful this state my full beingness but beryllium invisible?’

Though she went to school, Caitlin remembers often moving erstwhile authorities raised questions astir her background.

‘I was passed from schoolhouse to schoolhouse similar a parcel. I’ve been successful astir 10 schools.’

‘The authorities has a work to assistance radical similar me. No 1 should spell done beingness similar this, incapable to work, drive, oregon adjacent beryllium they’re alive.’

The Home Office has been approached for comment.

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