Some do it to explore their ancestral heritage or an unknown part of their identity. Others hope to find parents, siblings and new family members.
It is thought that more than 40 million people worldwide have tested their DNA ancestry via companies such as Ancestry, 23andMe and MyHeritage since the first genetic genealogy test was offered to the public in 2000.
Now people are using their test results in a new way — to apply for citizenship in other countries, DNA experts say.
Prof Turi King, director of the Milner Center for Evolution at Bath University, said: “The more people take tests and the more people find out what their ancestry is and who their biological parents are, the more they can use that evidence to claim citizenship. of a specific country.”
King, who also presents the BBC programme DNA family secrets, think ancestry DNA testing will become an easy and more widespread way for some Brits to gain dual citizenship in the future. “It will only grow,” she said.
She said Irish passports, with membership of the EU, were likely to be among the most sought after. For decades, unwed Irish mothers were forced to give up their children for adoption in Britain.
A spokesman for Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed that prospective Irish citizens have already started using DNA evidence to help prove they are entitled to Irish citizenship through a parent, and that this evidence can be submitted in passport applications.
Richard Sayers, who appeared on DNA family secrets in 2022, is one of the first Britons to use evidence from a DNA ancestry database to gain EU citizenship. He traced his half-brother through a DNA test, which revealed the identity of his father – an Irishman born in Galway.
“I went on the show because I had no idea who my dad was or where he was from: my mum, who’s passed away, just made up stories,” says Sayers, who was born and raised in Liverpool and previously thought he was an only child. “I just wanted some answers.”
After the show aired, using his DNA evidence and with his father’s help, he successfully applied to the British courts for a formal declaration of his true parentage to correct his 54-year-old birth certificate last year. This then enabled him to successfully apply for an Irish passport.
“I always had a dream to live abroad when I was older,” says Sayers, a business analyst who voted Remain in 2016. Within weeks of his Irish passport arriving, he and his wife decided to go on the “adventure of a lifetime”. ”: they sold their home in Formby, Merseyside, and moved to La Manga in Spain in January. “We absolutely love it here.”
Last year, Sarah Claxton (44) tracked down her American father through DNA tests that linked her to one of his grandchildren. “My mom just had a nickname for my dad,” she said. “When she found out she was pregnant with me, he already went back to America.”
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Claxton has Native American ancestry through her father and plans to correct her birth certificate with the help of both her parents so she can apply for American citizenship and get to know her father and the rest of her American family better. “I want to get it and maybe live there,” she said.
If the practice of submitting DNA evidence becomes more common, countries may come up with new, more streamlined protocols, King said.
Louisa Ghevaert, a solicitor specializing in UK fertility and family law, said she receives between three and five inquiries a month from people wanting legal advice on how to apply to rectify an incomplete or inaccurate birth certificate.
Most have traced their biological parents – usually their fathers – through a DNA ancestry test or are considering doing so. “We’re only going to see more of these applications because more people are likely to do these tests,” she said.
She said there are three main reasons why her clients want to put the names of their biological parents on their birth certificates. “I see a split between people with inheritance claims, people with personal identity and heritage as strong drivers, and people who want to try to get citizenship.
“It’s a mixed bag, as one would expect – but I think Brexit brought the benefits of EU citizenship into focus for many people.”
