“It’s surreal,” he said. “This is the only letter I have ever received in relation to me having to leave the country. It just came through my letterbox out of the blue.
“The last bit scared me the most – ‘leave the UK voluntarily’. I’m speechless – I don’t know what I can say. I received the letter from Immigration Enforcement saying they were going to revoke my driving licence and I should leave the UK voluntarily or face a £5,000 fine.
“I’m confused and worried that I’ll have to leave my entire family behind and move to a country that I don’t know. I don’t understand it because I was born in the UK. I did my GCSEs here, I’ve worked for six years, I pay tax and national insurance. Me and my girlfriend rented a house, I vote, I use the NHS and opened a bank account without any problems, ever.”
He said he applied for a passport last year to go on holiday and his application was declined, but he then successfully applied for and holds an Australian passport. The Passport Office advised him that he would be able to travel and safely return to the UK after his holiday and since then, he said, he had had no indication of any problems.
“I applied for an Australian passport and was accepted because my mum was born there, despite both her parents being British, and therefore she has dual citizenship,” he said.
“I went to apply for right of abode myself after receiving this letter and was told by the Home Office that I need to apply for British citizenship first before I can do that.
“The laws on this have apparently changed in 2006 and they have changed backwards and forwards throughout the years. I just don’t understand how they’ve just got through to me now. I even have a birth certificate with my dad’s signature on it – he’s British.
“If I cannot get dual citizenship or right of abode, or if this isn’t a mistake, I don’t know what I’ll do.”
Ridge said he was particularly angry that his life as a law-abiding citizen in the country in which he was born had been thrown into doubt. “It’s terrifying. My parents keep telling me everything will be fine but I’m really scared.
“My girlfriend, Jodie, isn’t happy. Everyone is in shock and wondering how this can possibly happen. I’ve lived by the book – never had a criminal record.
“I have brothers and sisters. They have dual citizenship because my mum married their dad but my youngest sister, who is five, is also technically in the same position as me as my mum didn’t marry her dad.
“The letter even says they will stop me accessing the NHS or banks. I’ve always been to the doctors with no problems and me and my girlfriend have a joint bank account.”
The Home Office has not yet responded to a request for comment.