hey everyone. im new here and decided to join recently as everytime i browse for help online this site is the one who constantly pops up first in my search results.

brief intro about me. im a filipina who grew up in abu dhabi and is currently here at the moment in the philippines as i am expecting a baby soon, this january to be specific. the father of the baby is a british national, my ex boyfriend whom i met in abu dhabi as well and is also a childhood friend of mine there, and we have no intentions of getting married at the moment but we do want to be good and legal parents in all aspects to our soon to be baby. we are both absolutely clueless about what to do first when the baby comes out and we need for her to have legal papers asap as all my family resides in abu dhabi and my ex is currently living in the uk and is working and studying. we have limited time and above all that we are having a hard time who to ask and where to go.

now im gonna bullet form what i really wanna know and ask about regarding the baby's papers etc:

-the baby is gonna be born here so obviously she will have a philippine birth certificate. my ex is gonna be here during the birth of our baby and will sign his name as the father. what is the nationality of our baby then?

-which one do we apply for first? passport or the dual citizenship thing?

-and this dual citizenship thing (im sorry if i refer to it as a "thing" cause i am absolutely clueless about this), what does it really mean and can it be applied right away? and if so, is it possible to be applied for a kid with unmarried parents?

-last but not the least; i have seen forums here with parents talking about their kids having 2 passports. is this a must?

sorry to be asking too much here and im just a new member. im just so baffled about this whole thing. my parents were the ones who was dealing with my legal papers and stuff till now and now that i am having a baby of my own i can not even begin to explain how confused i am, but i gotta do it sooner or later. for you parents out there i know you share the same feelings as mine. i just want my daughter to be legal in all aspects so she can be like me and my ex who can travel freely and enjoy best of both her worlds, the uk and philippines, and have a proper identity. i plan on bringing her back to abu dhabi and raising her there because it is a familiar place to me and my ex as we both grew up there. and abu dhabi is a place that is all about legalities and all that.

thank you so much and hop to hear from you guys soon.

sincerely,
expatkid xx