A WOMAN who has lived in the North West all her life cannot get married or leave the country — and must now take a UK citizenship test because of her Danish roots.

Reyna Khosla was born in Bolton but received a Danish passport because her mother was born in Copenhagen and her father was not registered on her birth certificate.

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The 24-year-old is now effectively stateless, and is not recognised as a Danish or British resident because her passport has run out.

A change in Danish law means that unless Ms Khosla has lived in the country recently — or if she does not speak Danish — her passport cannot be renewed after her 22nd birthday.

Since 2013 she has been unable to leave the country, and missed her sister's wedding in Tuscany because of the situation.

She is also unable to marry her boyfriend Ian Clegg — and has had difficulty when applying for jobs with employers asking for documentation.

Ms Khosla, who is self employed and runs a Reiki business, says she has been left dumbfounded by the situation.

She said: "I feel like I am being pushed into a corner. I have got my own business, I pay National Insurance, but I am not classed as British despite living all my life here."

Her parents did not marry and separated when she was aged eight. Her mother died in 2009.

Ms Khosla says completing the citizenship test and applying for a passport could cost her up to £1,000.

She said: "I have got a mortgage and am trying to get my business off the ground. But it is not about the money, it is the principle. I have lived here since I was born but cannot get a passport."

Since October 2013, the Government has stated that all adults applying for British citizenship have to pass a new 'life in the UK' test.

The 2014 Immigration Act also allows a new route for citizenship for children born before 2006 to a British father — but evidence of paternity is required.

A Home Office spokesman said: “Birth in the UK does not necessarily mean that an individual is a British citizen.

"Citizenship is automatic only for people whose parents are British or settled in the UK at the time of the birth.

“There are a number of routes by which someone who was born in the UK may qualify for British citizenship, including naturalisation.”

Ms Khosla, has undergone a successful DNA test with her father, and plans to process her application in the future.