qatarperegrine | British citizenship: a comedy of errors

I've been trying for some time now to register as a British citizen. My forms are filled out; my birth certificate and my mother's are attached; I have the necessary letters of reference from British nationals.

What I don't have is a check for £400.

While the UK government accepts application fees via credit card, the local British embassy does not. Nor does it accept riyals, as the American embassy does. No, this has to be a check, and it has to be in pounds.

I tried to get one from my American bank, but they won't issue a cashier's check unless I go in in person, which, um, I can't.

So I deposited money into my recently opened Qatari bank account and then tried to get a check in pounds. They said, "There's no money in your account." I said, "But I just deposited $1000." They said, "Oh, it takes 45 days to deposit a check."

?!?

So, I waited 45 days. This morning, I went in and again asked for a check in pounds. The cashier's eyes widened and she turned to the manager for help. "In British pounds? I'm sorry, maam, there was just a change in policy. We don't do that anymore."