"Settled" outlined in section 50 of the British Nationality Act 1981. In general, these provisions withdrew CUKC status from anyone who became a citizen of the newly independent country, unless the person had a connection with the UK or a remaining colony (e.g. You can change your cookie settings at any time. Don’t worry we won’t send you spam or share your email address with anyone. For those married to or in a civil partnership with a British citizen, the applicant must: For those not married to or in a civil partnership with a British citizen, the requirements are:[39][40], Those applying for British citizenship in the Channel Islands and Isle of Man (where the application is mainly based on residence in the Crown Dependencies rather than the UK) do not have to sit the Life in the UK Test. This is relevant in terms of eligibility to apply for naturalisation or obtaining British citizenship for UK born children (born on or after 2 October 2000). From 1 January 2004, all new applicants for British citizenship by naturalisation or registration aged 18 or over if their application is successful must attend a citizenship ceremony and either make an affirmation or take an oath of allegiance to the monarch, and make a pledge to the UK. Citizens of the Crown dependencies are officially classed as British citizens, but as with citizens of the Home Nations, the accuracy of the appellation regarding each person should be verified. Those who choose both will have dual citizenship.[6]. Since 2009, BN(O)s without other nationalities or citizenship are able to register as British citizens under the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 as well. (See History of British nationality law. None of this affects a person's national status under UK law. The act doesn't detail the new immigration criteria for those people.
In 2017, British citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 173 countries and territories, ranking the British passport 4th in terms of travel freedom (tied with the Austrian, Belgian, Dutch, French, Luxembourgish, Norwegian and Singaporean passports) according to the Henley visa restrictions index. British Overseas citizens (BOCs) do not lose their BOC status upon acquisition of another citizenship, but any entitlement to registration as a British citizen on the grounds of having no other nationality no longer applies after acquiring another citizenship. The Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations[48] provided that with only a few exceptions, citizens of EU and European Economic Area states were not generally considered "settled" in the UK unless they applied for and obtained permanent residency. Look at what others have done in comparable articles. This provision was modified by the Immigration Act 2014 so as not to require that a third country would actually grant nationality to a person; British nationality can be revoked if "the Secretary of State has reasonable grounds for believing that the person is able, under the law of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom, to become a national of such a country or territory. Since 2010, there is no longer an application fee (of £540). Between 1949 and 1982, birth in the UK or a Crown Colony was sufficient in itself to confer the status of Citizen of United Kingdom and Colonies (CUKC), regardless of the parents' status, although only CUKCs with a connection to the UK (i.e.
Fees for naturalisation (including Citizenship ceremony fee) have been rising steadily faster than inflation; The immigration status for citizens of European Economic Area states and Switzerland has changed since 1983. [49], Because of section 2(1) of the Ireland Act 1949 (which states that the Republic of Ireland would not be treated as a foreign country for the purposes of British law), Irish citizens are exempt from these restrictions and are normally treated as "settled" in the UK immediately upon taking up residence. British nationality law details the conditions in which a person holds a type of British nationality. However the withdrawal agreement maintains some of those rights for some of the United Kingdom nationals. Previously such persons would have not had the right of abode in any country, and would have thus been de facto stateless. Independence acts, passed when the remaining colonies were granted independence, contained nationality provisions. The word "national" is often applied to institutions within the nations of England, Scotland and Wales, some of these are 'official' institutions, others are non-government related organisations but with accepted national status. There are provisions for the resumption of British citizenship or British overseas territories citizenship renounced for the purpose of gaining or retaining another citizenship. Editors have strongly opposing ideas on the relative importance of the appellations "British", "English", "Northern Irish", "Scottish" and "Welsh". They are not generally transmissible by descent, nor are they open to acquisition by registration, except for certain instances to prevent statelessness.
British Overseas citizenship is generally held by persons connected with former British colonies and who did not lose their British Nationality upon the independence of those colonies.
A child born in the United Kingdom who is and has always been stateless may also qualify on the basis of a period of 5 years' residence, rather than 10, using Form S3. Some examples of such institutions are: England English National Ballet, English National Opera, National Coal Mining Museum for England, Scotland British Citizenship can be acquired in the following ways: For nationality purposes, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are generally treated as if they were part of the UK. Several laws also accorded a right of registration to children born of unmarried British citizen fathers.
[20][21] However, the change was without great publicity and was largely unnoticed, and in 2002, Parliament formalized the approach in law, by enacting amendments to the British Nationality Act 1981 allowing children who had been covered by the 1979 procedural change (because they were under 18 years old at that time) to register themselves at any point later in life.
[50] In March 2020, the British government published a draft law that protects Irish citizens’ right to work and live in the UK following Brexit. Look for existing consensus on the discussion page, and in any archives that may be present. Eligible descendants from the Electress Sophia of Hanover may hold British Overseas citizenship based on their status as British subjects before 1949. There are six different classes of British nationality, each with varying degrees of civil and political rights, due to the United Kingdom's historical status as a colonial empire. We are four nations in a single country. It is also not possible for any person to acquire British National (Overseas) status as the registration period for such status had permanently ended on 31 December 1997. Where applicants in such cases confirm that they still wish to receive British citizenship, the decision is reconsidered on request. After the withdrawal of BDTC status from all BDTCs by virtue of a connection with Hong Kong on 30 June 1997, most of them are now either British Nationals (Overseas) and/or British citizens (with or without nationality of China), or Chinese nationals only. To help us improve GOV.UK, we’d like to know more about your visit today.