British nationality law facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

The main law about who is a British national is the British Nationality Act 1981. This law started on 1 January 1983. It applies to the British Islands (which means the UK itself and places like the Isle of Man and Channel Isles), and the 14 British Overseas Territories.

The UK has six different types of British nationality. Each type gives people different rights and duties. This is because the UK used to be a big empire. The most common type is British citizenship, which is for people connected to the British Islands. People connected to an overseas territory are called British Overseas Territories citizens (BOTCs). Since 2002, almost all BOTCs (except those from Akrotiri and Dhekelia) are also British citizens.

Some people connected to former British colonies might have older types of British nationality. These usually don't give them an automatic right to live in the UK and can't usually be gained anymore. These older types are British Overseas citizens, British subjects, British National (Overseas) (BN(O)), and British protected persons.

Before 1 January 1983, if you were born in the British Islands, you automatically became a British citizen, no matter where your parents were from. After that date, you only get citizenship at birth if at least one parent is a British citizen or has permanent permission to live in the UK. People from other countries can become British citizens after living in the UK for a certain time (usually five years) and getting permanent permission to stay.

The United Kingdom used to be part of the European Union (EU). British citizens had full EU citizenship. This meant they could automatically live and work in any EU or EFTA country. They could also vote in EU elections. Even though the UK left the EU in 2020 (this was called Brexit), British citizens can still live and work in the Republic of Ireland because of a special agreement called the Common Travel Area.

What do "Citizenship" and "Nationality" Mean?

The words "citizenship" and "nationality" can be a bit confusing in English.

Nationality usually means you legally belong to a country. It's often used in international agreements.
Citizenship usually means the specific rights and duties you have in that country.

In many countries, these two words are clearly different. But in English-speaking countries, it's not always so clear. In the past, people connected to Britain were called British subjects, not citizens or nationals. British citizenship was only created in 1981. This law set up six types of British nationality, each with different rights, depending on a person's link to the UK, its overseas territories, or former colonies. British citizens have their status because they have a close link to the British Islands, usually by birth, adoption, or becoming a citizen there.

Different Types of British Nationality

There are six main types of British nationality. If you are any of these, you are a British national:

British citizen
British Overseas Territories citizen (BOTC)
British Overseas citizen (BOC)
British National (Overseas) (BN(O))
British subject
British protected person

Only British citizenship gives you an automatic right to live in the UK. British Overseas Territories are places outside the British Islands that the UK still controls. Since 2002, almost all BOTCs are also British citizens, except for those from Akrotiri and Dhekelia.

The other four types are older kinds of nationality that you usually can't get anymore:

BOCs are people linked to former British colonies who don't have close ties to the UK or its overseas territories.
BN(O)s are people from Hong Kong who chose this status before Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997. You can't get this status now.
British subjects have their status because of a link to former British India or what is now the Republic of Ireland before 1949.
British protected persons come from areas the British Empire controlled but didn't officially make part of the UK. This includes places like protectorates or princely states.

History of British Nationality

From Loyalty to the King to Modern Laws

Long ago, people in England were loyal to their local lords, who were loyal to the King or Queen. This idea of loyalty to the monarch slowly became the idea of being a "subject" of the Crown. In 1608, a court case decided that anyone born in places ruled by the Crown was automatically a subject. After 1707, English and Scottish subjects became British subjects. Later, Ireland joined to form the United Kingdom in 1801. Until 1870, you couldn't choose to stop being a British subject; it was for life.

Before 1708, foreigners could only become subjects through special laws passed by Parliament. Later, in 1844, a standard way for people to become subjects was created through the Home Office.

For a long time, it wasn't clear if UK nationality rules applied everywhere in the British Empire. Each colony had its own rules for people to become subjects. In 1847, Parliament made it clear: if you became a subject in the UK, it was valid everywhere in the Empire. If you became a subject in a colony, it was only valid in that colony. However, if you traveled outside the Empire, you were still protected by the UK.

Some areas under British control, like protectorates, were not officially part of the UK. People born in these areas didn't automatically become British subjects. Instead, most were called British protected persons. They were treated like foreigners in the UK but could get British passports and had the same protection as British subjects when traveling abroad.

A Common Nationality for the Empire

In 1914, the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914 made British subject status the same across the whole Empire. This law also said that if a British woman married a foreign man, she would automatically lose her British nationality.

After World War I, countries like Canada and Australia wanted more control over their own affairs. In 1926, Britain and these countries agreed they were equal. By 1931, these countries, called Dominions, had full power to make their own laws. Women's rights groups pushed for changes to nationality laws so that a woman's nationality wasn't tied to her husband's. Some Dominions started changing their laws to allow women to keep their British nationality even if they married a foreigner.

Ireland's Independence

Ireland's desire for self-rule led to the Irish War of Independence. In 1922, Southern Ireland became the Irish Free State, while Northern Ireland stayed part of the UK. For a short time, Northern Ireland was technically part of the Irish Free State, meaning people there automatically became Irish citizens.

The Irish Free State was a Dominion, but its citizens were still considered British subjects when outside Ireland. When Ireland started issuing its own Irish passports in 1923, the British government wanted them to say "British subject." They argued for years, but eventually, Irish passports said "one of His Majesty's subjects of the Irish Free State." Even with these disagreements, people could still move freely between Ireland and the UK as part of the Common Travel Area.

Changes with the Empire and Commonwealth

As Dominions created their own citizenships, the idea of a single imperial nationality changed. In 1946, Canada created its own citizenship, breaking the old system. With India and Pakistan becoming independent in 1947, new nationality laws were needed.

The British Nationality Act 1948 changed "British subject" to mean any citizen of the UK, its colonies, or other Commonwealth countries. The term Commonwealth citizen was also created, meaning the same thing. This new term was important because some newly independent countries wanted to be republics, not have the King as their head of state. This change meant that loyalty to the Crown was no longer needed to be a British subject.

So, a person born in Australia would be both an Australian citizen and a British subject. People connected to the UK or a remaining colony became Citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies (CUKC). This was the main type of British nationality then. There was also a group called "British subjects without citizenship" for people who didn't fit into other categories.

Ireland Leaves the Commonwealth

Ireland left the Commonwealth in 1948 when it became a republic. Britain recognized this in 1949. Even though Irish citizens were no longer called British subjects in British law, they are still treated as if they are not foreigners in the UK. They can still vote and stand for Parliament in the UK.

Limiting Free Movement

At first, all British subjects could move freely between the UK and Ireland. But after World War II, many people from colonies moved to the UK. In 1962, the UK introduced immigration controls for subjects from outside the British Islands. Later, in 1971, rules were relaxed for people whose parents or grandparents were born in the UK, which mostly helped white Commonwealth citizens. Ireland also limited free movement to people born in Great Britain or Ireland.

In other Commonwealth countries, British subjects didn't automatically have the right to settle. Countries like Australia and Canada had rules against non-white migrants since the late 1800s. After 1949, British subjects from other places still had some special rights in these countries, like being able to vote or get welfare benefits. Today, all Commonwealth citizens can still vote and stand for public office in the UK.

New Nationality Types After the Empire

By the 1970s and 1980s, most British colonies were independent. The UK updated its nationality law with the British Nationality Act 1981 to match its smaller size. In 1983, CUKCs were divided into new groups:

CUKCs who had the right to live in the UK became British citizens.
CUKCs connected to a remaining colony became British Dependent Territories citizens (now British Overseas Territories citizens).
Other CUKCs who were no longer linked to a British territory became British Overseas citizens.
The term "British subject" was now only used for people linked to former British India or Ireland before 1949.

Former Membership in the European Union

In 1973, the UK joined the European Communities (EC), which later became the European Union (EU). British citizens could work in other EC/EU countries because of "freedom of movement." In 1992, European Union citizenship was created, giving all EU citizens the right to move freely. This was expanded in 1994 to include countries in the European Economic Area.

Not all British nationals were EU citizens. Only British citizens, BOTCs from Gibraltar, and British subjects with the right to live in the UK were considered UK nationals for EU law. The UK left the EU on 31 January 2020, so British nationals are no longer EU citizens. However, British citizens can still move freely in Ireland because of the Common Travel Area.

While the UK was in the EU, citizens from Cyprus and Malta had special rights in the UK. They could settle there and vote because they were both Commonwealth and EU citizens.

How to Get and Lose British Nationality

The British Islands (the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man and the Channel Isles)

British Citizenship

Before 1983, anyone born in the British Islands (the UK and Crown Dependencies) automatically became a British citizen. After 1983, you only get citizenship at birth if one parent is a British citizen or has permanent permission to live in the UK. Children born outside the UK can be British citizens by descent if a parent is a citizen (not by descent). Adopted children are treated as if they were born to their adoptive parents. Children born abroad to members of the British Armed Forces or British citizens working for the government are treated as if they were born in the UK.

Children born in the UK to an Irish citizen living there are always British citizens at birth. Since 1983, a child's status depends on whether their parents were British citizens or had permanent permission to live in the UK when the child was born. Irish citizens living in the UK are considered to have permanent permission to live there as soon as they arrive.

Rules for citizens from the European Union (EU), European Economic Area (EEA), and Switzerland have changed over time. These changes affect the citizenship of their children born in the UK. Foreigners can become British citizens after living in the UK for more than five years and having permanent permission to stay for at least one year. If you are married to a British citizen, this time is reduced to three years. You also need to show you can speak English, Welsh, or Scottish Gaelic and pass a "Life in the United Kingdom" test.

British Overseas Territories Citizenship

If you are born in a British Overseas Territory, you automatically become a BOTC if at least one parent is a BOTC or has "belonger status" (meaning they have a strong connection to that territory). If you are born in an overseas territory to British citizen parents who don't have belonger status there, you are a British citizen at birth, but not a BOTC.

Children born outside the territories can be BOTCs by descent if one parent is a BOTC (not by descent). Foreigners and other British nationals can become BOTCs after living in a territory for more than five years and having belonger status or permanent residency for over a year. If you are married to a BOTC, this time is reduced to three years. The governor of the territory usually decides these applications, but the Home Secretary in the UK can also grant BOTC status. Since 2004, BOTC applicants aged 18 or older must take an oath of loyalty to the King and the territory.

All British Overseas Territories citizens (except those only linked to Akrotiri and Dhekelia) became British citizens on 21 May 2002. Children born in these territories to parents who are both BOTCs and British citizens are both BOTCs and British citizens from birth. Becoming a British citizen does not affect your BOTC status; you can be both at the same time.

Other Nationality Types

It's generally not possible to get the older types of British nationality anymore. British Overseas citizenship, British subjecthood, and British protected person status are usually only passed down if a child would otherwise have no nationality at all. People with these older types of nationality can become British citizens by registering, rather than naturalising, after living in the UK for more than five years and having permanent permission to stay for over a year.

Giving Up and Getting Back Nationality

You can give up any type of British nationality by telling the Home Secretary, as long as you have or plan to get another nationality. If you gave up your British nationality to get another one, you can usually apply to get it back once. If you gave it up for another reason, or want to get it back more than once, the Home Secretary decides.

Losing British Nationality Automatically

Some older types of British nationality (British subjects not linked to Ireland, and British protected persons) are lost if you get any other nationality.

This rule does not apply to British citizens.
British Overseas Territories citizens (BOTCs) do not lose their BOTC status if they get another nationality.
British Overseas citizens (BOCs) do not lose their BOC status if they get another nationality.

Taking Away British Nationality

The British government can take away someone's British nationality. This power is used if someone's actions are very harmful to the UK or an Overseas Territory. This can happen if the person has another nationality, or if they got their British nationality by lying or hiding important facts. There is a right to appeal this decision. The government usually tries not to make someone stateless (have no nationality at all) unless they got their nationality through fraud.

This power has been used more often in recent years, especially for people who have acted against the UK's interests. The government usually sends a notice to the person's home before taking action. Appeals are heard by a special commission. The Home Secretary has said this power is for serious cases, like those who commit very serious crimes.

British Citizenship Ceremonies

A British citizenship ceremony in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, 2005.

Since 1 January 2004, if you apply to become a British citizen and are 18 or older, you must attend a citizenship ceremony. At the ceremony, you will make a promise or take an oath of loyalty to the King and make a pledge to the UK.

Citizenship ceremonies are usually organized by:

Local councils in England, Scotland, and Wales
The Northern Ireland Office
The governments of the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey
The Governors of British Overseas Territories
British offices outside the UK and territories

People from the Republic of Ireland born before 1949 who are reclaiming British subject status do not need to attend a ceremony. But if they later apply for British citizenship, they will need to attend one.

Before 2004, the oath was taken privately, and some people (like those who were already British nationals or citizens of countries with the King as Head of State like Australia) were exempt.