Nationality and Borders Bill (HL Bill 82)

Part 1 Nationality

British overseas territories citizenship

1 Historical inability of mothers to transmit citizenship

(1)5Part 2 of the British Nationality Act 1981 (British overseas territories
citizenship) is amended as follows.

(2)After section 17, insert—

“17A Registration: remedying inability of mothers to transmit citizenship

(1)On an application for registration under this section, a person (“P”) is
10entitled to be registered as a British overseas territories citizen if the
following three conditions are met.

(2)The first condition is that—

(a)P would have become a citizen of the United Kingdom and
Colonies under any of the following provisions of the British
15Nationality Act 1948—

(i)section 5 (person born on or after 1 January 1949:
citizenship by descent);

(ii)section 12(2) (person born before 1 January 1949:
citizenship by descent);

(iii)section 12(3) (person born before 1 January 1949 in
British protectorate etc);

(iv)section 12(4) (person born before January 1949 not
becoming citizen of other country);

(v)5section 12(5) (woman married before 1 January 1949 to a
man who became or would have become a citizen of the
United Kingdom and Colonies);

(vi)paragraph 3 of Schedule 3 (person born on or after 1
January 1949 to a British subject without citizenship);

10had P’s parents been treated equally, by that Act or by any
relevant previous provision, for the purposes of determining
P’s nationality status; or

(b)P would have been a citizen of the United Kingdom and
Colonies immediately before commencement had P’s parents
15been treated equally, for the purposes of determining P’s
nationality status, by any independence legislation that caused
P to lose that citizenship.

(3)In subsection (2)—

• “relevant previous provision” means a provision of the law that
  20was in force at some time before 1 January 1949 which provided
  for a nationality status to be transmitted from a parent to a child
  without the need for an application to be made for the child to
  be registered as a person with that nationality status;

• “independence legislation” means an Act of Parliament or any
  25subordinate legislation (within the meaning of the
  Interpretation Act 1978) forming part of the law in the United
  Kingdom (whenever passed or made, and whether or not still in
  force)—

  (a)

  providing for a country or territory to become
  30independent from the United Kingdom, or

  (b)

  dealing with nationality, or any other ancillary matters,
  in connection with a country or territory becoming
  independent from the United Kingdom.

(4)In determining for the purposes of subsection (2) whether a person
35would have become a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies
under section 5 of the British Nationality Act 1948, the requirement that
a person’s birth was registered at a United Kingdom consulate, as set
out in subsection (1)(b) of that section, is to be ignored.

(5)The second condition is that, if P had become or been a citizen of the
40United Kingdom and Colonies as mentioned in subsection (2), P would
at commencement have become a British Dependent Territories citizen
under section 23(1)(b) or (c).

(6)The third condition is that, if P had become a British Dependent
Territories citizen as mentioned in subsection (5), P would have become
45a British overseas territories citizen on the commencement of section 2
of the British Overseas Territories Act 2002.”

(3)In section 25 (meaning of British overseas territories citizen “by descent”), in
subsection (1), after paragraph (c) insert—

“(ca)the person is a British overseas territories citizen by virtue of
50registration under section 17A; or”.

2 Historical inability of unmarried fathers to transmit citizenship

(1)Part 2 of the British Nationality Act 1981 (British overseas territories
citizenship) is amended as follows.

(2)After section 17A (as inserted by section 1), insert—

“17B 5Registration: unmarried fathers; the general conditions

For the purposes of sections 17C to 17F, a person (“P”) meets the general
conditions if—

(a)at the time of P’s birth, P’s mother—

(i)was not married, or

(ii)10was married to a person other than P’s natural father;

(b)no person is treated as the father of P under—

(i)section 28 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology
Act 1990, or

(ii)section 35 or 36 of the Human Fertilisation and
15Embryology Act 2008;

(c)no person is treated as a parent of P under section 42 or 43 of the
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008; and

(d)P has never been a British overseas territories citizen or a British
Dependent Territories citizen.

17C 20Person unable to be registered under other provisions of this Act

(1)A person (“P”) is entitled to be registered as a British overseas
territories citizen on an application made under this section if—

(a)P meets the general conditions; and

(b)P would be entitled to be registered as a British overseas
25territories citizen under—

(i)section 15(3),

(ii)section 17(2),

(iii)section 17(5),

(iv)paragraph 4 of Schedule 2, or

(v)30paragraph 5 of Schedule 2,

had P’s mother been married to P’s natural father at the time of
P’s birth.

(2)In the following provisions of this section, “relevant registration
provision” means the provision under which P would be entitled to be
35registered as a British overseas territories citizen (as mentioned in
subsection (1)(b)).

(3)If the relevant registration provision is section 17(2), a person who is
registered as a British overseas territories citizen under this section is a
British overseas territories citizen by descent.

(4)40If the relevant registration provision is section 17(5), the Secretary of
State may, in the special circumstances of the particular case, waive the
need for any or all of the parental consents to be given.

(5)For that purpose, the “parental consents” are—

(a)the consent of P’s natural father, and

(b)45the consent of P’s mother,

insofar as they would be required by section 17(5)(c) (as read with
section 17(6)(b)), had P’s mother been married to P’s natural father at
the time of P’s birth.

17D Person unable to become citizen automatically after commencement

(1)5A person (“P”) is entitled to be registered as a British overseas
territories citizen on an application made under this section if—

(a)P meets the general conditions;

(b)at any time in the period after commencement, P would have
automatically become a British Dependent Territories citizen or
10a British overseas territories citizen at birth by the operation
of—

(i)section 15(1),

(ii)section 16, or

(iii)paragraph 1 of Schedule 2,

15had P’s mother been married to P’s natural father at the time of
P’s birth; and

(c)in a case where P would have become a British Dependent
Territories citizen as mentioned in paragraph (b), P would then
have automatically become a British overseas territories citizen
20by the operation of section 2 of the British Overseas Territories
Act 2002.

(2)A person who is registered as a British overseas territories citizen under
this section is a British overseas territories citizen by descent if the
citizenship which the person would have acquired at birth (as
25mentioned in subsection (1)(b)) would (by virtue of section 25) have
been citizenship by descent.

(3)If P is under the age of 18, no application may be made unless the
consent of P’s natural father and mother to the registration has been
signified in the prescribed manner.

(4)30But if P’s natural father or mother has died on or before the date of the
application, the reference in subsection (3) to P’s natural father and
mother is to be read as a reference to either of them.

(5)The Secretary of State may, in the special circumstances of a particular
case, waive the need for any or all of the consents required by
35subsection (3) (as read with subsection (4)) to be given.

(6)The reference in this section to the period after commencement does not
include the time of commencement (and, accordingly, this section does
not apply to any case in which a person was unable to become a British
Dependent Territories citizen at commencement).

17E 40Citizen of UK and Colonies unable to become citizen at
commencement

(1)A person (“P”) is entitled to be registered as a British overseas
territories citizen on an application made under this section if—

(a)P meets the general conditions;

(b)45P—

(i)was a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies
immediately before commencement, or

(ii)would have become such a citizen as mentioned in
section 17A(2)(a), or

(iii)would have been such a citizen immediately before
commencement as mentioned in section 17A(2)(b);

(c)5P would then have automatically become a British Dependent
Territories citizen at commencement by the operation of section
23, had P’s mother been married to P’s natural father at the time
of P’s birth; and

(d)P would then have automatically become a British overseas
10territories citizen by the operation of section 2 of the British
Overseas Territories Act 2002.

(2)A person who is registered as a British overseas territories citizen under
this section is a British overseas territories citizen by descent if the
citizenship which the person would have acquired at commencement
15(as mentioned in subsection (1)(c)) would (by virtue of section 25) have
been citizenship by descent.

17F Other person unable to become citizen at commencement

(1)A person (“P”) is entitled to be registered as a British overseas
territories citizen on an application made under this section if—

(a)20P meets the general conditions;

(b)P is either—

(i)an eligible former British national, or

(ii)an eligible non-British national; and

(c)had P’s mother been married to P’s natural father at the time of
25P’s birth, P—

(i)would have been a citizen of the United Kingdom and
Colonies immediately before commencement,

(ii)would have automatically become a British Dependent
Territories citizen at commencement by the operation of
30section 23, and

(iii)would have automatically become a British overseas
territories citizen by the operation of section 2 of the
British Overseas Territories Act 2002.

(2)In determining for the purposes of subsection (1)(c)(i) whether a person
35would have been a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, the
requirement that a person’s birth was registered at a United Kingdom
consulate, as set out in section 5(1)(b) of the British Nationality Act
1948, is to be ignored.

(3)P is an “eligible former British national” if P was not a citizen of the
40United Kingdom and Colonies immediately before commencement
and either—

(a)P ceased to be a British subject or a citizen of the United
Kingdom and Colonies by virtue of the commencement of any
independence legislation, but would not have done so had P’s
45mother been married to P’s natural father at the time of P’s
birth, or

(b)P was a British subject who did not automatically become a
citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies at commencement
of the British Nationality Act 1948 by the operation of any

provision of it, but would have done so had P’s mother been
married to P’s natural father at the time of P’s birth.

(4)P is an “eligible non-British national” if—

(a)P was never a British subject or citizen of the United Kingdom
5and Colonies; and

(b)had P’s mother been married to P’s natural father at the time of
P’s birth, P would have automatically become a British subject
or citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies—

(i)at birth, or

(ii)10by virtue of paragraph 3 of Schedule 3 to the British
Nationality Act 1948 (child of male British subject to
become citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies if
father becomes such a citizen).

(5)A person who is registered as a British overseas territories citizen under
15this section is a British overseas territories citizen by descent if the
citizenship which the person would have acquired at commencement
(as mentioned in subsection (1)(c)(ii)) would (by virtue of section 25)
have been citizenship by descent.

(6)In determining for the purposes of subsection (1)(c)(i) whether P would
20have been a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies immediately
before commencement, it must be assumed that P would not have—

(a)renounced or been deprived of any notional British nationality,
or

(b)lost any notional British nationality by virtue of P acquiring the
25nationality of a country or territory outside the United
Kingdom.

(7)A “notional British nationality” is—

(a)in a case where P is an eligible former British national, any
status as a British subject or a citizen of the United Kingdom and
30Colonies which P would have held at any time after P’s
nationality loss (had that loss not occurred and had P’s mother
been married to P’s natural father at the time of P’s birth);

(b)in a case where P is an eligible non-British national—

(i)P’s status as a British subject or citizen of the United
35Kingdom and Colonies as mentioned in subsection
(4)(b), and

(ii)any other status as a British subject or citizen of the
United Kingdom and Colonies which P would have
held at any time afterwards (had P’s mother been
40married to P’s natural father at the time of P’s birth).

(8)In this section—

• “British subject” has any meaning which it had for the purposes of
  the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914;

• “independence legislation” means an Act of Parliament or any
  45subordinate legislation (within the meaning of the
  Interpretation Act 1978) forming part of the law in the United
  Kingdom (whenever passed or made, and whether or not still in
  force)—

  (a)

  providing for a country or territory to become
  50independent from the United Kingdom, or

  Nationality and Borders BillPage 7

  (b)

  dealing with nationality, or any other ancillary matters,
  in connection with a country or territory becoming
  independent from the United Kingdom;

• “P’s nationality loss” means P’s—

  (a)

  5ceasing to be a British subject or citizen of the United
  Kingdom and Colonies (as mentioned in subsection
  (3)(a)), or

  (b)

  not becoming a citizen of the United Kingdom and
  Colonies (as mentioned in subsection (3)(b)).

17G 10Sections 17B to 17F: supplementary provision

(1)In sections 17B to 17F and this section, a person’s “natural father” is a
person who satisfies the requirements as to proof of paternity that are
prescribed in regulations under section 50(9B).

(2)The power under section 50(9B) to make different provision for
15different circumstances includes power to make provision for the
purposes of any provision of sections 17B to 17F which is different from
other provision made under section 50(9B).

(3)The following provisions apply for the purposes of sections 17B to 17F.

(4)A reference to a person automatically becoming a citizen of a certain
20type is a reference to the person becoming a citizen of that type without
the need for—

(a)the person to be registered as such a citizen by the Secretary of
State or any other minister of the Crown;

(b)the birth of the person to be registered by a diplomatic or
25consular representative of the United Kingdom; or

(c)the person to be naturalised as such a citizen.

(5)If the mother of a person could not actually have been married to the
person’s natural father at the time of the person’s birth (for whatever
reason), that fact does not prevent an assumption being made that the
30couple were married at the time of the birth.”

(3)In section 25 (meaning of British overseas territories citizen “by descent”), in
subsection (1), after paragraph (ca) (as inserted by section 1), insert—

“(cb)the person is a British overseas territories citizen by descent by
virtue of section 17C(3), 17D(2), 17E(2) or 17F(5); or”.

(4)35In Part 5 of that Act (miscellaneous and supplementary), in section 41A
(registration: requirement to be of good character), after subsection (2) insert—

“(2A)An application for registration of an adult or young person as a British
overseas territories citizen under section 17C, so far as the relevant
registration provision (as defined in section 17C(2)) is section 15(3),
4017(2) or 17(5), must not be granted unless the Secretary of State is
satisfied that the adult or young person is of good character.”

3 Sections 1 and 2: related British citizenship

(1)Part 1 of the British Nationality Act 1981 (British citizenship) is amended as
follows.

(2)After section 4J, insert—

“4K Acquisition by registration: certain British overseas territories citizens

(1)A person is entitled to be registered as a British citizen on an application
made under this section if—

(a)5they are entitled to be registered as a British overseas territories
citizen under section 17A, 17C, 17D, 17E or 17F, or

(b)they would be entitled to be registered as a British overseas
territories citizen under any of those sections but for the fact
that they have already become a British overseas territories
10citizen under a different provision.

(2)Subsection (1) does not apply in the case of a person—

(a)who is or would be entitled to be registered as a British overseas
territories citizen by virtue only of a connection with the
Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, or

(b)15who has previously been a British citizen.

(3)The Secretary of State may not register a person as a British citizen on
an application under subsection (1)(a) unless the person is also
registered as a British overseas territories citizen.”

(3)In section 14 (meaning of British citizen “by descent”), in subsection (1), after
20paragraph (da) insert—

“(db)the person is a British citizen by virtue of registration under
section 4K and is—

(i)a British overseas territories citizen by virtue of
registration under section 17A, or

(ii)25a British overseas territories citizen by descent by virtue
of section 17C(3), 17D(2), 17E(2) or 17F(5); or”.

(4)In Part 5 of that Act (miscellaneous and supplementary), in section 41A
(registration: requirement to be of good character), after subsection (2A)
(inserted by section 2) insert—

“(2B)30Subsection (2C) applies to an application for registration of an adult or
young person as a British citizen under section 4K who is, or would
have been, entitled to be registered as a British overseas territories
citizen under section 17C, so far as the relevant registration provision
(as defined in section 17C(2)) is section 15(3), 17(2) or 17(5).

(2C)35The application must not be granted unless the Secretary of State is
satisfied that the adult or young person is of good character.”

4 Period for registration of person born outside the British overseas territories

(1)In section 17 of the British Nationality Act 1981 (acquisition of British overseas
territories citizenship by registration: minors)—

(a)40in subsection (2), for “within the period of twelve months from the date
of the birth” substitute “while the person is a minor”;

(b)omit subsection (4).

(2)In section 41A of that Act (registration: good character requirement), in
subsection (2), after “17(1)” insert “, (2)”.

British citizenship

5 Disapplication of historical registration requirements

(1)The British Nationality Act 1981 is amended as follows.

(2)In section 4C (acquisition by registration: certain persons born before 1983), for
5subsection (3D) substitute—

“(3D)In determining for the purposes of subsection (3) whether a person
would have been a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, the
requirement that a person’s birth was registered at a United Kingdom
consulate, as set out in section 5(1)(b) of the British Nationality Act
101948, is to be ignored.”

(3)In section 4I (other person unable to become citizen at commencement), after
subsection (1) insert—

“(1A)In determining for the purposes of subsection (1)(c)(i) whether a person
would have been a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, the
15requirement that a person’s birth was registered at a United Kingdom
consulate, as set out in section 5(1)(b) of the British Nationality Act
1948, is to be ignored.”

6 Citizenship where mother married to someone other than natural father

(1)The British Nationality Act 1981 is amended as follows.

(2)20In section 4E (the general conditions)—

(a)omit paragraph (a) (requirement that applicant was born before 1 July
2006);

(b)in paragraph (c), after “1990” insert “or under section 35 or 36 of the
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008”;

(c)25after paragraph (c) (but before the “and”) insert—

“(ca)no person is treated as a parent of P under section 42 or
43 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act
2008;”.

(3)In section 4F (person unable to be registered under other provisions of this
30Act), in subsection (1)(b), after sub-paragraph (iii) insert—

“(iiia)section 4D,”.

(4)In section 41A (registration: requirement to be of good character), in subsection
(1A), for “or 3(5)” substitute “, 3(5) or 4D”.

Powers of the Secretary of State relating to citizenship etc

7 35Citizenship: registration in special cases

(1)The British Nationality Act 1981 is amended as follows.

(2)After section 4K (as inserted by section 3) insert—

“4L Acquisition by registration: special circumstances

(1)If an application is made for a person of full age and capacity (“P”) to
40be registered as a British citizen, the Secretary of State may cause P to