Former British overseas territories

Get to know what type of territory is relevant to your claim to British nationality

Before you can be sure that you do or do not have a claim to British nationality you’ll need to do some investigating into what part of the world you or your ancestors were born in. Below is a list of the various types of territories that were once under the control of the British Empire in one way or another.

Each type of territory has particular and complex effects on your potential claim to British nationality.

British protected states

These countries and territories were former British protected states.

You may be eligible for British citizenship

Birth (or descent from a father born) in a former British protected state granted British protected person (BPP) status. Depending on the independence day arrangements and how nationality of the newly independent country was granted, this status could be retained in some cases.

If this status was retained, it was (and is) also possible in some circumstances to upgrade this status to full British nationality in the modern day, or to pass down this status one generation from father to child.

British protectorates with ETJ

These countries and territories were former British protectorates where the Crown exercised extra-territorial jurisdiction (ETJ). Birth (or descent from a father born) in a former British Protectorate granted British protected person (BPP)status. Depending on the independence day arrangements and how nationality of the newly independent country was granted, this status could be retained in some cases.

If this status was retained, it was (and is) also possible in some circumstances to upgrade this status to full British nationality in the modern day, or to pass down this status one generation from father to child.

British protectorates with extra-territorial jurisdiction were found in Europe, Africa and the Arabian Peninsula:

British colonies

These countries and territories were former British colonies from their formation on 1 January 1949.

Depending on the independence day arrangements and how nationality of the newly independent country was granted, this status could be retained in some cases. On 1 January 1983, all citizens of the UK and colonies would have become British citizens, British overseas citizens (BOC) or British dependent territories citizens (BDTC), depending on individual circumstances.

Do you qualify for British citizenship?

You could qualify for a British passport if one of the following applies:

• You were born between 01 January 1949 and 31 December 1982 in a British colony if you had a UK-born grandparent
• You were born between 01 January 1949 and 31 December 1982, a parent was born in a British colony, and that parent had a parent born in the UK
• You were born after 1 January 1983, your parent was born in a post-1949 colony and you have a UK-born grandfather

The former British colonies were:

British overseas territories

These territories are current British overseas territories from their formation on 1 January 1983. Those with family links to a British overseas territory will probably become a British overseas territories citizen (BOTC). In the case of Hong Kong before 1 July 1997, residents could (in some circumstances) register as British nationals overseas (BNO).

Full list of British overseas territories

Foreign countries with ETJ

These countries and territories were where the Crown exercised extra-territorial jurisdiction (ETJ). Birth (or descent from a parent born) in these countries or territories did not normally result in a British colonial status. However, if there was a family link (a parent or grandparent) to another former British territory or the UK, claims to British nationality can (in some circumstances) be made in the modern day.

You could qualify for a British passport if:

• You were born between 1 January 1949 and 31 December 1982 in a foreign country with extra-territorial jurisdiction, if you had a UK-born grandparent
• You were born between 1 January 1949 and 31 December 1982, a parent was born in a foreign country with ETJ, and that parent had a parent born in the UK

List of countries with ETJ