Immigration Corner | What is the eligibility for British citizenship if the person is born in the UK?

Dear Mr Bassie,

I would like to know whether I am eligible to apply for British citizenship if I was born in the United Kingdom. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

– J.J.

Dear J.J.,

Persons may be eligible to apply to ‘register’ as a British citizen if they were born in the United Kingdom (UK). However, this would depend on when they were born and their parents’ circumstances at the time of their birth.

This is one way to apply for British citizenship. and persons should check if they are eligible to apply another way – including through the Windrush scheme.

PERSONS WHO WERE BORN ON OR AFTER JANUARY 1, 1983

These persons may be eligible if either they are under 18 years old and since their birth one of their parents became a British citizen or got permission to stay in the UK permanently or if they had lived in the UK until they were 10 years or older.

WHEN PERSONS DO NOT NEED TO APPLY

Persons are usually automatically considered British citizens if they were both born in the UK on or after January 1, 1983, and born when one of their parents was a British citizen or ‘settled’ in the UK.

Individuals can apply for a UK passport instead or ask for a letter confirming their citizenship that is their ‘immigration status’.

Please be aware that those persons who live in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, or a British overseas territory should note that there is a different way to get a letter confirming their citizenship.

PERSONS WHO WERE BORN BEFORE 1983

Those persons who were born before 1983 are automatically a British citizen if they were born in the UK before January 1, 1983, unless

• Their father was a diplomat working for a non-UK country.

• Their father was ‘an enemy alien in occupation’ and the applicants were born in the Channel Islands during World War 2.

Please note that persons can apply for a UK passport instead or ask for a letter confirming your citizenship their ‘immigration status’. Again, please take note that persons who live in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, or a British overseas territory, there is a different way to get a letter confirming their citizenship.

I hope this helps.

John S. Bassie is a barrister/attorney-at-law who practises law in Jamaica. He is a justice of the peace, a Supreme Court-appointed mediator, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, a chartered arbitrator, the past global president of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and a member of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association (UK). Email: lawbassie@yahoo.com