You can apply for a British passport if you belong to one of the groups listed below.
Anyone who is a British citizen is entitled to apply for a British passport.
On January 1 1983, anyone who was a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies on December 31 1982, and had the right of abode* in the UK, became a British citizen.
* NB There may be individuals who have the right to live in the UK but will not have the right of abode in the UK as defined by the Immigration Act 1971, and will not therefore become British citizens – see below
That includes people who
British dependent territories citizens are eligible for either a British citizen passport or a British overseas territories passport.
BDTCs are people who obtained their citizenship from a connection with a territory that remains a British dependency, for example Gibraltar or Bermuda.
As of May 21 2002, most people holding a BDTC passport automatically became British citizens. This is when the British Citizenship provision of the British Overseas Territories Act 2002 came into force. The exceptions to this were those whose BDTC status derives solely from their connection with the sovereign base areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in Cyprus.
At the same time, British dependent territories citizenship was renamed as British overseas territories citizenship.
The Act gives British citizenship in addition to, not in replacement of, British overseas territories citizenship.
If you were a British dependent territories citizen (BDTC), and became a British overseas territories citizen (BOTC) in May 2002, you have the option of renewing your BDTC passport as a BOTC passport or applying for a British citizen passport.
When your BDTC passport expires you can apply to renew it as a BOTC passport in the usual way. You don’t have to have the form countersigned.
However, if you wish to apply for a British citizen passport, this has to be treated as a first time application, and you will be required to provide a countersigned form and original supporting documents.
You cannot apply to amend current passports to show British citizen status. This is because British citizenship is an additional status for those concerned; we will need to confirm entitlement and issue a new 10-year passport.
Applications in the overseas territories themselves will be treated in the same way. Your existing passport will be returned to you uncancelled.
You can help us to process your application by making it clear whether you are applying for a British citizen passport or a BOTC passport.
British overseas citizens are eligible for British Overseas citizen passport.
BOCs are people who have a connection with a former British colony (for example, Kenya), who:
British subjects are normally eligible for a passport.
Generally, British subjects are people who were born before January 1 1949 and who had a connection with either British India or the Republic of Ireland (Southern Ireland).
When applying, you may need additional visas that are not required by British citizens. Check with your travel agent or with the authorities, or the UK consulate or embassy, in the country you will be visiting. You can get their telephone numbers from Directory Enquiries.
British nationals (overseas) are normally eligible for a passport.
This term applies to former British dependent territories citizens connected with Hong Kong.
When applying, you may need additional visas that are not required by British citizens. Check with your travel agent or with the authorities, or the UK consulate or embassy, in the country you will be visiting. You can get their telephone numbers from Directory Enquiries.
British protected persons are normally eligible for a passport.
This term applies to people who had a connection with territories that were previously British protectorates, protected states or mandated or trust territories.
When applying, you may need additional visas that are not required by British citizens. Check with your travel agent or with the authorities, or the UK consulate or embassy, in the country you will be visiting. You can get their telephone numbers from Directory Enquiries.
Please note: This is not a final list and there are other ways in which a person may qualify for a British passport. If you think you may be eligible, please call our Adviceline for further information.
* Note: If you belong to one of these groups, you may need visas to visit certain countries where British citizens do not need them. Check with your travel agent or with the UK consulate or embassy of each country you plan to visit.
The following two categories are not automatically eligible for a British passport:
Women who are not British and who marry a British man after January 1 1949 do not automatically gain British citizenship because of their marriage. This applies regardless of whether she married a man who was a United Kingdom citizen before January 1 1983, or a man who is a British citizen after December 31 1982.
Foreign nationals or Commonwealth citizens who have lived in the United Kingdom for any length of time are not automatically entitled to British nationality because they reside here.
If you wish to apply for British citizenship see Where to apply for British citizenship
Please note that having indefinite leave to remain in the UK, or the right of re-admission refers to immigration status. It does not entitle you to British nationality or British passport facilities.
If you wish to enquire about your immigration status, you should contact:
UK Borders Agency
Block C
Whitgift Centre
Croydon
Surrey CR9 1AT
Telephone: 0870 606 7766
24-hour Passport Adviceline: 0870 521 0410 (see terms and conditions).
Calls are charged at 8p per
minute from a BT landline; live operators are available to assist with your enquiry 24 hours a day
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