This page provides details of whether you can register as a British citizen under the British Nationality (Hong Kong) Act 1997. It also provides details of the type of citizenship you will acquire if your application is successful.

The requirements you need to meet

There are two requirements you need to meet to be eligible for registration as a British citizen under the British Nationality (Hong Kong) Act 1997. You must meet both requirements.

The ordinary residence requirement

To meet this requirement you must:

• be ordinarily resident in Hong Kong on the date of your application; and
• have been ordinarily resident in Hong Kong on 3 February 1997.

If the applicant is a child born on or after 4 February 1997, he/she must have been ordinarily resident in Hong Kong at the time of his/her birth.

To be considered ordinarily resident in a country you must:

• be living in the country full-time (apart from temporary or occasional absences); and
• not be in breach of any immigration rules; and
• have moved to the country voluntarily with the intention of settling there.

The nationality requirement

To meet this requirement, on the relevant date, you must have been:

• a British dependent territories citizen by virtue only because of a connection with Hong Kong; or
• a British national (overseas); or
• a British overseas citizen; or
• a British subject; or
• a British protected person; and
• you must not have held any other non-British nationality.

The relevant date is the 3 February 1997 unless you became a British national after that date by birth, registration or naturalisation, in which case the relevant date is the date on which you became a British national.

It is possible to be a citizen or national of a country even if you have never held a passport issued by the authorities of that country. You should make sure this does not apply to you before you make your application.

If you became a British national through your Hong Kong connections but are ethnically Chinese, you may be considered a Chinese national under Chinese nationality rules. You should contact the immigration department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for advice before you make your application.