BNO Pathways

Background

In this video, I give a detailed overview of the different pathways for Hong Kong residents to register as a British National (Overseas).

From 1st July 1987 to 1st July 1997, Hong Kong residents who were British Dependent Territories citizens were given the opportunity to register as a British National (Overseas) (“BN(O)”) (Paragraph 4, The Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986).

Alternatively, if an individual did not acquire Chinese nationality and would have been stateless on 1st July 1997 (as they did not apply for BN(O) status), then they would have received BN(O) status automatically (Paragraph 6, The Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986).

For clarity, those individuals for whom automatic citizenship would be granted would need to have a connection to Hong Kong in one of the following ways:

  1. the individual, his father or his mother was born, naturalised or registered in Hong Kong (or found abandoned;
  2. the individual, his father or his mother was adopted and one of his adopters was a British Dependent Citizen;
  3. the individual, his father or his mother was registered outside Hong Kong on an application based on:
    • residence in Hong Kong;
    • descent from a person born in Hong Kong;
    • descent from a person naturalised, registered or settled in Hong Kong;
    • descent from a person adopted by Hong Kong adopters;
    • marriage to a person who is a British Dependent Territories citizen by virtue of his having a connection with Hong Kong or would have been so but for his death or renunciation of citizenship;
    • Crown service under the government of Hong Kong;
    • where citizenship has been renounced and subsequently resumed, birth, naturalisation or registration in Hong Kong;
  4. at the time of his birth his father or mother was settled in Hong Kong;
  5. his father or mother was born to a parent who at the time of the birth was a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies by virtue of his having a connection with Hong Kong;
  6. being a woman, she was married before 1st January 1983 to a man who is a British Dependent Territories citizen by virtue of his having a connection with Hong Kong (or would have been so but for his death).

(Paragraph 2(1), The Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986).

BN(O) Visa Pathways

There are 5 new visa pathways:

  1. BN(O) Status Holder route;
  2. Dependents on the BN(O) Status Holder route;
  3. BN(O) Household Member route;
  4. Dependents on BN(O) Household Members; and
  5. Adult Dependent Relative of a BN(O) Status Holder.

BN(O) Status Holder Route

Eligibility Requirements

You must meet the following requirements:

You must be a BN(O) in one of the two ways discussed in the background section of this article pursuant to The Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986 (Paragraph HK 4.1, Immigration Rules);

You must be ordinarily resident in Hong Kong on the date of the application if applying for entry clearance (Paragraph HK 5.1, Immigration Rules); or if you are applying for permission to stay in the UK, you must be ordinarily resident in the UK, Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man or Hong Kong (Paragraph HK 5.2, Immigration Rules);

You must be able to demonstrate that you can maintain and accommodate yourself for at least 6 months (those already resident in the UK for a period of 12 months or more will automatically meet the requirement) (Paragraphs HK 6.1 and 6.2, Immigration Rules);

If you are applying for permission to stay and the permission you are currently staying on is for a period of less than 6 months and you were present, immediately before the grant of your last permission, in China or another country listed in Appendix T Immigration Rules, then you will need to provide a tuberculosis (“TB”) certificate (Paragraph HK 7.1, Immigration Rules).

Dependants on the BN(O) Status Holder Route

(a) Dependent Partner on BN(O) Status Holder

You must meet the following requirements:

  1. You must make your application at the same time as the BNO Status Holder (Paragraph HK 13.3, Immigration Rules);
  2. You must be aged over 18 (Paragraph HK 13.4, Immigration Rules);
  3. If not married/civil partnership, then your must have been living in the relationship akin to marriage or civil partnership for at least the two years prior to the date of the application (Paragraph HK 13.5, Immigration Rules);
  4. The relationship must be genuine and subsisting (Paragraph HK 13.5, Immigration Rules);
  5. You must form part of the same household as the BN(O) Status Holder and intend to live one another in the UK (Paragraph HK 13.7, Immigration Rules);
  6. Either you or the BNO Status Holder will need to demonstrate that you are able to maintain and accommodate yourself in the UK for at least 6 months (unless you have already been living in the UK for a period of 12 months or longer (Paragraph HK 14.1-14.3, Immigration Rules);

(b) BNO Household Child

You must meet the following requirements:

  1. You must be under 18 at the date of the application (Paragraph HK 17.1, Immigration Rules)
  2. You must be:
    • the child of a parent who has, or is at the same time being granted, entry clearance or permission to stay as either:
      • a BN(O) status holder; or
      • the partner of a BN(O) Status Holder; or
    • the grandchild who has, or is at the same time being granted, entry clearance or permission to stay as either:
      • BN(O) Status Holder; or
      • the partner of a BN(O) Status Holder (Paragraph HK 15.1, Immigration Rules).

This application must be submitted at the same time as the relevant party identified above and you must form part of the same household as the BN(O) Status Holder on the date of the application (Paragraph HK 15.2, Immigration Rules)

  1. Each of  the applicant’s parents must either be applying at the same time or have permission to be in the UK, unless:
    • the parent with permission is the sole surviving parent; or
    • the parent has sole responsibility for the child’s upbringing (Paragraph 15.1 Immigration Rules);
  2. You must live with the parent during your stay in the UK, unless you can demonstrate a valid reason why they should not live that parent (Paragraph HK 16.1, Immigration Rules); and
  3. Either the BNO Status Holder or their partner must prove that they will be able to adequately maintain and accommodate you for at least 6 months from the date of the application (Paragraph HK 18.1-18.3, Immigration Rules).

For both of the above application types there is also the requirement for ordinary residence in the Hong Kong (or if applying for permission to stay, the UK, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man or Hong Kong) and that the applicant provide a TB certificate if they are applying for permission to stay and their last grant of permission was for less than 6 months and their previous stay was in China or another country listed under Appendix T (Paragraphs HK 19 and 20, Immigration Rules).

BN(O) Household Member Route

You must meet the following requirements:

  1. You must have been born on or after 1st July 1997 and be aged over 18 (Paragraph HK 23.3 and 23.4, Immigration Rules);
  2. You must provide a TB certificate (though for in-country applicants the process is as in above section) (Paragraph HK 25.2, Immigration Rules);
  3. If you do not already have permission to say under the BN(O) Route, you must:
    • Be the child of a person who is being granted permission on the BN(O) Status Holder route at the same time that that applicant is being granted permission; and
    • Form part of the same household as the BNO Status Holder (Paragraph HK 26.2, Immigration Rules).
  4. You, the BNO Status Holder or a person granted permission at the same time as the BNO Status Holder will need to demonstrate that you are able to maintain and accommodate yourself in the UK for at least 6 months (unless you have already been living in the UK for a period of 12 months or longer) (Paragraph HK 27.2, Immigration Rules).

Dependants of BN(O) Household Members

You must meet the following requirements:

  1. You must apply for entry clearance at the same time as the BN(O) Status Holder (Paragraph HK 34.1, Immigration Rules); and
  2. If applying for entry clearance, you must provide a TB certificate (Paragraph HK 34.2, Immigration Rules) (if applying for permission to stay the provision is the same as the above sections).

(a) Dependent Partner of a BN(O) Household Member

You must be the partner of a person who is making an application for entry clearance or permission to stay on the BN(O) Household Member route at the same time as you (Paragraph HK 35.3, Immigration Rules);

You and the relevant BN(O) Household Member must be over 18 at the date of the application (Paragraph HK 35.4, Immigration Rules);

If not married/civil partnership, then your must have been living in the relationship akin to marriage or civil partnership for at least the two years prior to the date of the application (Paragraph HK 35.5, Immigration Rules);

The relationship must be genuine and subsisting (Paragraph HK 35.6, Immigration Rules);

You must form part of the same household as the BN(O) Household Member on the date of the application and intend to live together throughout your stay in the UK (Paragraph HK 35.7 and 35.9, Immigration Rules); and

You, the BNO Status Holder or a person granted permission at the same time as the BNO Status Holder will need to demonstrate that you are able to maintain and accommodate yourself in the UK for at least 6 months (unless you have already been living in the UK for a period of 12 months or longer) (Paragraph HK 36, Immigration Rules).

(b) Dependent Child of a BN(O) Household Member

You must be the child of a parent who has, or is being granted permission at the same time, as a BN(O) Household Member or partner of a BN(O) Household Member (Paragraph HK 37.1, Immigration Rules);

Each of your parents must be applying at the same time or have permission to be in the UK (exceptions for sole surviving parents or parents with sole responsibility) (Paragraph HK 37.2, Immigration Rules);

They must form part of the same household as the BN(O) Household Member on the date of the application and must live with the parent who has permission on the BN(O) Household Member Route unless they can demonstrate a valid reason not to live with that person (Paragraph HK 37.3 and 38.1, Immigration Rules);

The BN(O) Household Member, their partner or a person being granted permission on the BN(O) Status Holder route at the same time will need to demonstrate that you are able to maintain and accommodate yourself in the UK for at least 6 months (unless you have already been living in the UK for a period of 12 months or longer) (Paragraph HK 40.1 – 40.3, Immigration Rules);

You must be ordinarily resident in Hong Kong at the date of the application (or in UK, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man or Hong Kong if applying to stay) (Paragraph HK 41, Immigration Rules)

Adult Dependent Relative of a BN(O) Status Holder

You must be over 18 (Paragraph HK 45.3, Immigration Rules);

You must be the parent, grandparent, brother, sister, son or daughter of a person who is making an application for entry clearance or permission to stay as a BN(O) Status Holder or the partner of a BN(O) Status Holder at the same time as the applicant (Paragraph HK 45.4, Immigration Rules);

If applying for entry clearance, you must provide a TB certificate (Paragraph HK 47.2, Immigration Rules) (if applying for permission to stay the provision is the same as the above sections);

  • You must:
    • (a) as a result of age, illness or disability require long-term personal care to perform everyday tasks; and
    • (b) form part of the same household as the BN(O) Status Holder who has, or is at the same time being granted, permission; and
    • (c) be unable, even with the practical and financial help of the BN(O) Status Holder or the partner of the BN(O) Status Holder, to obtain the required level of help in Hong Kong, if the BN(O) Status Holder or the partner of the BN(O) Status Holder move to the UK, either because the help:
      • (i) is not available, and there is no person in Hong Kong who can reasonably provide it; or
    • (ii) is not affordable (Paragraph HK 49.2, Immigration Rules).

There is an exemption from (c) for grandparents (Paragraph HK 49.3, Immigration Rules).

  • The BN(O) Status Holder or their partner  will need to demonstrate that you are able to maintain and accommodate yourself in the UK for at least 6 months (unless you have already been living in the UK for a period of 12 months or longer) (Paragraph HK 50.1 – 50.3, Immigration Rules);
  • You must be ordinarily resident in Hong Kong at the date of the application (or in UK, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man or Hong Kong if applying to stay) (Paragraph HK 51, Immigration Rules)

Period of Grant

For all routes other than Adult Dependent Relative of a BN(O) Status Holder, permission will be granted to 5 years or 30 months (depending on what was applied for).

After 5 years continuous residence living with permission under this route, visa holders may apply for settlement (Paragraph HK 62.1, Immigration Rules). This will be subject to the additional requirements of meeting the English language requirement (level B1) and meeting the Knowledge of Life in the UK requirement (Paragraph HK 60 and 61, Immigration Rules).