Key Facts

• Clause 2 aims to rectify historical inability of unmarried fathers to transmit citizenship.
• Proposed new sections cover different groups who would have been British Overseas Territories Citizens if their parents were married at birth.
• DNA evidence requirement in cases where a couple is living together when a child is born may be considered.
• The amendment remedies a drafting issue in clause 3.
• Clauses 1 and 2 correct anomalies for people born to BOTC mothers before 1983 or unmarried fathers before 1 July 2006, allowing them to become BOTCs.
• Individuals who missed out on both BOTC and British citizenship due to changes in law in 2002 will have a route to acquire both statuses.
• Section 17(2) of the British Nationality Act 1981 currently requires applications for BOTC registration within 12 months of birth.
• Clause 4 amends section 17(2) to allow registration until age 18.
• Before 1983, women could not pass on British citizenship under the 1948 Act; unmarried fathers were unable to do so before July 2006.
• Clause 6 addresses outdated nationality laws that affect individuals born out of wedlock or where the mother is married to someone other than the biological father.
• The amendment aims to remove the requirement for children of unmarried fathers to have been born before July 1, 2006.
• It extends registration rights to children of non-British members of the British armed forces despite their mother being married to another individual.
• Clause 2 aims to correct discrimination against children born out of wedlock.
• Clause 6 seeks to correct the anomaly that people born after July 1, 2006, do not have a corresponding right to be registered as British citizens if their father was not married to their mother.
• Amendment 35 proposes changes to section 1 of British nationality law to align it with adoption laws in England and Wales for those aged between 18 and 19.
• Amendments would require the Secretary of State to approve applications for British citizenship under certain conditions.
• The amendments aim to correct historical legislative unfairness affecting British citizens and those applying for registration.
• Each Parliamentary session, a report must be laid before Parliament regarding any cases of historical legislative unfairness.
• Amendments 13, 14, 30, 31, and 35 are proposed.
• The adoption law allows adoption orders for individuals up to age 19, but nationality law restricts automatic British citizenship to those under 18 when the order is made.
• A university graduate adopted at age 18 faces potential difficulties in enjoying family life due to the current inconsistency.
• Clause 7 introduces discretion for the Secretary of State to register adults as British citizens if there is historical injustice.
• The amendment seeks to ensure that any identified unfairness leads to policy or guidance changes and publicity among affected individuals.
• There are concerns about prohibitive fees deterring applications under clause 7.
• Free Movement is concerned about the reference to the Secretary of State’s opinion.
• There are concerns about unequal treatment affecting mothers, children of unmarried couples, and children of mothers married to someone other than their natural father.
• Amnesty International has expressed concern that clause 7 may be ineffective due to uncertainty over application results and excessive fees.
• Amendment 34 aims to rectify historical unfairness in British nationality law.
• Clause 7 attempts to help those affected by historical unfairness become British citizens or BOTCs but excludes potential BOCs.
• The category of BOC was created under the British Nationality Act 1981 and has value for seeking UK consular assistance and residence/work permission in third countries.
• There is precedent in the British Nationality Act 1981 for discretionary applications.
• The Home Office publishes caseworker guidance setting out circumstances where discretion would normally be exercised.
• The Bill aims to improve access to justice through an improved offer.
• The Home Office publishes caseworker guidance for the immigration system.
• The new adult registration route will have guidance available.
• Each case will be considered on its own merits, taking into account historical unfairness and exceptional circumstances.
• Clause 7 is intended to rectify individual situations of historical unfairness.
• British overseas citizenship (BOC) was created by the 1981 Act to avoid statelessness due to complex histories of independence or countries ceasing to be British protected territories.
• There are existing remedies under the Equality Act 2010 and ECHR for discrimination.
• The government argues for discretionary means of tackling issues.
• Amendments related to acquisition by registration and equal treatment were proposed but not passed.
• Regulations for fees will be subject to parliamentary scrutiny.
• Clause 7 applies to three routes to British nationality: naturalisation as a British citizen, naturalisation as a British overseas territories citizen, and registration as a British citizen.
• The residential qualifying period is five years or three years for spouses and civil partners of British citizens/citizens of British overseas territories.
• During the five-year period, applicants must not have been outside the UK for more than 450 days.
• The clause addresses people affected by the Windrush scandal who were denied their rights due to Home Office failures.
• It seeks to amend requirements for naturalisation or registration as a British citizen under sections 6 and 18 of the 1981 Act.
• Some individuals, despite being wrongly exiled from the UK, have been unable to return and benefit from previous remedies.
• Since 1983, a child born in the UK automatically becomes a British citizen if one of their parents is settled in the UK.
• Settled status excludes those with limited leave to remain or are here illegally.
• Children born stateless can apply for citizenship at age 22 based on five years' residence.
• The clause aims to address cases where non-settled parents do not register their child's birth, potentially leaving them stateless.
• The number of applications to register stateless children increased from 32 in 2016-17 to 1,815 in 2017-18.
• Parents can secure a quicker route to British citizenship by not registering their child's birth, depriving the child of nationality and travel documents until age five.
• The fee for birth registration at the Indian high commission is £19 and £53 at the Sri Lankan high commission.
• Child X was born in the UK to Indian parents who entered as students and remained illegally.
• X became a British citizen under the stateless minor provision shortly after their fifth birthday.
• The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) guidelines recommend that nationality should be granted only if an individual cannot reasonably acquire it through other means.
• Clause 9 of the Nationality and Borders Bill would disentitle many stateless children aged five to 17 from their right to British citizenship.
• The existing law under section 36 of the British Nationality Act 1981 aims to reduce statelessness by allowing certain stateless individuals born in the UK to register as British citizens after living there for five years.
• The speaker argues that Clause 9 creates an additional and unjustified hurdle for children to acquire British citizenship, potentially perpetuating their statelessness.
• Stateless children under 18 can register as British if they were born here, have always been stateless, and meet a five-year residency requirement.
• Clause 9 restricts access to registration for stateless kids, giving broad discretion to the Secretary of State to decline applications.
• The clause is believed to be in breach of international law and will increase statelessness among children.
• The UK is bound by the 1961 UN convention on the reduction of statelessness, which focuses on protecting the stateless child and preventing childhood statelessness.
• Clause 9 of the Bill departs from the safeguards established by the convention without offering evidence of an increase in abuse.
• Citizens UK suggested that there are 900 stateless children paying citizenship application fees.
• Public Law Project (PLP) and JUSTICE submitted evidence on legal aid provisions.
• Modern Slavery Policy Unit of Justice and Care, Chagossian Voices, Reprieve, Families Together Coalition, Human Trafficking Foundation, Helen Bamber Foundation, Australia Women in Support of Women on Nauru, Asylum Seekers Advocacy Group (ASAG) and Doctors for Justice (D4J), Dr Ryan Essex from University of Greenwich, Logistics UK, ECPAT UK, National Justice Project, Associate Professor Maria O’Sullivan from Monash University, European Network on Statelessness (ENS), the Project for the Registration of Children as British Citizens (PRCBC), Amnesty International UK, UNCHR, Duke Law International Human Rights Clinic, Justice and Peace Office of the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney, Andrew and Renata Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law at UNSW Sydney, and Statewatch submitted evidence or draft amendments.