British National (Overseas) passport

British National (Overseas) passport
Front cover of the current British National (Overseas) passport (with chip ), issued since March 2020
TypePassport
Issued byUnited Kingdom
First issued1 July 1987 (first version)
1 June 1990 (machine-readable passport)
2005 (first biometric version)
2020 (biometric version with polycarbonate data page)
PurposeBritish nationality identification and international travel document
EligibilityBritish National (Overseas) status
RightsStatus holders, or their first generation adult descendants born after 30 June 1997, can live, study and work in the UK for unlimited period with a valid BN(O) visa.
British National (Overseas) passport
Traditional Chinese英國國民(海外)護照

The British National (Overseas) passport, commonly referred to as the BN(O) passport, is a British passport for people with British National (Overseas) status. BN(O) status was created in 1987 after the enactment of Hong Kong Act 1985,[1] whose holders are permanent residents of Hong Kong who were British Overseas Territories citizens (formerly British Dependent Territories citizens) until 30 June 1997 and had registered as BN(O)s.

BN(O) status holders do not have the automatic right of abode in the UK unless they are also British citizens. Since 31 January 2021, BN(O) holders have been able to apply for limited leave to remain to live, work and study in the UK. They become eligible for settled status (indefinite leave to remain) after 5 years of qualifying residence. BN(O) holders with settled status can register as British citizens after 12 months.[2]

The settlement scheme was launched after the imposition of the controversial national security law on Hong Kong by the Chinese Central government. The UK considers the enactment of the National Security Law a clear violation of the one country, two systems principle guaranteed in the Sino-British Joint Declaration, an international binding treaty signed in 1984.[3]

  1. ^ "Hong Kong Act 1985". www.legislation.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 7 August 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  2. ^ "BN(O)持有人留英「5+1」年即可取得英國公民身份" [BN(O) holders can obtain British citizenship after staying in the UK for "5+1" years]. Mad Dog Daily 癲狗日報 (in Traditional Chinese). 1 July 2020. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  3. ^ "Hong Kong: Dominic Raab offers citizenship rights to 2.9 million British nationals". Sky News. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2020.