HONG KONG NATIONALITY ORDER IN COUNCIL
POINTS FOR CRITICISM
3.
ACQUISITION OF BN (0) STATUS: NEED TO APPLY
CRITICISM
1.
BN(0) status should be automatically conferred on Hong Kong
BDTCS. They should not have to apply for it.
PROVISION IN THE ORDER
2.
Article 4(2) of the draft Order provides that an eligible
person shall be entitled to be registered as a BN(0):
but they
will need to apply.
Line to Take
3.
People should not be obliged to have BN (0), if they do not
want to: and automatic acquisition would not be possible under
the terms of the Memorandum.
Background Note
4.
Automatic acquisition is not possible under the terms of
the UK Memorandum. The Memorandum provides that the new
nationality status,
namely BN (0), may be acquired by Hong Kong
BDTCS "only if they hold or are included in such a British
passport [that is a passport describing them as having the status
in question] issued before 1 July 1997
The requirement
to hold a BN (0) passport precludes automatic acquisition of the
status, since clearly automatic acquisition of a passport is
impossible.
5.
.
Automatic acquisition of BN (0) status is anyway undesirable.
There may be a number of Hong Kong BDTCs who do not wish to acquire
BN(0) stuatus, They may, for example, have left Hong Kong permanently, settled elsewhere and taken up another nationality. Acquisition of BN (0) status must be an act of choice on the part
of those who actively want it.
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