lt.howell.NAT
JEB
NOTE
R!
HKD 34076.
14 JUL 1993
IN
The following arguments have been made for granting British
Citizenship to the non-Chinese ethnic minorities in Hong Kong:
(i) The lack of a "proper" nationality and passport.
(ii) Uncertainty about right of abode in Hong Kong after 1997; a sense of vulnerability because of their ethnic
origins.
(iii) Possible statelessness for either themselves, their
children or grandchildren.
(iv) Restrictions on transmissibility of their British
nationality.
(v) Inadequacy of the Selection Scheme (the 1990 British Nationality Scheme) no special quota for them.
(vi) Inadequacy of the UK's immigration assurance.
The Government's response to these concerns is as follows:-
(i) BN (0) passports are accepted by all countries on the same basis as the BDTC passports (except in Austria where
the Hong Kong Government is negotiating to gain equal
treatment). BOC passports are already well-established. Holders do not generally need entry clearance for visits to the UK (but would have to seek it if they were seeking
long term admission eg for settlement). BN (0) and BOC passports give the holders an entitlement to registration
as British citizens providing they have completed five
years UK residence and have settled status (they also confer Commonwealth citizenship). Passports confer
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