British National (Overseas)

British National (Overseas), commonly known as BN(O), is one of the major classes of British nationality under British nationality law. Holders of this nationality are British nationals and Commonwealth citizens, but not British citizens. The nationality itself does not grant right of abode anywhere in the world, including United Kingdom or Hong Kong, but most BN(O)s possess either right of abode or right to land in Hong Kong. BN(O)s are subject to British immigration controls and do not have the automatic right to live or work in the United Kingdom.

The British National (Overseas) status was created by the Hong Kong Act 1985 in anticipation of transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong on 1 July 1997. This nationality was "tailor-made" for Hong Kong residents with British Dependent Territories Citizen (BDTC) status by virtue of their connection with Hong Kong: it allowed the people of Hong Kong to retain a relationship with the United Kingdom after the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong to China. BN(O)s enjoy consular protection as British nationals would when travelling outside Hong Kong. However, since most BN(O)s also hold Chinese nationality, they do not enjoy consular protection in Mainland China and Macau, owing to the master nationality rule. From 1 July 1987 to 30 June 1997, nearly 3.4 million of British Dependent Territories Citizens in Hong Kong successfully registered for British National (Overseas). All BDTCs in Hong Kong lost their BDTC status on 1 July 1997, and any BDTC who did not register as a BN(O) automatically acquired Chinese nationality or British Overseas Citizenship, depending on their ethnicity.

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