the 1914 act
Let's go back in time a bit... 1. The lady's father in law was born in Ghana - then - the Colony of Gold Coast -in 1942.
Let's go back in time a bit... 1. The lady's father in law was born in Ghana - then - the Colony of Gold Coast -in 1942.
The legislation in force at the time was the 1914 Nationality and status of aliens act of 1914. 2. According to the act, someone who was born in one of his Majesty's dominions, acquired the status of British Subject, and had the right to apply for a British Passport. This was regardless of the nationality of his father. 3. In 1948, the term British Subject was changed to' British Citizen of the UK and colonies [CUKC].. as far as the father in law is concerned, nothing changed. 4. The 1958 act regulating the Independence of Ghana and the legal status of those who had any connection with the country did not effect the father in law. 5. The big change came about with the Immigration act of 1971- introducing the Right of Abode as an additional consideration . The right of abode was generally given to those who were in the UK, or were born, naturalised or registered in the UK as CUKC, and allowed others who had some family or parental connections to the UK, or were descendants of people who came from the UK- to claim the Right of Abode. The father in Law *could not * claim the Right of Abode, and he was therefore subjected to Immigration control- i,e, he can not travel to and from the UK - and settle there- freely. he needs visas and permissions. [this is evident from his passport endorsement]. 6. The next big change came about with the British Nationality Act of 1981; This one introduced the term' British Citizenship' , 'British Overseas Territories Citizenship'-BOTC [2002 term] and 'British Overseas Citizenship [BOC]. Those who were CUKC with the right of abode became British Citizens. Those who were CUKC and resided in one of the remaining territories under British control were renamed BOTC. and the third category- those who were CUKC who had not Right of Abode and did not live in one of the territories under British control became BOCs. The law also retains the terms British Subject and British Protected Person. It seems that the father in law is a BOC with no right of abode- that is the direct 'transfer' from CUKC subject to immigration control' as stated in the 1970s passport. The bad news for the lady who raised the query is that BOC is generally not transmitted to the next generation- unless the child would be otherwise stateless. Actually in 2002/6, the UK law was amended to allow those relatively small number of people who are ONLY BOCs and hold no other nationality -to register as British Citizens- i.e. with the right to settle in the UK with no restrictions. But this does not apply to the father in law. He was an Israeli national ! So, in short,The husband's status -as far as the UK is concerned- is determined by the law in force at the time he was born. His dad was a CUKC with no right of abode, which is now called BOC. Had the father in law applied for a British Passport- he would receive a fairly rare type of passport: see here http://prado.consilium.europa.eu/en/4934/docHome.html Please note the endorsement 'The holder is subject to control under the Immigration Act 1971'. So, what about the son- i.e. the lady's husband? Generally, his right to 'acquire' some sort of British 'nationality' depends on the year he was born. I assume that his parents were married at the time this guy was born. So, I mentioned the relevant years in which the law was changed; before 1971, a child of a CUKC could acquire the same CUKC - if the child was born to a father who was a CUKC. after 1971, this could still be the case, but the child would have no right of abode in the UK. born after the 1981 act came to force [1/1982] , he would have been termed as BOC with no right of abode in the UK. see http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Passports/WhoiseligibleforaBritishpassport/DG_1741 My advice would be- same as what you advised above: -check the status of the father in law's parents- and his birth certificate would indicate the nationality of his dad. or ask the father in law what was the nationality of his dad at the time of birth. Had his dad have any connection with the UK- i.e. he was born there, then the father in law who have classified today as a British citizen, and then what you mentioned before about "descent" and "other than descent" would apply. One has to bear in mind that the same check would have been made way back in the 1970s, prior to the issuance of the old passport- this was done as a matter of routine. There were some recorded cases where 'errors' were recorded, usually because incomplete information was supplied to the UK authorities or the embassies. therefore, it is worth checking. regards