Running electoral registration - Scotland

Can a citizen from the British Overseas Territories register to vote?

British Overseas Territories citizens have the same status as Commonwealth citizens and are entitled to register as electors in respect of all elections, provided that they also fulfil the age and residence requirements for such registration and are not subject to any other legal incapacity.

British Overseas Territories
Anguilla	Montserrat
Bermuda	Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands
British Antarctic Territory	St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
British Indian Ocean Territory	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
Cayman Islands	Sovereign Base areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia on Cyprus
Falkland Islands	Turks and Caicos Islands
Gibraltar	Virgin Islands

British Overseas Territories citizens are not eligible to register as overseas electors, unless they also hold British citizenship, in which case they would be eligible providing they also meet the relevant eligibility conditions.

How do you process an application from a citizen from Hong Kong?

Following its transfer to Chinese sovereignty on 1 July 1997, Hong Kong was removed from the list of British Overseas Territories. As a result, former residents of Hong Kong are not automatically qualifying Commonwealth citizens.

Some individuals from Hong Kong hold a British-related nationality. The most common of these is British National Overseas (BNO). The other British-related nationalities are set out in the table below. These individuals are classified as Commonwealth citizens and meet the nationality requirements to register to vote in all elections in the UK.

Those who have moved to the UK as BNO dependents and who hold a BNO visa do not have a British-related nationality. They cannot register to vote for UK reserved polls but may be eligible to register as a qualifying foreign national and vote at local government and Scottish Parliament elections.

As well as BNO dependents, any previous resident of Hong Kong who does not have a British-related nationality and who only has a Chinese Special Administrative Region passport may only be eligible to register as a qualifying foreign national.

The following table sets out the eligibility for different Hong Kong related nationalities in Scotland:

Individual from Hong Kong	Eligibility
Hong Konger who holds one of the following British-related nationalities: British National Overseas British Overseas Citizen British Overseas Territories Citizen	Eligible to register to vote for all UK elections
BNO dependent without a British-related nationality	Eligible to register as a qualifying foreign national in Scotland
Hong Konger without a British-related nationality	Eligible to register as a qualifying foreign national in Scotland

Individual from Hong Kong

Eligibility

Hong Konger who holds one of the following British-related nationalities:

British National Overseas
British Overseas Citizen
British Overseas Territories Citizen

Eligible to register to vote for all UK elections

BNO dependent without a British-related nationality

Eligible to register as a qualifying foreign national in Scotland

Hong Konger without a British-related nationality

Eligible to register as a qualifying foreign national in Scotland

If you are unsure if someone has a British-related nationality, you should use your powers to request evidence from the elector. Acceptable evidence to verify the nationality of someone from Hong Kong includes:

Type of evidence	What to look for
Visa	This is the recommended way to verify the nationality of someone from Hong Kong. You can request their share code to check the details on their e-visa. More information can be found on the gov.uk website. If the citizen code on the visa is GBN, this signifies the holder is a Commonwealth citizen under UK law and therefore entitled to full voting rights. If the citizen code is CHN, this indicates that the individual does not hold a British-related nationality and is only eligible to register as a qualifying foreign national. This includes BNO dependents.
BNO passport	Not all BNO nationals will hold a BNO passport, which is why the recommended documents to verify all Hong Kong-related nationalities are visas. However, where a BNO passport is available, it can be used. The nationality is listed in the information at the back of the passport. BNO nationality is indicated as: British National (Overseas). Expired BNO passports may also be accepted. When using a passport to verify someone’s nationality, you should be satisfied that the nationality stated on the document matches the individual’s highest qualifying nationality.

Type of evidence

What to look for

Visa

This is the recommended way to verify the nationality of someone from Hong Kong. You can request their share code to check the details on their e-visa. More information can be found on the gov.uk website.

If the citizen code on the visa is GBN, this signifies the holder is a Commonwealth citizen under UK law and therefore entitled to full voting rights.

If the citizen code is CHN, this indicates that the individual does not hold a British-related nationality and is only eligible to register as a qualifying foreign national. This includes BNO dependents.

BNO passport

Not all BNO nationals will hold a BNO passport, which is why the recommended documents to verify all Hong Kong-related nationalities are visas. However, where a BNO passport is available, it can be used.

The nationality is listed in the information at the back of the passport. BNO nationality is indicated as: British National (Overseas).

Expired BNO passports may also be accepted.

When using a passport to verify someone’s nationality, you should be satisfied that the nationality stated on the document matches the individual’s highest qualifying nationality.

Last updated: 7 April 2026