Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what are the reasons for delays in scheduling citizenship ceremonies and issuing certificates to British Overseas Territories citizens approved for British citizenship under the BOTC(F) process.

For applicants in the UK, we are amending the British Nationality (Overseas Territories) Regulations 2007 so that registrars in the UK can administer the oath and pledge for British overseas territories citizenship. In the interim, Governors of overseas territories can waive the need for a citizenship ceremony on a case by case basis. We will shortly be holding citizenship ceremonies where applicants can receive both certificates.

For applications made outside the UK, Governors and FCDO staff are permitted to conduct ceremonies for both British overseas territories citizenship and British citizenship. Customers in these territories, which represent the majority of cases, are unaffected.