Gibraltarian status

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Gibraltarian status is a legal status in Gibraltar law defined by the Gibraltarian Status Act, 1962. Persons with Gibraltarian status are registered on the Register of Gibraltarians.

Contents

History

The term was coined in the 1920s at a time of increasing awareness of national identity and was popularised during World War II, when the civil population of Gibraltar was evacuated to the United Kingdom and other parts of the British Empire. In 1962, the term was made a legal status in Gibraltar through the Gibraltarian Status Ordinance (1962). [1] The Ordinance became the Gibraltarian Status Act, 1962 following the implementation of the Gibraltar Constitution Order 2006.

The Register of Gibraltarians pre-dates Gibraltarian status - the register was created in 1955 while Gibraltarian status originates with the Gibraltarian Status Act, 1962. The 1962 Act provides a legal framework for the register, and defines who is eligible to be listed on the register.

Eligibility for Gibraltarian status

The following is a summary of the eligibility for Gibraltarian status contained in the 1962 Act. See the text of the act for full details.

A person is eligible to be registered as a Gibraltarian if they are a British national and:

Further provisions provide for the registration of adopted children.

Additionally, a person may be registered as a Gibraltarian at the discretion of the Government of Gibraltar minister with responsibility for personal status, if they satisfy the minister that:

Further provisions provide for the registration of children, adopted children and spouses of those registered at the discretion of the minister with responsibility for personal status.

Rights

Persons with Gibraltarian status have full right of residence in Gibraltar. Any Gibraltarian who is a British Overseas Territories citizen and/or a British citizen was a citizen of the European Union until Brexit and enjoyed freedom of movement in the European Union.

On 31 December 2020, the governments of Spain and the United Kingdom reached a deal to allow Gibraltar to join the Schengen area. [2]

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References

  1. Gibraltarian Status Act (1962)
  2. "Brexit: Gibraltar gets UK-Spain deal to keep open border". BBC News. 31 December 2020. Retrieved 1 January 2021.

See also