Building a new Scotland: citizenship in an independent Scotland - easy read

Building a new Scotland : Citizenship in an Independent Scotland : Easy Read version

This paper is a short easy read version of the Scottish Government's proposals for citizenship in an independent Scotland. You can view the full paper and supporting evidence here: https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781835211816

Citizenship means a person has a legal right to live, work and vote in a country. When you are a citizen of a country, you have certain rights and privileges.

This paper will tell you:

• How people would be citizens in an independent Scotland, whether they were born in Scotland or think of themselves as Scottish

• Who would become a Scottish citizen if Scotland becomes independent, and who could become a Scottish citizen after that

These proposals are about making Scottish citizenship inclusive and welcoming.

Most Scottish people right now are British citizens. If Scotland becomes an independent country, many of them would become Scottish citizens.

Scottish citizens would have the right to live and work freely in Scotland. They would also be able to get a Scottish passport.

UK law allows British citizens to hold more than one nationality. If Scotland became independent, we want the law to allow Scottish citizens to do the same.

British citizens would not have to become Scottish citizens in an independent Scotland to live and work here. Scotland would still be part of the Common Travel Area, which includes the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man.

Ways to become a Scottish citizen

1. Automatic citizenship

You would automatically be able to choose to be a Scottish citizen if Scotland becomes independent if you are already a British citizen and:

• you live in Scotland at the time of independence
• you were born in Scotland
• you have a parent who was a British citizen born in Scotland

• you have lived in Scotland for at least ten years at some point before independence, or
• you have lived in Scotland for at least five years as a child at some point before independence

If you do not live in Scotland and your Scottish citizenship is based on your past or your family, you may be asked to provide evidence of your connection to Scotland before becoming a citizen.

If you did not want to automatically become a Scottish citizen, you would be able to say no.

2. Children born after independence

Children born in an independent Scotland would automatically be Scottish citizens if at least one of their parents was:

• a Scottish citizen
• a British or Irish citizen
• 'settled' in Scotland under Scottish immigration law

A child born outside Scotland would automatically be a Scottish citizen if at least one of their parents is a Scottish citizen.

3. Registering as a Scottish citizen

In an independent Scotland some people would be able to register as Scottish citizens. That would be the case if they have lived in Scotland for at least five years.

There are two groups of people who would be able to register:

• British and Irish citizens living in Scotland
• children of any nationality living in Scotland who were brought up here

Anyone else wanting to become a Scottish citizen would be able to apply.

4. Applying to be a Scottish citizen

Anyone can apply to become a citizen of another country. The background of an applicant would be checked before a decision on citizenship is made.

A person of another nationality could apply to become a Scottish citizen if they:

• had lived in Scotland for at least five years and
• had "settled" in Scotland under Scottish immigration law for at least 12 months

Passports

Scottish citizens would be entitled to hold a Scottish passport in an independent Scotland.

You would not need to hold a Scottish passport if you do not want one and you would not get a Scottish passport automatically if you were to become a Scottish citizen.

Your passport application would need to prove that you are a Scottish citizen, the same way British citizens apply for a British passport now.

The Common Travel Area and the European Union

Scotland is part of a Common Travel Area on these islands. In an independent Scotland, British and Irish citizens would be able to live and work in Scotland as they do now. Scottish citizens would keep the same rights in the UK and in Ireland.

Scotland would seek to rejoin the European Union (EU), and allow Scottish citizens would once again become EU citizens. This would allow them and their families to live, work and study freely across most of Europe.

Citizenship and the constitution

A constitutionis a set of rules that guide how a country works. The UK does not have a written constitution. If Scotland became independent, it would make its own constitution.

The plans for citizenship would be part of the constitution if Scotland becomes independent. How this would work is set out in the paper, 'Building A New Scotland: Creating a modern constitution for an independent Scotland'.

The process of writing the constitution would be inclusive. The people in Scotland would decide what is in the permanent constitution.

Conclusion

Independence would create a new nationality and would give the people of Scotland a chance to be part of that national identity.

Being a Scottish citizen would be a meaningful, positive outcome of independence.