United Kingdom ancestry
This page explains how Commonwealth citizens with United Kingdom ancestry may be able to apply for permission to live and work here.
If you are a citizen of a Commonwealth country and one of your grandparents was born in the United Kingdom (including the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man), you have United Kingdom ancestry.
Eligibility
You can come here to work if you can show that:
- you are a Commonwealth citizen;
- you have a visa or other form of permission to enter the United Kingdom because of United Kingdom ancestry, or your permission to stay here in this category has previously been extended;
- you are aged 17 or over;
- you have a grandparent who was born in the United Kingdom (including the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man), or a grandparent who was born before 31 March 1922 in what is now the Republic of Ireland;
- you are able to work and you plan to work in the United Kingdom; and
- you can adequately support and accommodate yourself and your dependants without help from public funds (see rights and responsibilities for an explanation of this).
If you do not meet these requirements, you will need to apply under one of our other work-based immigration routes in order to work here.
Applying from outside the United Kingdom
You must obtain permission to enter the United Kingdom (known as 'entry clearance') on the basis of your United Kingdom ancestry before you travel here. This entry clearance will take the form of a visa or entry clearance certificate - to obtain it, you should apply to the British diplomatic post in the country where you live. For more information, see our visa services website.
If we give you permission to enter and work in the United Kingdom because of your United Kingdom ancestry, you will be allowed to stay for five years.
Applying from inside the United Kingdom
If you have already entered the United Kingdom with a different kind of visa, you cannot switch to the United Kingdom ancestry category. We will only give you permission to stay in the country on the basis of United Kingdom ancestry if:
- you entered the United Kingdom holding entry clearance based on your United Kingdom ancestry; or
- we have already given you permission to stay based on United Kingdom ancestry.
Settling or extending your stay in the United Kingdom
If you have lived and worked continuously in the United Kingdom for five years in this category, and if you still meet the United Kingdom ancestry requirements (see 'Eligibility' above), you can apply to live here permanently. The Settlement section explains how to apply.
If you do not want to settle here, you can apply to extend your stay instead. The Extending your stay section explains how to apply using form FLR(BID).
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Terms explained
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Commonwealth
The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 53 independent countries that consult and co-operate in the common interests of their people to promote international understanding and world peace. All of the member countries, except for Mozambique, have experienced direct or indirect British rule, or have been linked administratively to another Commonwealth country. For a list of members, and more information, see the Commonwealth Secretariat website.
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Diplomatic post
A British diplomatic post is a United Kingdom embassy, high commission or consulate.
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Leave to remain
Leave to remain is permission to stay in the United Kingdom, either temporarily (limited leave to remain) or permanently (indefinite leave to remain).