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Until 1949, nearly everyone with a close connection to the United Kingdom was called a British Subject and all citizens of Commonwealth Countries were British Subjects until January 1983. Since 1983, very few categories of people have qualified as British Subjects.
You became a British Subject on 1 January 1983 if, up to that date, you were:
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a British Subject without citizenship, which means you were a British Subject on 31 December 1948 who did not become a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, a citizen of a Commonwealth Country, a citizen of Pakistan, or a citizen of the Republic of Ireland;
a person, who had been a citizen of Eire and a British Subject on 31 December 1948 and had made a claim to remain a British Subject; or
a woman, who had registered as a British Subject on the basis of your marriage to a man who was in one of the two categories above.
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If you are a citizen of the Republic of Ireland who was born before 1 January 1949 and you did not make a claim to remain a British Subject, as above, you may do so in certain circumstances.
British Subject normally cannot pass on that status to their children if the children were born after 1 January 1983. However, a child may be a British Subject in certain circumstances.
A person, who is stateless, may be able to register as a British Subject in certain circumstances.
Since 1 January 1983, a person who gains citizenship of any other country can no longer be a British Subject. However, this does not apply to a citizen of the Republic of Ireland who has made a claim to remain a British Subject as explained above.
Note - The rules about British Subject status changed in 1949 and again in 1983, so those dates are important when deciding if someone is a British Subject.
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