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  by pltm
• Oct 18, 2016
• 0

(PLTM) - The Complaints Commissioner has received several complaints by persons who said they have been denied naturalization mainly on their apparent poor command of the English language. In the Complaints Commissioner's annual report, it was stated that in early 2015, persons complained that after they had applied for naturalization as a British Overseas Territory Citizen, they were denied approval on the basis that their knowledge of the English language was insufficient. The report stated that in looking into the matter, the Commissioner was advised that the Civil Registry and Passport Office were in discussions with the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (HLSCC), who has agreed to assist with the introduction of a formal English proficiency test for applications wishing to naturalize. "It would be also useful for persons who desire to learn the language," the report stated. After being so advised, the report stated that the intent to conduct the Own Motion Investigations (OMI) dubbed "Assessment of English language abilities" was discontinued for the time being. It was noted that at the time of writing the report, the Civil Registry was still working along with the college, with no known implementation date. The Governor's staff officer with responsibility for the subject area corroborated the Civil Registry's information on progress. Naturalisation is a process under the British Nationality Act of 1981 and the Virgin Islands Constitution Order of 2007, by which persons can become citizens of the Virgin Islands, while as a result of the British Overseas Territories (BOT) Act of 2002, British citizenship was extended to all BOT citizens. Persons naturalised as BOT citizens following the enactment of the Act on May 21, 2002, do not automatically become British citizens, but are eligible to register as British citizens. The extension of British citizenship to BOT citizens was part of the United Kingdom Government´s 1999 White Paper entitled Partnership for Progress and Prosperity, which outlined UK policy in respect of the Overseas Territories. In May of this year, fifty-two persons were naturalized.

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