Approximate read time: 10 minutes
The government has published explanatory notes and a human rights memorandum, factsheet and press release to accompany the bill.
Section 40 of the British Nationality Act 1981 allows the home secretary to deprive a person of British citizenship if they consider it conducive to the public good, or if the person obtained their citizenship by fraud, false representation or concealment of a material fact. The Home Office has explained the circumstances in which this power is exercised:
- Deprivation of citizenship where is it conducive to the public good is reserved for those who pose a threat to the UK or whose conduct involved very high harm. This includes, but is not limited to, conduct such as terrorism, war crimes, espionage, serious organised crime or unacceptable behaviour such as the “glorification” of terrorism.
- Deprivation on the grounds of fraud is for those who obtained their citizenship fraudulently and were never entitled to it.
The home secretary may make a deprivation of citizenship order on the grounds of fraud even if it would make a person stateless. However, the home secretary may not make a deprivation of citizenship order where conducive to the public good if this would make a person stateless, unless that person obtained their citizenship through naturalisation and the home secretary:
- is satisfied that deprivation is conducive to the public good because the person, while having that citizenship status, conducted themselves in a manner seriously prejudicial to the vital interests of the UK
- has reasonable grounds to believe the person is able to become a national of another country or territory
In practice this means a person who was born a British citizen and has no claim to another nationality cannot be deprived of their citizenship.
Decisions to deprive someone of citizenship are taken personally by the home secretary and anyone subject to such an order may appeal the decision.
In February 2025 the Supreme Court held that a person deprived of their British citizenship automatically and retrospectively regains that status following a successful appeal, irrespective of whether the home secretary seeks permission to appeal that judgment.
The Home Office maintains there are “strong justifications for preventing a person regaining their British citizenship until all further appeals are determined, withdrawn, or abandoned”. The department’s factsheet on the bill says these include:
- preventing a person who is outside the UK and who poses a risk to the UK’s national security from returning until further appeals have been determined
- preventing a person who has been deprived of citizenship on the grounds that it is conducive to the public good from renouncing their other nationality and putting themselves in a position whereby, if further appeals are successful, a further deprivation order would render them stateless
- preventing another state from interfering with the UK’s use of deprivation powers by their removal of the person’s alternative citizenship so that if further appeals are successful, a further UK deprivation order would unlawfully render the person stateless
- [allowing] the use of immigration powers such as detention and immigration bail while an onward appeal is outstanding
The government has introduced the Deprivation of Citizenship Orders (Effect during Appeal) Bill to ensure an order continues to have legal effect until all onward appeals have been determined or the period in which to appeal has elapsed.
The House of Commons has passed the measure. The House of Lords is scheduled to debate the bill at second reading on 14 October 2025.
Image by Steve Cadman on Flickr.
This briefing was updated on 11 September 2025 to add the bill’s expected second reading date and make reference to a letter from the Home Office to the Joint Committee on Human Rights made available in early September 2025.
