Clarifying Caymanian status and BOTC
What’s the legal difference between a Cayman national and a British Overseas Territories Citizen (BOTC)? How do you get to be one and not the other and which one leads to being able to get a BOTC passport? I have Cayman status but I’m not naturalised. Am I a Cayman citizen?
Auntie’s answer: I have answered a similar question before (See The ins and outs of Caymanian status), but since there still seems to be some confusion, I will take another stab at it. Before I start, I want to acknowledge once again the help of the Department of Immigration in guiding me.
Let me make one thing very clear first: There is no such thing as a “Cayman citizen”; that category is not a legal classification and simply does not exist. No one is a Cayman citizen. The same applies to the term “Cayman national”.
The descriptions that are relevant to this discussion are Caymanian and Caymanian status, which mean the same thing.
To be eligible to apply for a BOTC (Cayman Islands) passport, you first have to be naturalised. You can be naturalised as a British Overseas Territories Citizen if you have a connection with the Cayman Islands. Once you are granted permanent residency, you can apply to be naturalised.
Note: a person can be Caymanian and not be naturalised, or naturalised and not be Caymanian.
Once you are naturalised, you can then apply to be granted status, after which you will be considered Caymanian.
In your case, you have Cayman status but are not naturalised. To be eligible for a Cayman passport, you have to apply for naturalisation first. Here is a link to the immigration department website which explains the requirements for that application.
Category: Ask Auntie, Immigration Questions
Although your link goes to a page with the title “Naturalisation”, the actual information seems to be about “the right to be Caymanian”. Perhaps I am missing something?
Truthseeker