British Overseas Territories travel guide

About British Overseas Territories

There are 14 British Overseas Territories in all. The last vestiges of the British Empire they are: Bermuda, Gibraltar, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, the Falkland Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands, Anguilla, British Indian Ocean Territory, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory, St Helena and its dependencies (Ascension and Tristan da Cunha), Montserrat, the Pitcairn Group of Islands, and the Sovereign Base Areas on Cyprus.

These territories are under the sovereignty and formal control of the UK but are not an actual part of the UK. Most British Overseas Territories are self-governing but rely on the UK in crucial matters of foreign policy etc. Since they are separate jurisdictions, there is no British Overseas Territories' representation in the British parliament. The UK exerts its formal control through a governor of each territory, appointed by the British Monarch.

In addition to the 14 British Overseas Territories, there are two British Crown Dependencies, which include the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands, which are dependencies of the British Crown whilst exercising considerable self-government in domestic affairs.

Many British aspects are apparent in the crown dependencies, such as the UK telephone numbering plan or a BBC presence, although this is not always the case. Acts of the British parliament rarely – but occasionally – apply to the crown dependencies.

The following territories and dependencies have their own sections: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Turks & Caicos Islands, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands.