The Straits Settlements [ Malay: Negeri-negeri Selat, نݢري٢ سلت Chinese: 叻嶼呷 or 海峽殖民地 ] were a group of British settlements located in Southeast Asia. The Straits Settlements was formed by the amalgamation of Penang (Prince of Wales Island, Province Wellesley and Dindings), Malacca and Singapore in 1826 which were governed by the East India Company. In 1858 control passed from the East India Company to the British government's India Office and on 1 April 1867, the Straits Settlements became a crown colony answerable directly to the Colonial Office in London after Letters Patent had granted the Settlements a colonial constitution on 4 February 1867.
 
As a Crown Colony, the Straits Settlements was ruled by a governor, based in Singapore, with the assistance of executive and legislative councils. A lieutenant governor was appointed for each settlement to supervise the day-to-day administration.
 
The Territory and Islands of Dindings was an enclave in the State of Perak which included Pangkor Island as well as the towns of Lumut, and Sitiawan on the mainland. The combined area of about 183 square miles, were ceded by Perak to the British government under the Pangkor Treaty of 1874 (Pangkor Engagement). On 6 June 1934, a treaty was signed by Sultan Iskandar Shah, which meant the return of Dinding back to Perak and Dindings Agreement (Approval) Bill was subsequently received by the Royal Assent at the British Parliament on 16 November 1934.^[1][2][3] It was returned to and administered by the government of Perak officially on 16 February 1935.

The island of Labuan ( لابوان ), off the coast of Borneo, was incorporated into the colony with effect from 1 January 1907. On 1 December 1912^[4] it received a new status as a separate and formed the fourth settlement, named Settlement of Labuan within Straits Settlements.

The Cocos (Keeling) and Christmas Islands were annexed as part of the Straits Settlements in February 1886 and June 1888 respectively. Christmas Island was incorporated into the Settlement of Singapore on 1 September 1900^[5] and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands on 15 July 1903^[6].
The territory was under Japanese Occupation from 1942 to 1945 and later under British Military Administration from 1945 to 1946.

The decision to dissolve the Straits Settlements was based on a white paper issued by the British government in London in January 1946. The white paper had posited that it was imperative to regroup the Straits Settlements and the Malay states into two separate administrative entities – namely the Colony of Singapore and the Malayan Union – due to the prevailing political post-war conditions at the time. The move was deemed necessary to prepare Singapore and the Malay states for eventual self-government. The Malayan Union comprised the nine Malay states and the settlements of Penang and Malacca. The dissolution of the Straits Settlements was finalised by the passage of the Straits Settlements (Repeal) Act in the British Parliament.

After the Straits Settlements was dissolved on 1 April 1946, Singapore together with the Cocos (Keeling) and Christmas Islands was separated to form Crown Colony of Singapore, while Penang and Malacca joined the new Malayan Union. Labuan was briefly annexed to Singapore before becoming a part of the new colony of British North Borneo on 15 July 1946.

On 23 November 1955, Cocos (Keeling) Islands were transferred from the United Kingdom to the Commonwealth of Australia. At Australia's request, the United Kingdom transferred sovereignty to Australia, with a M$20 million payment from the Australian government to Singapore as compensation for the loss of earnings from the phosphate revenue. The United Kingdom’s Christmas Island Act was given royal assent on 14 May 1958, enabling Britain to transfer authority over Christmas Island from Singapore to Australia by an order-in-council. Australia's Christmas Island Act was passed in September 1958 and the island was officially placed under the authority of the Commonwealth of Australia on 1 October 1958.

BRITISH SUBJECT

In 1858, the Straits Settlements became part of the Crown’s Dominions and since then, the nationality status of the population was determined by the British nationality law, therefore every person is naturally born in the Crown Colony no matter what his parentage, became a natural-born British Subject. The term was used to denote de facto citizenship of the United Kingdom and the British Empire as every person born within the dominions and allegiance of the British Crown was, based on English common law a British subject. To be a subject required only that a person be born in any territory under the sovereignty of the Crown. From time to time, statutes were passed expanding the class of persons who held the status of the subject.

Apart from being born, a person may be naturalised within British Empire colonies and dominions.

The term subject is used rather than citizen because in a monarchy the monarch is the source of authority in whose name all legal power in civil and military law is exercised. The people of a monarchy in former times were regarded as the monarch's subjects who were under certain obligations such as owing allegiance to and thereby entitled to the protection of, the Crown.

Despite the single term of British Subject used within the Colony, it was still being divided into:

• British (White European)
• Anglo-Chinese (also known as Straits Chinese but lesser-known as Queen's Chinese, later King's Chinese)
• British Indian
• British Malay

As Straits Settlements were governed by the East India Company, therefore every act passed by the Indian Act 1852 was also valid in these colonies and in particular Indian Act No. XXX of 1852 (An Act for the Naturalization of Aliens) which was enacted and passed in the Indian Council by the Governor-General of India on 16 July 1852. This Act was to distinguish the local-born populations and immigrants in the area governed by East India Company. It was local naturalization in the British dominions by providing the status of natural-born British subject by naturalization. Paragraph VIII of the Act further explained that the rights, privileges and capacities shall be granted as for a British subject. The imperative emphasise was on a person must be born within the British dominion and shall be deemed a natural-born British subject.
 
After the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914 legislation came into force on 1 January 1915, British subject status was acquired as follows:

• Born within His Majesty's dominions
• Naturalisation in the United Kingdom or a part of His Majesty's dominions which had adopted Imperial naturalisation criteria
• Descent through the legitimate male line (child born outside His Majesty's dominions to a British subject father)
• Foreign women who married British subject men
• Former British subjects who had lost British subject status on marriage or through a parent's loss of status could resume it in specific circumstances (e.g. if a woman became widowed, or children immediately upon turning 21)

Definition of natural-born British Subject, based on British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914, Section 1^[7]
 
Definition of British Subject, based on British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914, Section 27^[7]
 
When the Naturalization Act was enforced, the early Straits Chinese who received the privilege of being British subjects were actually the Chinese of Fujian origin. The new Chinese immigrants who came after the formation of Straits Settlements in 1867 were labelled as sinkeh (new arrival).

BRITISH SUBJECT: WOMAN

Any woman who, having been born a British subject may lose her status and become an alien if she married someone who is not a British Subject. Her status will then follow the status of the current husband.

But the status is recoverable if she was divorced or widowed.

MIGRATION CONTROL
 
REGISTRATION OF ALIENS. Ordinance No. 160. 1st May, 1917, section 2 (Vol 4, p 733)
   
PASSENGERS RESTRICTION. Ordinance No. 169. 11th April, 1919
 
NATURALIZATION ACT 1867

Ordinance No. 11.
[ACT VIII. OF 1867; 24th May, 1867.]