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A dependent territory, dependent area, or dependency (sometimes referred as an external territory) is a territory that does not possess full political independence or sovereignty as a sovereign state and remains politically outside the controlling state's integral area. As such, a dependent territory includes a range of non-integrated not fully to non-independent territory types, from associated states to non-self-governing territories (e.g. a colony).
A dependent territory is commonly distinguished from a country subdivision by being considered not to be a constituent part of a sovereign state. An administrative subdivision, instead, is understood to be a division of a state proper. A dependent territory, conversely, often maintains a great degree of autonomy from its controlling state. Historically, most colonies were considered to be dependent territories. Not all autonomous entities, though, are considered to be dependent territories.[1][failed verification] Most inhabited, dependent territories have their own ISO 3166 country codes.
Some political entities inhabit a special position guaranteed by an international treaty or another agreement, thereby creating a certain level of autonomy (e.g. a difference in immigration rules). Those entities are sometimes considered to be, or are at least grouped with, dependent territories,[2] but are officially considered by their governing states to be an integral part of those states.[2] Such an example is Åland, an autonomous region of Finland.
Summary
The lists below include the following:
Dependent territories
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- Two states in free association, one dependent territory, and one Antarctic claim in the listing for New Zealand
- One uninhabited territory and two Antarctic claims in the listing for Norway
- 13 overseas territories (ten autonomous, two used primarily as military bases, and one uninhabited), three Crown dependencies, and one Antarctic claim in the listing for the United Kingdom
- 13 unincorporated territories (five inhabited and eight uninhabited) and two claimed but uncontrolled territories in the listing for the United States
Similar entities
- Six external territories (three inhabited and three uninhabited) and one Antarctic claim in the listing for Australia
- Two special administrative regions in the listing for China
- Two self-governing territories with autonomy in internal affairs in the listing for Denmark
- One autonomous region governed according to an act and international treaties in the listing for Finland
- Five autonomous overseas collectivities, one sui generis collectivity, and two uninhabited overseas territories (one of which includes an Antarctic claim) in the listing for France
- Three constituent countries with autonomy in internal affairs in the listing for the Netherlands
- One internal territory with limited sovereignty in the listing for Norway
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Lists of dependent territories
This list includes all territories that have not been legally incorporated into their governing state, including several territories that are not on the list of non-self-governing territories of the General Assembly of the United Nations.[3] All claims in Antarctica are listed in italics.
New Zealand
New Zealand has two self-governing associated states, one dependent territory, and a territorial claim in Antarctica.[4][better source needed]
| Associated state | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
|---|---|---|
 Cook Islands |
Self-governing state in free association with New Zealand since 1965. Cook Islands' status is considered to be equivalent to independence for international law purposes, and the country exercises full sovereignty over its internal and external affairs.[5] Under the terms of the free association agreement, however, New Zealand retains some responsibility for the foreign relations and defence of the Cook Islands. These responsibilities confer no rights of control and are exercised only at the request of the Cook Islands Government. The government of New Zealand does not consider it appropriate for the Cook Islands to have a separate seat at the United Nations, due to its continued use of the right of Cook Islanders to have New Zealand citizenship.[6] | CK |
 Niue |
Self-governing state in free association with New Zealand since 1974. Niue's status is considered to be equivalent to independence for international law purposes, and the country exercises full sovereignty over its internal and external affairs.[5] Under the terms of the free association agreement, however, New Zealand retains some responsibility for the foreign relations and defence of Niue. These responsibilities confer no rights of control and are exercised only at the request of the Government of Niue. The government of New Zealand does not consider it appropriate for the Niue to have a separate seat at the United Nations, due to its continued use of the right of Niueans to have New Zealand citizenship.[6] | NU |
| Dependent territory | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
 Tokelau |
Territory of New Zealand. A UN-sponsored referendum on self-governance in February 2006 did not produce the two-thirds supermajority necessary for changing the current political status. Another one was in October 2007, which failed to reach the two-thirds margin.[7] | TK |
| Dependent territory (uninhabited, claimed) |
Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
 Ross Dependency |
This is New Zealand's Antarctic claim. Unlike Tokelau and the associated states (Cook Islands and Niue), the Ross Dependency is, according to the New Zealand government, constitutionally part of New Zealand.[8] |
Norway
Norway has one dependent territory and two Antarctic claims. Norway also possesses the inhabited islands of Svalbard where Norwegian sovereignty is limited (see below).
| Dependent territory (uninhabited) |
Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
|---|---|---|
 Bouvet Island |
Dependency administered from Oslo by the Polar Affairs Department of the Ministry of Justice and the Police. | BV |
| Dependent territory (uninhabited, claimed) |
Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
| Peter I Island |
Dependencies (subject to the Antarctic Treaty System) administered from Oslo by the Polar Affairs Department of the Ministry of Justice and the Police. | |
| Queen Maud Land
|
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has three "Crown Dependencies", thirteen "Overseas Territories" (ten autonomous, two used primarily as military bases, and one uninhabited), and one Antarctic claim.
United States
The United States has 13 "unincorporated" dependent territories under its administration and two claimed territories outside its control.[12] The uninhabited Palmyra Atoll is administered similarly to some of these territories, and is usually included on lists of U.S. overseas territories, but it is excluded from this list because it is classified in U.S. law as an incorporated territory.[13] The U.S. Constitution does not apply in full to the insular areas.[14]
| Unincorporated organized territory | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
|---|---|---|
 Guam |
Unincorporated organized territory of the U.S.; policy relations conducted through the Office of Insular Affairs of the Department of the Interior. Appears on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories | GU or |
 Northern Mariana Islands |
Unincorporated organized territory of the U.S. with Commonwealth status; federal funding administered by the Office of Insular Affairs of the Department of the Interior | MP or |
 Puerto Rico |
Unincorporated organized territory of the U.S. with Commonwealth status; policy relations conducted through the Executive Office of the President | PR or |
 U.S. Virgin Islands |
Unincorporated organized territory of the U.S. Policy relations conducted by the Office of Insular Affairs of the Department of the Interior. Appears on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories | VI or |
| Unincorporated unorganized territory | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
 American Samoa |
Unincorporated unorganized territory administered by the Office of Insular Affairs of the Department of the Interior. Appears on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories | AS or |
| Unincorporated unorganized territory (uninhabited)[note 3] |
Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
 Baker Island |
Unincorporated unorganized territories of the U.S. administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Interior | UM-81 |
| Howland Island
|
UM-84 | |
| Jarvis Island
|
UM-86 | |
| Johnston Atoll
|
UM-67 | |
| Kingman Reef
|
UM-89 | |
| Midway Atoll
|
UM-71 | |
| Navassa Island |
Unincorporated unorganized territory of the U.S. administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Interior from the Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico | UM-76 |
 Wake Island |
Unincorporated unorganized territory of the U.S. administered by the U.S. Air Force under an agreement with the Department of the Interior | UM-79 |
| Unincorporated unorganized territory (uninhabited, claimed) |
Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
| Bajo Nuevo Bank | Administered by Colombia. Claimed by the U.S. (under the Guano Islands Act) and Jamaica. A claim by Nicaragua was resolved in 2012 in favor of Colombia by the International Court of Justice (the U.S. is not a party nor recognises the court's jurisdiction). | |
| Serranilla Bank | Administered by Colombia. Site of a naval garrison. Claimed by the U.S. (since 1879 under the Guano Islands Act), Honduras, and Jamaica. A claim by Nicaragua was resolved in 2012 in favor of Colombia by the International Court of Justice (the U.S. is not a party nor recognises the court's jurisdiction). |
Lists of similar entities
The following entities are, according to the law of their state, integral parts of the state but exhibit many characteristics of dependent territories. This list is generally limited to entities that are either subject to an international treaty on their status, uninhabited, or have a unique level of autonomy and are largely self-governing in matters other than international affairs. It generally does not include entities with no unique autonomy, such as the five overseas departments and regions (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Réunion) of France; the BES islands (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba) of the Netherlands; Jan Mayen of Norway; and Palmyra Atoll of the United States. Entities with only limited unique autonomy, such as Barbuda of Antigua and Barbuda; Sabah and Sarawak of Malaysia; the two autonomous regions (the Azores and Madeira) of Portugal; Nevis of Saint Kitts and Nevis; the Canary Islands and the two autonomous cities (Ceuta and Melilla) of Spain; and Zanzibar of Tanzania are also not included. All claims in Antarctica are listed in italics.
Australia
Australia has six external territories in its administration and one Antarctic claim.
Although all territories of Australia are considered to be fully integrated in its federal system, and the official status of an external territory does not differ largely from that of a mainland territory (except in regards to immigration law), debate remains as to whether the external territories are integral parts of Australia, due to their not being part of Australia in 1901, when its constituent states federated (with the exception of the Coral Sea Islands, which was a part of Queensland).[15] Norfolk Island was self-governing from 1979 to 2016.[16] The external territories are often grouped separately from Australia proper for statistical purposes.[citation needed]
| External territory | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
|---|---|---|
 Christmas Island |
Administered from Canberra by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts[17] | CX |
 Cocos (Keeling) Islands |
CC | |
 Norfolk Island |
NF | |
| External territory (uninhabited) |
Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
 Ashmore and Cartier Islands |
Administered from Canberra by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts[17] | No unique ISO 3166 country codes |
| Coral Sea Islands[note 4]
| ||
| Heard Island and McDonald Islands |
Administered from Canberra by the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment[17] | HM |
| External territory (uninhabited, claimed) |
Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
| Australian Antarctic Territory |
Administered from Canberra by the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment[17] |
China
The People's Republic of China (PRC) has two special administrative regions (SARs) that are governed according to the constitution and respective basic laws. The SARs greatly differ from Mainland China in administrative, economic, legislative, and judicial terms including by currency, left-hand versus right-hand traffic, official languages, and immigration control. Although the PRC does claim sovereignty over Taiwan (governed by the Republic of China), it is not listed here as the PRC government does not have de facto control of the territory.
| Special administrative region | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
|---|---|---|
 Hong Kong |
Former British colony. Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China since 1997 according to the Sino-British Joint Declaration, an international treaty registered with the United Nations. The Hong Kong Basic Law purports to provide for the territory to enjoy a "high degree" of autonomy per the "one country, two systems" model under the central government of China. Although the territory is not part of mainland China, it is officially considered an integral part of the People's Republic of China.[18][19][20] | HK or |
 Macao |
Former Portuguese colony. Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China since 1999 according to the Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration, an international treaty registered with the United Nations. The Macao Basic Law provides for the territory to enjoy a high degree of autonomy per the "one country, two systems" model under the central government of China. Although the territory is not part of mainland China, it is officially considered an integral part of the People's Republic of China. | MO or |
Denmark
The Kingdom of Denmark contains two autonomous territories with their own governments and legislatures, and input into foreign affairs.[21]
| Autonomous territory | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
|---|---|---|
 Faroe Islands |
Autonomous since 1948.[21] A constituent part of the Kingdom of Denmark, but not of the European Union | FO |
 Greenland |
Autonomous since 1979.[21] A constituent part of the Kingdom of Denmark, but withdrew from the European Economic Community in 1985 | GL |
Finland
Finland has one autonomous region that is also subject to international treaties.
| Autonomous region | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
|---|---|---|
 Åland |
Åland is governed according to the Act on the Autonomy of Åland and international treaties. These laws guarantee the islands' autonomy in Finland, which has ultimate sovereignty over them, as well as a demilitarised status. | AX or |
France
France has overseas six autonomous collectivities and two uninhabited territories (one of which includes an Antarctic claim). This does not include its "standard" overseas regions (which are also overseas departments) of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Réunion. Although also located overseas, they have the same status as the regions of metropolitan France. Nonetheless, all of France's overseas territory is considered an integral part of the French Republic.
| Overseas collectivity | Administration | ISO 3166 country code |
|---|---|---|
 French Polynesia |
Overseas collectivity since 2003; overseas country since 2004. Appears on the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories | PF or |
 Saint Barthélemy |
Seceded from Guadeloupe to become an overseas collectivity in 2007 | BL or |
 Saint Martin |
Seceded from Guadeloupe to become an overseas collectivity in 2007. It is the only overseas collectivity that is fully part of the European Union. | MF or |
 Saint Pierre and Miquelon |
Territorial collectivity since 1985. Overseas collectivity since 2003 | PM or |
 Wallis and Futuna |
Overseas territory since 1961. Overseas collectivity since 2003 | WF or |