35.1 For the purposes of this Rule, a competition, the entries for which are restricted to persons having a qualification for a County, Island or other area as provided by Rule 34, is referred to as an “area competition”.
35.2 A player is qualified to represent an area in a match or to play in an area competition if:
(A) he is a British Citizen in accordance with the British Nationality Act 1981 (as amended from time to time); or
(B) he/she is qualified to represent Great Britain under the appropriate ITF Rule; or
(C) Great Britain has been his permanent place of residence for a period of 24 consecutive months (12 months in the case of Juniors) immediately preceding the relevant match or competition;
and
(i) his/her place of birth or permanent residence at date of birth is in such area; or
(ii) his/her place of permanent residence has for at least one year immediately preceding the match or competition (six months in the case of Juniors) been in such area; or
(iii) at any time his place of permanent residence has for a period of five consecutive years been in such area; or
(iv) he/she is serving full-time in the British Regular Armed Forces and he has resided in such area for at least six months immediately preceding the match or competition; or he/she is the spouse or child of such a person and he/she has so resided with his/her spouse or parent.
35.3 The above provisions are subject to the following:
(A) War service or conscripted service under the orders of the government shall be held not to break any period of residential qualification.
(B) A player who has once played under the birth qualification in (i) may not exercise a birth qualification for another area in the event of a change of boundary having taken place since his date of birth.
(C) A player who has once played under either of the residential area qualifications in (ii) or (iii) may continue to do so until such time as he exercises any qualification in respect of another area when he shall forfeit all residential area qualifications previously exercised.
(D) No player may represent more than one area in any one competition and no player may represent an area if he has exercised a qualification in respect of another area during the previous 12 months (six months in the case of Juniors).
(E) A player is deemed to have represented an area if he has been nominated to play in a match for that area and has accepted such nomination, and to have played in an area competition if his entry for the same has been accepted.
(F) A British Citizen born abroad is entitled to adopt the area birth qualification of either parent (but this election may only be made once).
(G) Any person who, following a change of boundary or of the division or grouping of counties under these Rules, acquires a qualification for an area for which he was not qualified immediately prior to such change, is, subject to Rules 35.3(B) and (D), permitted to adopt and exercise such qualification (or, subject to the consent of the Company, another qualification to which he is entitled) on the next occasion when he exercises an area qualification, notwithstanding that he may have exercised a different area qualification during the previous 12 months (six months in the case of Juniors); and in the event of his playing in one area competition while another area competition in which he has played is still in progress he is permitted until the end of the competition which started first to represent the one area in one competition and the other area in the other.
(H) Residence at or in connection with an educational or training establishment does not of itself constitute a residential qualification.
35.4 All questions of interpretation or application of this Rule and any applications for consent of the Company under this Rule shall be determined by the Secretary. All such questions or applications must be made in writing to the Secretary. Such applications must be made not less than two months before the relevant match or competition, and must be accompanied by all relevant facts. The Secretary may request such further information, make such further enquiries and seek such advice as he deems necessary. Where the application is for the consent of the Company, the consent shall be given by the Secretary if the full circumstances warrant the consent being given.