UK flag protocol | Free online guide | With illustrations

The national flag of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories is the Union Flag, which may also be called the Union Jack. The first Union Flag was created in and combined the flags of England and Scotland. The present Union Flag dates from when St Patrick’s Cross was added to represent Ireland. It then became possible to display the flag, incorrectly, upside down. There is no Flag Act in UK law, and the Union Flag is the national flag by long-established custom and practice rather than by statute.

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The Flag Protocol of the United Kingdom

The national flags of the United Kingdom (ie. the Union Flag and the flags of England, Scotland and Wales) should be displayed only in a dignified manner befitting the national emblems. They should not be displayed in a position inferior to any other flag or ensign.

It is improper to use the national flags as a table or seat cover or as a masking for boxes, barriers, or the intervening space between a dais or platform and the floor. The use of any of the national flags to cover a statue, monument or plaque for an unveiling ceremony is discouraged.

Flying the Flag

Flags may be flown on every day of the year. Government and local authority buildings in England, Scotland and Wales are encouraged to fly national flags every day of the year (the flying of flags at certain locations in Northern Ireland is constrained by The Flags Regulations [Northern Ireland] and Police Emblems and Flag Regulations [Northern Ireland] ).

Flags are normally flown from sunrise to sunset but they may also be flown at night, when they should be illuminated.

No permission is needed to fly the national flags and they are excluded from most planning and advertising regulations (but flagpoles may not be).

National flags should never be flown in a worn or damaged condition, or when soiled. To do so is to show disrespect for the nations they represent.

Important: the Union Flag has a correct way up – in the half of the flag nearest the flagpole, the wider diagonal white stripe must be above the red diagonal stripe, as Scotland’s St Andrew’s Cross takes precedence over Ireland’s St Patrick’s Cross. It is most improper to fly the flag upside down.

If a purely decorative effect is desired it is better to confine the display to flags of lesser status; for example, house flags, pennants or coloured bunting.

Position of Honour

The order of precedence of flags in the UK is: Royal Standards, the Union Flag, the flag of the host country (England, Scotland, Wales, etc.), flags of other nations (in alphabetical order, see the list below), the Commonwealth Flag, the European Union Flag, county flags, flags of cities or towns, banners of arms, and house flags. See Appendix B for a detailed precedence list and special precedence orders for international organisations.

When British national flags are flown with the flags of other nations each flag should be the same size (or have the same width – the measurement from top to bottom) and should fly from a separate flagpole of the same height. The UK’s flag shape of 3:5 works well with nearly all other nations’ flags and it is recommended to use these proportions if a standard size is required for all the flags in a display.

The senior British national flag (eg. the Union Flag or the flag of England, Scotland or Wales) should be raised first and lowered last, unless all the flags can be raised and lowered simultaneously. Flags should be raised and lowered in a dignified manner. An alternative British tradition for flag raising is to hoist the flag while rolled up and secured with a thin piece of cotton or a slip knot. A sharp tug of the halyard will break the cotton and release the flag to fly free. This is known as ‘breaking’ the flag, and is sometimes used to signal the beginning of an event, or the arrival of a VIP.

In Front of and On a Building

Where there are two or more flagpoles parallel to the building line, the senior national flag should be the first flag on the left of an observer facing the main entrance of the building. The remaining flags then appear in order of precedence from left to right.

Where there are two or more flagpoles on the forecourt of a building angled to the main entrance, the senior national flag should be flown on the outermost pole when the flagpoles are to the left of the main entrance and on the innermost pole when the flagpoles are to the right of the main entrance, as shown in the diagram.

If only one flag is to be flown and there are two flagpoles, it should be flown on the flagpole to the observer’s left. If there are more than two flagpoles, it should be flown as near as possible to the centre. This only applies when the other flagpoles remain empty. It is permissible to fly the same national flag on more than one flagpole by repeating the order of precedence.

If one flagpole is higher than the rest, then the senior national flag can fly from that flagpole; however no non-UK national flags can be flown on the other flagpoles. These can be used for more junior flags such as county and house flags. Alternatively the higher flagpole can be left empty and the remaining flagpoles used. In general when siting flagpoles it is preferable to keep them at the same level to avoid protocol restrictions.

The appropriate size of flag for any flagpole is a matter of aesthetics but, as a guide, a ground-level flagpole should have a flag whose length (its longer dimension) is no more than 1/3 of the pole’s height. A flagpole on top of a building may need a larger flag because of the added height of the building.

Within a Circle of Flags

In a semi-circle of flags representing a number of nations, the senior national flag should be in the centre. The remaining flags should be placed with the next most senior flag (or first in alphabetical order if all the flags are of equal seniority) on the left of the central flag, the next on the right of the central flag, the next on the 2nd left from the central flag, and continuing to alternate left and right.

In an enclosed circle of flags representing a number of nations, the senior national flag should be flown on the flagpole immediately opposite the main entrance to the venue, or above the Royal Box if there is no main entrance. The remaining flags should be arranged as for the semi-circle of flags described above. Alternatively they can be arranged alphabetically, going clockwise.

From a Flagpole with Yardarm and Gaff

When displayed on a flagpole fitted with yardarms (horizontal cross-pieces), the senior national flag or ensign should be flown from the starboard yardarm (the right as viewed from the rear, the left as viewed from the front).

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If the flagpole is fitted with a gaff (a short pole attached to the flagpole at an angle – see diagram), the senior ensign should be flown from the gaff. If there is no ensign to be flown, the gaff should be left empty and the senior national flag flown from the starboard yardarm, as described above.

A yacht club burgee or distinguishing flag can be flown from the masthead, the highest point of the flagpole.

In Processions

The senior national flag should always lead in a single file of flags.

When two or more flags are carried side-by-side, the senior national flag takes the position of honour at the right-hand side of the line facing the direction of movement (the left of an observer watching the line approach).

When passing the person taking the salute the flag should be lowered so that the staff is horizontal. This can be done by simply lowering the staff straight ahead, or by lowering the staff towards the person taking the salute and then swinging it round to straight ahead. All the movements should be slow and dignified. After the salute, the flag should be raised again.

On Vehicles

A car flag should be placed on a staff fitted to the front-right wing, in the centre of front edge of the bonnet, or in the centre of the front edge of the roof. If two flags are to be flown, the senior flag should be on the front-right wing and the junior flag on the front-left wing.

When flags are painted onto a vehicle, or on the tail fin of an aircraft, the flag on the port side should show the obverse of the flag (ie. the flagpole on the left), while that on the starboard side should show the reverse (ie. the flagpole on the right). On surfaces perpendicular to the direction of travel (eg. the back of the vehicle) the obverse of the flag should be shown.

Flags at Half-mast

Half-mast means the flag is flown two-thirds of the way up the flagpole, with at least the height of the flag between the top of the flag and the top of the flagpole. Flags cannot be flown at half-mast on poles that are more than 45° from the vertical, but a mourning cravat can be used instead (see below).

When a flag is to be flown at half-mast, it should first be raised all the way to the top of the mast, allowed to remain there for a second and then be lowered to the half-mast position. When it is being lowered from half-mast, it should again be raised to the top of the mast for a second before being fully lowered.

When a British national flag is at half-mast, other flags on the same stand of poles should also be at half-mast or should not be flown at all. Flags of foreign nations should not be flown, unless their country is also observing mourning.

The Royal Standard never flies at half-mast. It represents the Monarchy, which is continuous, and it would therefore be inappropriate for it to fly at half-mast.

Flags should be flown at half-mast on the following occasions:

1. From the announcement of the death until the funeral of the Sovereign, except on Proclamation Day when flags are flown at full-mast following the proclamation.
2. From the announcement of the death until the funeral of a member of the Royal Family styled ‘Majesty’ or ‘Royal Highness’, subject to special commands from the Sovereign in each case.
3. On the day of the announcement of the death and on the day of the funeral of other members of the Royal Family, subject to special commands from the Sovereign in each case.
4. The funerals of foreign Rulers, subject to special commands from the Sovereign in each case.
5. The funerals of Prime Ministers and ex-Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom, subject to special commands from the Sovereign in each case.
6. The funerals of First Ministers and ex-First Ministers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, subject to special commands from the Sovereign in each case. Unless otherwise commanded by the Sovereign, this only applies to flags in their respective countries.
7. At British Embassies, High Commissions and Missions when flags in the host country are flown at half-mast, subject to the discretion of the Chef de Mission.
8. Any other occasions where the Sovereign has given a special command.

If the body of a very distinguished citizen is lying in a building, the flag should fly at half-mast on that building until the body has left.

Possible Contentions

When flying flags of other countries, bear in mind that some countries do not get on well with some other countries, and flying flags of the countries they do not get on with can cause offence to representatives of those countries. A couple of examples: the Taiwan flag may cause offence to representatives of the People’s Republic of China; and the North Cyprus flag may cause offence to representatives of Cyprus and Greece. If you are planning to fly either of these flags it is worth checking who will be attending.

English Alphabetical Order

To help with international flag displays, the nations of the world are listed here in the normal English alphabetical order. The order uses the short name of the country rather than its formal name (ie. ‘Australia’ rather than ‘Commonwealth of Australia’) and ignores ‘The’. Some of the names that might not be familiar are: Congo-Brazzaville – the former French colony of Congo; Congo-Kinshasa – the former Belgian Congo, now formally called the Democratic Republic of Congo; and Côte d’Ivoire – the Ivory Coast.

The countries marked with an asterix (*) are British (the constituent countries of the UK, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories); for displays of flags within these countries, dependencies or territories, the local national flag takes precedence immediately after the Union Flag and before any British ensigns (White, RAF, Red, Blue and Civil Air). The remainder should be displayed in alphabetical order as shown, with the countries that make up the United Kingdom taking precedence.

Countries marked with a dagger symbol (†) are dependencies of other nations.

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