Frequently Asked Questions:
On Dual Citizenship under
Australian Law
Will I lose my Australian citizenship if I
acquire the citizenship of another country?
If you acquired another citizenship on or after 4 April
2002, you will not lose your Australian citizenship. The
Australian Citizenship Act 1948 was amended, so that after
4 April 2002 Australian citizens can acquire the citizenship
of another country without losing their Australian citizenship.
If you acquired the citizenship of another country before
4 April 2002, you may have lost your Australian citizenship.
However, you can apply to resume your Australian citizenship
if you meet certain requirements.
Can Australian citizens have dual citizenship?
Australian citizens may hold the citizenship of another
country (dual citizenship) or more than two countries (plural
citizenship).
This happens when:
• people born in Australia automatically acquired,
through a parent, another citizenship by descent;
• people become Australian citizens and who are able, under
the law of their country of origin, to keep their
other citizenship;
• Australian citizens are born overseas to an Australian
citizen parent and who by the law of that country
acquire that citizenship at birth; and
• Australians acquire the citizenship of another country
automatically by legislation of that country, for
example, through marriage.
Following recent amendments to citizenship
legislation, Australian citizens can acquire another
citizenship from
4 April 2002 and retain their Australian citizenship
Changes to Citizenship Laws
The Australian Citizenship Legislation Amendment Act
2002 was given Royal Assent on 4 April 2002. That means
that
Australian citizens who acquire the citizenship of another
country from 4 April 2002, will not lose their Australian
citizenship.
There are three possible scenarios where a person may
be affected by the repeal of section 17.A person who
acquires
the citizenship or nationality of another country from
4 April 2002 will not lose their Australian citizenship;
• A person who applied for the citizenship of
another country prior to 4 April 2002 but did not acquire
that citizenship
until 4 April 2002, or after, will not lose their
Australian citizenship;
• A person who applied for and acquired the citizenship of
another country before 4 April 2002 will have lost
their Australian citizenship under section 17 of the Act.
Resumption of Australian citizenship for people who
have lost their Australian citizenship under section
17 of
the Australian Citizenship Act 1948
The repeal of section 17 will not apply retrospectively.
When the Australian Citizenship Council reviewed the
current legislation, it considered that existing resumption
provisions
were adequate for those people who had lost Australian
citizenship under section 17 of the Act.
A person who acquired the citizenship of another country
prior to 4 April 2002 lost their Australian citizenship
by operation of law under section 17 at the time they
acquired the other citizenship.
Those who lost under section 17 of the Act continue
to be able to apply to resume their Australian citizenship
under the current resumption provisions.
Please note that from 1 July 2002, the resumption provisions
will include a requirement that the applicant be of
'good character'.
Briefly, to be eligible to resume, an adult must meet
the following criteria.
The first requirement is that
the person:
• did not know that they would lose Australian
citizenship; or
• would have suffered significant hardship or detriment had
they not acquired the other citizenship.
Other requirements are that the person:
• has been lawfully resident in Australia for a total of
at least two years in their life; and
• if outside Australia, states that they intend to commence
residing in Australia within 3 years; and
• has maintained a close and continuing association with
Australia.
More information
on the requirement for resumption of Australian citizenship
is provided in Form 132,
Loss
and resumption
of Australian citizenship - Declaration of desire
to resume Australian citizenship under section
23AA, 23A
or 23B,
available from the website of the Department of
Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs:
www.immi.gov.au
or www.citizenship.gov.au.
Other key amendments
to the Australian Citizenship Act 1948
Other amendments to the Act will take effect from
1 July 2002. They are:
•
Extending the age limit from 18 years to 25 years for a
person, born outside Australia and whose parent was an
Australian citizen at the time of their birth, to register
as an "Australian citizen by descent".
• Providing young former Australian citizens with an adequate
period before the age of 25 years to resume
their Australian citizenship where it was renounced in order to retain
the nationality or citizenship of another country.
• Providing for children under 16 years who acquire Australian
citizenship with their responsible parent
(or at a later date) to be given an individual citizenship certificate.
Formerly, children under 16 years were included
on the back of their parent's application for citizenship.
• Strengthening aspects of the integrity of the Australian
citizenship process.
Source: DIMIA website www.immi.gov.au
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