Citizenship
Citizenship laws in Australia are governed by the “The Citizenship Act 2007” and the “Citizenship Regulations 2016”.
More than 5 million people have become Australian citizens since Australian Citizenship was introduced in 1949. In 2018-19, a total of 127,674 people became Australian citizens by “Conferral” from at least 200 different countries.
Citizenship is the final legal step in your migration story. To become an Australian citizen, you pledge your loyalty to Australia & its people, and are then entitled to its protection & to exercise its rights & responsibilities.
Depending on your circumstances, the different ways in which one can become a citizen of Australia are –
- Citizenship by Birth
- Citizenship by Descent
- Citizenship by Conferral
- Citizenship by Adoption
- Resumption of Citizenship
You can also acquire Citizenship of Australia automatically if –
- you were born in Australia & one or both of your parents were Australian citizens or permanent residents when you were born, OR
- you were born in Australia to parents who were neither citizens nor permanent residents at the time of birth, but you have been ordinarily resident in Australia for 10 years since your date of birth.
Your Responsibilities as an Australian Citizen :
- Behave in accordance with Australia’s democratic beliefs
- Respect the rights & liberties of Australia
- Follow & obey the law
- Vote in federal and State/Territory elections, and in any referendum
- Defend Australia, if necessary
- Serve on jury duty, if summoned
Your Rights as an Australian Citizen : You can –
- Apply for an Australian Passport
- Leave & re-enter Australia as many times as you want
- Ask for help from an Australian consulate, if in trouble overseas
- Vote in federal, state or territory elections
- Vote in constitutional referendum or plebiscite
- Seek election to parliament, if you are aged 18 years or over, and are not a dual citizen
- Register the birth of your children in another country as an Australian citizen.
It is compulsory by law for all Australian citizens to enroll & vote in federal elections, by-elections & referendums.
Australia allows DUAL CITIZENSHIP. Many Australians are citizens of two or more countries. However, you must be aware of the fact that you may not receive the full Australian consular services as a dual citizen in another country if you did not enter that country on your Australian passport. Moreover, you must check if the other country whose nationality you hold allows dual citizenship, allows renunciation of citizenship & process for the same.
You can renounce your Australian citizenship if you –
- Are already the citizen of another country or will acquire citizenship of another country as soon as your application to renounce Australian citizenship is approved, OR
- Cannot become a citizen of the country where you were born or are ordinarily resident in while you are an Australian citizen
Your application to renounce your citizenship will NOT be approved if you do not have another foreign citizenship or it is not in Australia’s interests.