3432 ACC Report f/a 1 - Australian Citizenship

section 10C(4)(c)(ii) of the Act be removed,
allowing registration of Australian Citizenship
by descent for people who reached 18 years of
age after 15 January 1992.
The Council was conscious that the removal of
the time limitation would considerably widen
the operation of this provision — in fact, make
it open-ended. By doing this, it is possible that
several generations of Australian Citizens could
live overseas without any real or tangible
connection or association with Australia,
yet in turn claim Australian Citizenship by
descent for their children.
At the same time, there are sound social and
economic reasons to enable Australians to
participate more widely in the international
community, often to Australia’s national
advantage. It is now a fact that many people
who are proud to call themselves Australian
live overseas, sometimes for considerable
periods at a time. In many cases, their children
are raised to be proud of their Australian
heritage, even though they have not necessarily
lived in Australia for extensive periods.
In balancing these two opposing
considerations, the Council believes that the
core issue is to determine the amount of time
that a person living overseas should have
within which to register to become an
Australian Citizen. Or, in other words, at what
point should a person eligible to acquire
Australian Citizenship by descent cease to have
access to this entitlement?
The Council is conscious that not all
Australians living overseas are aware of the
time limitations within which overseas-born
children must be registered to obtain
Australian Citizenship by descent. As a
consequence, those children pay a high
price in relation to their parent’s lack of
knowledge or inaction.
Accordingly, the Council considers that young
people should have an adequate period after
reaching their majority to be able to decide for
themselves whether they wish to apply for
Australian Citizenship by descent. Extension of
the age limit from 18 to 25 years appears
reasonable. The Council believes that this
approach further enhances the value of
Australian Citizenship without undermining
the fundamental approach of having a close
association to Australia. In practical terms, it
provides greater latitude for both parents and
their children, including allowing an adult,
who was not registered as a child, to take
responsibility for registering as an Australian
Citizen by descent. The establishment of an
age threshold also serves to maintain the
integrity of Australian Citizenship.
Accordingly, the Council recommends that the
current provision of the Australian Citizenship
Act 1948 which specifies that children born
overseas must be registered as Australian
Citizens by descent before they turn 18 years
of age be extended to enable registration
before a child turns 25 years of age.
Acquiring Citizenship (4) By grant
The requirements for grant of Australian
Citizenship are set out in section 13 of the
Australian Citizenship Act 1948. Generally,
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