Commonwealth Numbered Acts Commonwealth Numbered Acts
Australian Citizenship Act 2007
1A Section 3
Insert:
"Stateless Persons Convention" means the Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, done at New York on 28 September 1954 [1974] ATS 20.
Note: The text of the Convention is set out in Australian Treaty Series 1974 No. 20. In 2008, the text of a Convention in the Australian Treaty Series was accessible through the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (www.austlii.edu.au).
1 Paragraph 16(2)(c)
After "if the person", insert "is or has ever been a national or a citizen of any country, or if article 1(2)(iii) of the Stateless Persons Convention applies to the person, and the person".
2 Paragraph 16(3)(c)
Repeal the paragraph, substitute:
(c) if the person is or has ever been a national or a citizen of any country, or if article 1(2)(iii) of the Stateless Persons Convention applies to the person--the Minister is satisfied that the person is of good character at the time of the Minister's decision on the application.
3 Paragraphs 21(2)(b) and (c)
Repeal the paragraphs, substitute:
(b) is a permanent resident:
(i) at the time the person made the application; and
(ii) at the time of the Minister's decision on the application; and
(c) satisfies the residence requirement (see section 22), or has completed relevant defence service (see section 23), at the time the person made the application; and
4 Paragraphs 21(3)(b) to (d)
Repeal the paragraphs, substitute:
(b) is a permanent resident:
(i) at the time the person made the application; and
(ii) at the time of the Minister's decision on the application; and
(c) satisfies the residence requirement (see section 22), or has completed relevant defence service (see section 23), at the time the person made the application; and
(d) has a permanent physical or mental incapacity, at the time the person made the application, that means the person is not capable of understanding the nature of the application at that time; and
5 Paragraphs 21(4)(b) to (d)
Repeal the paragraphs, substitute:
(b) is a permanent resident:
(i) at the time the person made the application; and
(ii) at the time of the Minister's decision on the application; and
(c) understands the nature of the application at the time the person made the application; and
(d) satisfies the residence requirement (see section 22), or has completed relevant defence service (see section 23), at the time the person made the application; and
6 Paragraph 21(6)(d)
Repeal the paragraph, substitute:
(d) if the person is aged 18 or over at the time the person made the application--the person is of good character at the time of the Minister's decision on the application.
7 Paragraph 21(8)(b)
Omit "at the time the person made the application,".
8 Paragraphs 21(8)(d) and (e)
Repeal the paragraphs, substitute:
(d) the person:
(i) is not entitled to acquire the nationality of a foreign country; and
(ii) is not entitled to acquire the citizenship of a foreign country.
9 Paragraph 22(1B)(b)
Omit "3 months", substitute "90 days".
10 Subparagraph 23(a)(i)
Omit "3 months", substitute "90 days".
12 Subsection 24(2)
Omit "(6), (7) or (8)", substitute "(6) or (7)".
13 After subsection 24(4C)
Insert:
(4D) To avoid doubt, subsection (4A) applies to a person who is eligible to become an Australian citizen under subsection 21(8).
14 Application
The amendments made by items 1A to 13 of this Schedule apply in relation to applications to become an Australian citizen made after those items commence.
15 Paragraph 34(3)(a)
Repeal the paragraph, substitute:
(a) the Minister may revoke the person's Australian citizenship under that subsection only because of the application of subparagraph (2)(b)(ii); and
16 Application
The amendment made by item 15 of this Schedule applies in relation to a decision, in relation to a revocation of a person's citizenship, that is made after that item commences.
Australian Citizenship (Transitionals and Consequentials) Act 2007
17 Item 5B of Schedule 3
Repeal the item, substitute:
5B Citizenship by conferral--persons who are permanent residents at commencement
(1) This item applies if:
(a) a person is a permanent resident (worked out under the old Act) immediately before the commencement day; and
(b) the person makes an application under subsection 21(1) of the new Act within the period of 3 years beginning on the commencement day.
(2) In applying section 22 of the new Act to an application covered by subitem (1), subsections 22(1) to (2), (4A) and (5A) of the new Act do not apply and the following subsections of section 22 of the new Act apply instead:
(1) For the purposes of section 21, a person satisfies the residence requirement if the person has been present in Australia as a permanent resident for:
(a) a total period of at least 1 year in the period of 2 years before the day the person made the application; and
(b) a total period of at least 2 years in the period of 5 years before that day.
(2) Paragraph (1)(b) does not apply if the person:
(a) was born in Australia; or
(b) was an Australian citizen at any time before the person made the application.
(3) For the purposes of subsection (1), the Minister must not take into account any period during which the person has been:
(a) confined in a prison; or
(b) confined in a psychiatric institution by order of a court made in connection with proceedings for an offence against an Australian law in relation to the person.
(3) In applying section 22 of the new Act to an application covered by subitem (1), subsections 22(5), (6) and (11) of the new Act have effect as if the reference in those subsections to "paragraph (1)(c)" were a reference to "subsection (1)" (as applied by subitem (2) of this item).
18 At the end of item 7 of Schedule 3
Add:
(9) In applying section 22 of the new Act to a new application covered by subitem (2), subsections 22(5), (6) and (11) of the new Act have effect as if the reference in those subsections to "paragraph (1)(c)" were a reference to "subsection (1)" (as applied by subitem (8) of this item).
19 Validation of past decisions
A decision in relation to an application covered by subitem 5B(1) or 7(2) of Schedule 3 to the Australian Citizenship (Transitionals and Consequentials) Act 2007 before the commencement of items 17 and 18 of this Schedule is as valid, and is taken always to have been as valid, as it would have been if the amendments made by those items had been in force at the time of the decision.
[ Minister's second reading speech made in--
Senate on 25 June 2008
House of Representatives on 4 September 2008 ]
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