The 1997 Constitution of Fiji was the supreme law of Fiji from its adoption in 1997 until 2009 when President Josefa Iloilo purported to abrogate it. It was also suspended for a period following the 2000 coup d'état led by George Speight.
The thirteen sections of Chapter 3 enunciate how citizenship may be acquired or forfeited, as well as how the Parliament may or may not legislate concerning this topic. The inclusion of this in the Constitution is somewhat unusual: the constitutions of many countries leave the question of citizenship to be resolved by the legislature. In Fiji, however, the complex history of immigration and colonial rule, together with hardline nationalist sentiments among certain sections of the ethnic Fijian population, has left various ethnic groups unsure of their permanent place in Fijian society, and wanted their right to citizenship entrenched in the Constitution rather than merely stated in some legal document that could be easily amended or even repealed at the whim of a legislative body.
The Parliament of Fiji is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Fiji. It consists of 51 members elected every 4 years using open-list proportional representation in one multi-member nationwide constituency.
Fijians are a nation and ethnic group native to Fiji, who speak Fijian and share a common history and culture.
Section 8 deals with the question of retention of existing citizenship: all persons who were citizens of Fiji immediately prior to the adoption of this Constitution remain citizens.
Sections 10 and 11 define how one is deemed to have Fijian citizenship by birth. Every child born in Fiji on or after the date on which the Constitution took effect is deemed to be a citizen of Fiji, provided that at least one parent is a citizen, and that neither parent is an accredited diplomat of a foreign power. An infant found abandoned in Fiji is deemed to have been born in Fiji, unless there is proof to the contrary.
Section 12 clarifies how one may acquire citizenship by registration. Fiji has a long history of emigration, as well as immigration. The number of Fiji citizens living abroad, along with their descendants, is not known, but is estimated to be in the order of several hundred thousand. The provision for citizenship by registration guarantees the right of citizenship to any child born outside Fiji with at least one parent a Fiji citizen, to any foreign child under the age of 18 adopted by a Fiji citizen, to any child who was under the age of 21 when either parent became a citizen by registration, and to any spouse or former spouse of a Fiji citizen. Applications for citizenship by registration may be made at any time during the child's lifetime. Conditions apply: one registering for citizenship must be lawfully present in Fiji for a total of three out of the five years immediately prior to the application, and must renounce citizenship of any other country.
Section 13 sets out the conditions for acquiring citizenship by naturalization. Anyone who does not qualify for citizenship by birth or registration may apply to be naturalized as a citizen, provided they have been lawfully present in Fiji for a total of five out of the ten years immediately prior to the application.
Sections 14 and 15 set out how Fiji citizenship may be lost or forfeited. An adult who acquires citizenship of a foreign state forfeits Fiji citizenship. A child acquiring foreign citizenship is permitted to have dual citizenship until reaching the age of 21, after which they have one year to make a final decision on which citizenship to keep. Persons failing to renounce foreign citizenship by their 22nd birthday lose Fiji citizenship. A citizen over the age of 21 may renounce Fijian citizenship provided that they have acquired citizenship of another country.
Section 16 deals with the residency rights of non-citizens. Any former citizen, foreign wife or husband, widow or widower, of a Fiji citizen, or child of a Fiji citizen is entitle to enter and reside in Fiji, subject only to entry and residency conditions prescribed by Parliament.
Section 17 empowers Parliament to allow the acquisition of citizenship in other ways, in addition to those set out in the constitution, and to make administrative regulations covering applications for citizenship by registration or naturalization.
Section 18 allows the Parliament to specify the criteria for calculating the length of the period in which one has been lawfully resident in Fiji.
Section 19 empowers the government to strip a person of citizenship in a few limited circumstances. If citizenship was "obtained by fraud, misrepresentation, or concealment of a material fact," the government may revoke citizenship. Citizenship may also be revoked in the event of a Fiji citizen exercising "the entitlements of citizenship of another country". This could include voting in a foreign election, serving in a foreign army, etc.
Section 20 contains three clauses, covering the cases of person born on dates where Fiji's constitutional situation was ambiguous. From 28 September 1987 to 24 July 1990, Fiji functioned without a constitution. Any child born in Fiji in that period is declared to be a citizen of Fiji. Fiji had no constitutional government between 28 September and 6 October 1987; any child born abroad whose father was a citizen is taken to be a citizen. Moreover, any person born in Fiji during the time in which the constitution prior to the present one was in operation, is deemed to be a citizen of Fiji, if he or she would otherwise be stateless."
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Naturalization is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen in a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the individual, or it may involve an application or a motion and approval by legal authorities. The rules of naturalization vary from country to country but typically include a promise to obeying and upholding that country's laws, taking and subscribing to the oath of allegiance, and may specify other requirements such as a minimum legal residency and adequate knowledge of the national dominant language or culture. To counter multiple citizenship, most countries require that applicants for naturalization renounce any other citizenship that they currently hold, but whether this renunciation actually causes loss of original citizenship, as seen by the host country and by the original country, will depend on the laws of the countries involved.
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The Canadian Citizenship Act, S.C. 1946, c. 15, is an Act of the Parliament of Canada which separated Canadian citizenship from British nationality.
Canadian nationality law is promulgated by the Citizenship Act since 1977. The Act determines who is, or is eligible to be, a citizen of Canada. The Act replaced the previous Canadian Citizenship Act in 1977 and has gone through four significant amendments, in 2007, 2009, 2015 and 2017.
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The United States nationality law is a uniform rule of naturalization of the United States set out in the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, enacted under the power of Article I, section 8, clause 4 of the United States Constitution, which reads: Congress shall have Power - "To establish a uniform Rule of Naturalization..." The 1952 Act sets forth the legal requirements for the acquisition of, and divestiture from, American nationality. The requirements have become more explicit since the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, with the most recent changes to the law having been made by Congress in 2001.
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