Question:
My father was born in Ireland and
then served in the British Services.
He maried my mother, who is an Australian,
but I believe still holds an Irish
passport. I have been led to believe
that I can get a dual-passport that
allows me to be a citizen of Australia
and the EU. Does anyone know if
this is the case? And if so what
steps should I take? With thanks
Answer:
I believe you do indeed have a claim
to both Irish and Australian citizenship
by birth. Check with officials at
an Australian embassy or consulate.
As far as I'm aware, both Ireland
and Australia will permit you to
have both citizenships.
I have
been led to believe that I can get
a dual-passport that allows me to
be a citizen of Australia and the
EU.
There isn't
a single "dual passport". You would
normally expect to get two passports
-- one from each country. I believe
I read, some time ago, that it was
possible for Australians with another
citizenship to get a special Australian
stamp in their foreign passport.
You might want to check with Australian
embassy / consular officials to
see if this is the case. If your
father was born in Ireland you are
already an Irish citizen, and have
been so from birth.
Australia
has no problem with dual citizenship
in this case and you can get an
Irish passport any time you like.
You mother incidentally, is entitled
to register as an Irish citizen
on the basis of marriage to your
father. This is called post nuptial
declaration (although the Irish
government plans to abolish this
in 2004/05). Because this would
involve her acquiring a foreign
citizenship which she doesn't already
have, it would cause loss of Australian
citizenship at the moment. However,
Australia's law is expected to change
soon (ie within months) and it will
be possible to apply for another
citizenship once that happens.
Keep an eye
on the Southern Cross Group website
for information: http://www.southern-cross-group.org
Information on post-nuptial delcaration
procedures is here: http://www.irelandemb.org/post.html
(The Irish Embassy in Canberra should
have similar procedures for Australian
residents). Any children you have
are entitled to Irish citizenship,
but must register. If the Irish
citizen parent is born outside Ireland,
then Irish citizenship is not automatic.
You might
want to check with Australian embassy
/ >consular officials to see if
this is the case. It's called an
Australian Declaratory Visa, but
isn't usually available to adult
Australians who are normally expected
to use Australian passports to enter
and leave Australia From the webpage:
http://www.immi.gov.au/facts/95documents.htm
Australian Declaratory Visa (ADV)
ADVs are issued in limited circumstances
to Australian citizens who hold
dual nationality. They are administrative
documents that resemble a visa.
ADVs are issued only if the applicant
is a dual national under the age
of 18 or in an emergency or other
situation preventing travel on an
Australian passport. An ADV is valid
for five years from the date of
issue, unless the holder ceases
to be an Australian citizen, whereupon
the holder will need a visa to travel
to Australia.
