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Dual citizenship and eligibility to serve as a member of Parliament – the evolving story in Australia

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A recent drama concerning the citizenship status of seven members of the Australian Parliament has drawn attention to the complex legal landscape surrounding multiple nationality, as well as the specific meaning of a provision of the Australian Constitution that governs eligibility to stand for, or serve in, the Australian Parliament. The provision – section 44 – sets out a range of grounds of ineligibility. Section 44(i) specifically provides …

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Citizenship after Trump

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The advent of the Trump Administration has obviously disrupted immigration policy in the United States. We are in for a wild and (if the first months are any guide) scary ride through the next four years, more so with respect to immigration than perhaps any other policy sphere. Although Trump’s unpredictability and lack of core ideological principle supply some slight possibility of immigration reform on a Nixon-in-China model, the early returns are not promising. The coterie around the President seems committed to restrictionist policies, as is his electoral base. Immigrant advocates …

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Loss of Dutch nationality ex lege: EU law, gender and multiple nationality

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On 19 April 2017, the Dutch Council of State made a reference to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) concerning the compatibility with EU law of the provisions of the Dutch Nationality Act (DNA) that regulate automatic loss of Dutch nationality in case of dual nationals habitually resident abroad for more than ten years.  In this note we highlight the EU law, gender and dual nationality aspects of the case.

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There’s more to European citizenship than free movement

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When freedom of movement was written into the Treaties, the hope was that citizens would become more mobile and, in turn, more European. But instead of uniting Europeans, free movement has become politically divisive.

 In the sovereign debt crisis, strongly diverging interests emerged between creditor and debtor states. In the refugee crisis, we have seen similarly deep divides between frontline, transit, destination and bystander countries… 

 

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Britons are applying for Irish citizenship to get an EU passport. Is this a problem?

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Since the Brexit vote, many British citizens have sought citizenship in other EU member states – notably Ireland – on the basis of ancestry or other provisions, often without any intention of living there.  Should we welcome this development? Or is it problematic that people can claim citizenship on the basis of ancestry, especially if large numbers do so? Iseult Honohan argues that while extending the right to citizenship down multiple generations is a questionable step, problems will only really arise if citizens who have never lived in the country are given equal voting power.

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The outcome of Italy’s referendum may be decided in Castelnuovo di Porto

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Many Italian citizens living outside the country will have the opportunity to vote in the constitutional referendum on 4 December. But what impact could these votes have in shaping the result? Lorenzo Piccoli highlights that with voters outside Italy accounting for around 8 per cent of the electorate, the count at the Civil Protection Centre in Castelnuovo di Porto, where the expatriate ballots are delivered, could be crucial in determining the outcome. 

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