IMMIGRATION
Citizenship by descent
I WAS recently consulted by an
Australian about his wife giving
birth to a child in the Philippines,
and he now wants to bring
the child to Australia with an
Australian passport.
This is a case where the parent will file
an application for Australian citizenship
by descent which is governed by the
Citizenship Act of 2007, provided one or
both of the child’s parents are Australian
citizens at the time of the child’s birth.
The Australian Embassy in the
Philippines requires that apart from
the requirements of the Citizenship Act
outlined below, the mother shall submit:
(a) an ultrasound pictures and report; (b)
hospital bill or discharge record and (c)
photos of the mother during pregnancy
and another photo of the child with both
parents as proof that the mother conceived
the child and actually delivered the baby.
These documents will obviate the child
and the Australian parent being subjected
to DNA testing which is required by the
decision maker in some circumstances.
To facilitate early processing of
the application, it is suggested that
www.kalatas.com.au
By ATTY. JESSIE
ICAO
the responsible parent will lodge the
application on-line, unless the applicant
will apply in paper using form 118.
The child’s parent will collate the
following documents which will be
notarised by a lawyer to be uploaded to the
application:
Child under six years old requirements:
l Birth certificate which will indicate
the name, date of birth and gender
issued by the Philippines Statistics
Authority (PSA).
l Two passport photographs with
notation at the back: This is a true
photograph of (the child) and
signed by an Australian citizen who
has known the applicant for at least
one year or if the child is overseas
- I suggest that the declaration
be signed by a lawyer who is not
related to the child and will provide
contact telephone number.
l Filing fee as of this writing is $230.
l Completed form 1195 (identity
declaration) for on-line application.
Additional documents if the child
is over the age of 16 at the time of
application:
Complete form 80.
l Police clearance issued by the
National Bureau of Investigation if
the child is 18 years or over.
l Current residential address.
l Parents requirements:
l Australian passport of either parent
showing photo page of incoming/
outgoing stamps to confirm the
location of the parents at the time of
conception.
l Driver’s licence.
l Credit card or utilities bill as
evidence of current residential
address.
It is further suggested the evidence
during conception and after delivery
must be submitted to avoid refusal of the
application.
The Citizenship policy promulgated
on 1 June 2016 provides a guidance on the
interpretation and evidence required for
this application.
Chapter 20 (pages 214-2150 of the
policy sets out evidence such as: the nature
of the relationship between the claimed
parents, travel movement for the claimed
parents around the date of conception, the
applicant’s birth, registration and the chain
of birth record and proof of similarities
between the applicant and claimed parent.
The decision in the case of Brinkman
and Minister for Immigration and Border
Protection (Citizenship) [2016] AATA 716
(16 September 2016) is a good case as this
involves an Australian married to a Filipina
wife where the refusal of the decision
by the Department of Immigration and
Border Protection was affirmed by the
Administrative Appeals Tribunal as there
was insufficient evidence of parental
relationship prior to birth of applicant
and evidence fails to establish positive
biological parenthood. n
JESSIE ICAO is a practising solicitor
in the State of New South Wales and
registered migration agent since 1993
(MARN 9367993). He is admitted
as a lawyer in the Philippines. The
information provided is of general
nature and cannot be relied in its
entirety. I suggest that you consult a
registered migration agent or refer to
the relevant law.
AK NewsMagazine, Vol 8 No 5 | FEBRUARY 2018
09