amendment act

[carolinesaunders]

hi. I was born in south africa, but have a british passport from desent as my dad is british.
I came to the uk a few years ago, and due to the new amendement act and travelling to sa - you now need your sa passport. so i have applied for my south african passport, and i have my temporary one which is valid for one year. what i want to know is that if i travel into south africa (which i will be next month) will they want to know how i got into the uk in the first place or ask any questions. Also, do you need to get permission for dual nationality if you hold a british passport by decent? or do you automatically just become a dual citizen.

[dudette]

Have deleted my post as my info was in error

I am not an expert in this field, and any advice might be incorrect. My apologies for any confusion

[mcamp999]

hi. I was born in south africa, but have a british passport from desent as my dad is british.
I came to the uk a few years ago, and due to the new amendement act and travelling to sa - you now need your sa passport. so i have applied for my south african passport, and i have my temporary one which is valid for one year. what i want to know is that if i travel into south africa (which i will be next month) will they want to know how i got into the uk in the first place or ask any questions. Also, do you need to get permission for dual nationality if you hold a british passport by decent? or do you automatically just become a dual citizen.

Caroline, no you wont have any further problems and they will not want to know how you got into the uk. As you have a British passport by descent, you do not need to get permission to hold dual citizenship. Those questions you answered when you applied for your SA passport at SA house.

So no need to worry any more, relax and enjoy your trip back

[mcamp999]

If you want to have dual citizenship, you have to apply for a Section 6, which gives you permission from the SA Gvt to have dual citizenship. It takes a little time, but if you want to retain dual citizenship it is imperative you do.

Dudette, you dont have to do this if you acquire your citizenship by descent, she wouldn't have been given her SA passport then .

[Paddy]

Hi Mcamp999 and Dudette,

Out of curiosity what would be the situation be in my case. I was born in the beautiful city of Prague to a Czech mother and Irish father. I lived in SA for the better part of 20 years and acquired SA citizenship although I never applied for a SA passport. I have always travelled on my Irish passport and left SA 6 years ago (never having officially emigrated). Question is: have I lost my SA citizenship?

[mcamp999]

Paddy, these are the rules with regards citizenship via naturalisation:

Naturalisation (Section 5)
Foreigners wishing to acquire South African citizenship may apply for South African citizenship by naturalisation, provided the requirements of section 5 are met. The requirements for majors and minors respectively, are:


Majors

Valid permanent residence permit or exemption.
One yearÂ’s ordinary residence in the Republic of South Africa immediately prior to the application.
In addition 4 years of physical (actual) residence in the RSA during the eight years before the application (excluding the year of ordinary residence).
If married to a South African spouse, two years of permanent residence and two years of marriage to the South African spouse immediately prior to the application.
Intends to continue to reside in the Republic or falls within the further categories specified in section 5(1)(e).
Be of good and sound character.
Able to communicate satisfactorily in any one of the official languages of South Africa.
Have adequate knowledge of the duties and responsibilities of a South African citizen

Now, theoretically, you are in contravention of continuing to reside within the Republic. If you were serious about returning, you would have to investigate the avenues.

This web can help http://home-affairs.pwv.gov.za/sa_citizenship.asp

[Paddy]

Now, theoretically, you are in contravention of continuing to reside within the Republic. If you were serious about returning, you would have to investigate the avenues.

Cheers chap. I always thought mine was going to be a curious case. Since I've never been quizzed at immigration control in the three trips I've made back on holidays, I'll choose to lie low without raising my profile by making any enquiries.

[mcamp999]

Cheers chap. I always thought mine was going to be a curious case. Since I've never been quizzed at immigration control in the three trips I've made back on holidays, I'll choose to lie low without raising my profile by making any enquiries.

You wouldn't get quizzed on returning, but you would have to handle any application for an SA passport very carefully

[dudette]

Dudette, you dont have to do this if you acquire your citizenship by descent, she wouldn't have been given her SA passport then .

Thank you for clearing that up