Article 14 of the Constitution provides that Parliament may make provisions for the deprivation and renunciation of citizenship in Vanuatu. Section 14 of the Citizenship Act then details the provision for the loss of citizenship.
The Citizenship Commission has the power to revoke citizenship granted if the citizenship was granted in a fraudulent manner, contrary to the Act or the Constitution or the citizen has not complied with the restriction provided in the Act. The citizen must be given notice and the opportunity to respond before citizenship is revoked.
Section 14(1) and Section 15 refer to the loss of citizenship due to a person’s allegiance to another country, which may be inconsistent with amendments to Article 13 of the Constitution.
Section 14(2) refers to persons who have obtained citizenship by false representation, fraud or concealment of a material fact. The requirements for loss of citizenship under this subsection are:
- A court has determined that citizenship was obtained by false representation, fraud or concealment of a material fact
- The person will cease to be a citizen only 30 days after the court finding. However, the Prime Minister has the power to make a declaration confirming that person’s citizenship by Gazette within those 30 days if:
- The PM is satisfied that it was a minor offence and if the true facts were revealed it would not have affected the grant of naturalization or citizenship.
Section 16 of the Citizenship Act gives the PM the power to deprive a naturalized citizen their citizenship if that person has been sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 10 years or more, provided it is gazette within 15 days of the sentencing.
Under the Immigration Act 2010, persons may only be detained or removed from Vanuatu, or given the status of a ‘prohibited immigrant’ if they are non-citizens of Vanuatu.However, powers of arrest without warrant are given to an immigration officer if there are reasonable grounds to believe that person has committed an offence under the Act and proceedings by summons against the person would not be effective. There is a requirement that the arrested person be brought before a magistrate to be dealt with in accordance with law. Citizens may commit an offence under the Act if they unlawfully obtain or deal with a ‘travel document’, which includes passports
