I am a South African who would like some clarity on whether I could have became British Citizens on 1 January 1983.
Is there anyone who thinks I may have become such, if:-
(My great-grand father born in England 1834 as natural-born British Subject)
My grand father was born 1882 in Natal colony as natural-born British Subject.
My father born 1916 in the (then) united Colony of the Union of South Africa as a natural-born British Subject
With the BNA1948 the Union was removed of it's colonial status and became a Crown Dominion but with it's own citizenship laws being enacted on 2.9.49.
Only in 1962 did the Union become totally independent and become the Republic of South Africa.
I was born 1956 (being after 1949 and before independence in 1962) as a British Subject & Commonwealth Citizen
Question is what citizenship did my father have on 1 Jan 1949?
Did he immediately become a CUKC as the Union Citizenship law only took effect on the 2 Sept 1949?
Then what happened when he automatically became a Union Citizen/Commonwealth Citizen, did he "loose" his CUKC status?
According to the BNA 1948
It seems to me that since he was a natural-born British Subject as well as his father and grand father, then surely he should have become a CUKC and remained so, even though he later also became a Commonwealth Citizen?British subjects before commencement of Act becoming citizens of United Kingdom and Colonies:-
12.—(1) A person who was a British subject immediately before the date of the commencement of this Act shall on that date become a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies if he possesses any of the following qualifications, that is to say—
(a) that he was born within the territories comprised at the commencement of this Act (Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, Newfoundland, India, Pakistan, Southern Rhodesia and Ceylon) in the United Kingdom and Colonies, and would have been such a citizen if section four of this Act had been in force at the time of his birth;
And therefore he should have become a British Citizen with the Right of Abode on 1 January 1983.
He never obtained a British Passport, so I have no record of his status.
I never applied for a British Passport before 1962, (or thereafter) so have no idea what my status would have been had I done so. But it is my guess it would have been British Subject with Right of Abode (or whatever would have been the equivalent at the time) He for sure would have been able to enter the UK freely, and stay or work and the same for me for that matter up until 1962.
So need to know since he was originally before 1949 a British Subject (equivalent to today's British Citizen) did he "loose" this status when the Union of South Africa became a Dominion with its own citizenship laws on 2.9.49?
In 1910 the four British Colonies, namely, Colony of the Cape of Good Hope, Natal Colony, Orange River Colony & Transvaal Colony were united to form the Union of South Africa in 1910 according to the South African Act 1909 (which was a "united" colony until 1949 when it's status changed to that of a Dominion BNA1948)
The way I see it is that my father was a "British Citizen" (then natural-born British Subject) by birth and since they decided to change the terminology TWICE to firstly Citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies and then to British Citizen, surely then my father should have become a CUKC on 1.1.1949 and thereafter a British Citizen on 1.1.1983, no questions asked.
(Or was all this "name changing" some kind of trick to hopefully loose some of the boogers along the way!)
Then where does that leave me? A British Citizen by decent?... or confused?