Imagini ale paginilor
PDF
ePub

territory of the United States, shall be presumed to have expatriated himself under subsection (c) or (d) of section 401, when he shall remain for six months or longer within any foreign state of which he or either of his parents shall have been a national according to the laws of such foreign state, or within any place under control of such foreign state, and such presumption shall exist until overcome whether or not the individual has returned to the United States. Such presumption may be overcome on the presentation of satisfactory evidence to a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States, or to an immigration officer of the United States, under such rules and regulations as the Department of State and the Department of Labor jointly prescribe. However, no such presumption shall arise with respect to any officer or employee of the United States while serving abroad as such officer or employee, nor to any accompanying member of his family.

SEC. 403. (a) Except as provided in subsection (g) of section 401, no national can expatriate himself, or be expatriated, under this section while within the United States or any of its outlying possessions, but expatriation shall result from the performance within the United States or any of its outlying possessions of any of the acts or the fulfillment of any of the conditions specified in this section if and when the national thereafter takes up a residence abroad.

(b) No national under eighteen years of age can expatriate himself under subsections (b) to (g) inclusive, of section 401.

SEC. 404. A person who has become a national by naturalization shall lose his nationality by:

(a) Residing for at least two years in the territory of a foreign state of which he was formerly a national or in which the place of his birth is situated, if he acquires through such residence the nationality of such foreign state by operation of the law thereof; or

(b) Residing continuously for three years in the territory of a foreign state of which he was formerly a national or in which the place of his birth is situated, except as provided in section 406 hereof.

(c) Residing continuously for five years in any other foreign state, except as provided in section 406 hereof.

SEC. 405. Section 404 shall have no application to a person:

(a) Who resides abroad in the employment and under the orders of the Government of the United States;

(b) Who is receiving compensation from the Government of the United States and residing abroad on account of disability incurred in its service..

SEC. 406. Subsections (b) and (c) of section 404 shall have no application to a person:

(a) Who shall have resided in the United States not less than twenty-five years subsequent to his naturalization and shall have attained the age of sixty-five years when the foreign residence is established;

(b) Who is residing abroad upon the date of the approval of this Act, or who is thereafter sent abroad, and resides abroad temporarily solely or principally to represent a bona fide American educational, scientific, philanthropic, religious, commercial, or financial organization, having its principal office or place of business in the United States, or an international agency of an official character in which the United States participates, for which he receives a substantial compensation;

(c) Who is residing abroad on account of ill health;

(d) Who is residing abroad for the purpose of pursuing studies of a specialized character or attending an institution of learning of a grade above that of a preparatory school, provided that such residence does not exceed five years;

(e) Who is the wife, husband, or child under twenty-one years of age, and is residing abroad for the purpose of being with a naturalized spouse or parent who comes within the scope of section 405 or subsection (a), (b), (c), or (d) hereof;

(f) Who was born in the United States or one of its outlying possessions, who originally had American nationality, and who, after having lost such nationality through marriage to an alien, reacquired it.

SEC. 407. A person having American nationality, who is a minor and is residing in a foreign state with or under the legal custody of a parent who loses American nationality under section 404 of this chapter, shall at the same time lose his American nationality if such minor has or acquires the nationality of such foreign state: Provided, That, in such case, American nationality shall not be lost as the result of loss of American nationality by the parent unless and

until the child attains the age of twenty-three years without having acquired permanent residence in the United States.

SEC. 408. The loss of nationality under this chapter shall result solely from the performance by a national of the acts or fulfillment of the conditions specified in this chapter.

SEC. 409. Nationality shall not be lost under the provisions of section 404 or 407 of this chapter until the expiration of one year following the date of the approval of this Act: Provided, however, That a naturalized person who shall have become subject to the presumption that he has ceased to be an American citizen as provided for in the second paragraph of section 2 of the Act of March 2, 1907 (34 Stat. 1228), and who shall not have overcome it under the rules in effect immediately preceding the date of the approval of this Act, shall continue to be subject to such presumption for the period of one year following the date of the approval of this Act unless it is overcome during such period.

SEC. 410. Nothing in this chapter shall be applied in contravention of the provisions of any treaty or convention to which the United States is a party upon the date of the approval of this Act.

CHAPTER V-MISCELLANEOUS

SEC. 501. Whenever a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States has reason to believe that a person while in a foreign state has lost his American nationality under any provision of chapter IV of this Act, he shall certify the facts upon which such belief is based to the Department of State, in writing, under regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary of State. If the report of the diplomatic or consular officer is approved by the Secretary of State, a copy of the certificate shall be forwarded to the Department of Labor, for its information, and the diplomatic or consular office in which the report was made shall be directed to forward a copy of the certificate to the person to whom it relates. SEC. 502. The Secretary of State is hereby authorized to issue, in his discretion and in accordance with rules and regulations prescribed by him, a certificate of nationality for any person not a naturalized citizen of the United States who presents satisfactory evidence that he is an American national and that such certificate is needed for use in judicial or administrative proceedings of a foreign state. Such certificate shall be solely for use in the case for which it was issued and shall be transmitted by the Secretary of State through appropriate official channels to the judicial or administrative officers of the foreign state in which it is to be used.

SEC. 503. The following Acts or parts of Acts are hereby repealed:

Section 1992, Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 8, sec. 1):

Section 1993, Revised Statutes, as amended by section 1, Act of May 24, 1934 (48 Stat. 797; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 6);

Section 2166, Revised Statutes, as limited by section 2, Act of May 9, 1918 (40 Stat. 546-547; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 395);

Section 2172, Revised Statutes (U. S. C., title 8, sec. 7);

Section 100, Act of April 30, 1900 (31 Stat. 161; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 385 (first paragraph));

Act of June 29, 1906, chapter 3592 (34 Stat. 596) (except subdivisions 6 and 8 of section 4 and sections 10, 16, 17, 19, and 26 thereof), as added to, supplemented, or amended by section 1, Act of June 25, 1910 (36 Stat. 829); section 1, and second paragraph of section 3, Act of May 9, 1918 (40 Stat, 512-546, 547, 548); Act of June 8, 1926 (44 Stat. 709); section 4, Act of February 25, 1927 (44 Stat. 1235); Act of March 2, 1929 (45 Stat. 1512) (except sections 6 (e) and section 7 (b) thereof); section 1, Act of March 4, 1929 (45 Stat. 1545); Act of June 21, 1930 (46 Stat. 791); sections 1, 2, 3, and 4 (a), Act of March 3, 1931 (46 Stat. 1511); Act of May 25, 1932 (47 Stat. 165) (except sections 1, 5, and 7 thereof); and Act of April 19. 1934 (48 Stat. 597); United States Code, title 8, sections 18, 106, 106a, 106b, 106c, 351, 352, 353, 354, 356, 357, 358, 358a, 360, 364, 365, 372, 373, 377, 377c, 378, 379, 380, 380b, 381, 382, 384, 386, 387, 388, 389, 391, 392, 393, 394, 396, 397, 398, 339, 399a, 399b (a), 399b (b), 399b (c), 329b (d), 390c (a), 399c (b), 399c (c), 399d, 400, 401, 402, 403, 404, 405, 408, 409, 410, 411, 412, 413, 414, and 415;

Sections 2. 5. 6, and 7, Act of March 2, 1907 (34 Stat. 1228, 1229), as amended by section 2, Act of May 24, 1934 (48 Stat. 797; U. S. C., title 8, secs. 8, 16, and 17):

Sections 74 to 81, inclusive, Act of March 4, 1909 (35 Stat. 1102-1103; U. S. C., title 18, secs. 135 and 137 to 143, inclusive);

That portion of section 1, Act of August 22, 1912 (37 Stat. 356; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 11), reading as follows:

"SEC. 1998. That every person who hereafter deserts the military or naval service of the United States, or who, being duly enrolled, departs the jurisdiction of the district in which he is enrolled, or goes beyond the limits of the United States, with intent to avoid any draft into the military or naval service, lawfully ordered, shall be liable to all the penalties and forfeitures of section nineteen hundred and ninety-six of the Revised Statutes of the United States: Provided, That the provisions of this section and said section nineteen hundred and ninety-six shall not apply to any person hereafter deserting the military or naval service of the United States in time of peace: * *

So much of section 1, Act of October 6, 1917, chapter 79 (40 Stat. 376; U. S. C., title 39, sec. 324), as reads as follows: "Provided further, That all mail matter, of whatever class, relating to naturalization, including duplicate papers required by law or regulation to be sent to the Bureau of Naturalization by clerks of State or Federal courts, addressed to the Department of Labor, or the Bureau of Naturalization, or to any official thereof, and indorsed 'Official Business', shall be transmitted free of postage, and by registered mail if necessary, and so marked: Provided further, That if any person shall make use of such indorsement to avoid payment of postage or registry fee on his or her private letter, package, or other matter in the mail, the person so offending shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a fine of $300, to be prosecuted in any court of competent jurisdiction.";

Section 1, last proviso of section 2, and second paragraph of section 3, Act of May 9, 1918 (40 Stat. 542-546, 547, 548), as amended by section 6 (c), (d), Act of March 2, 1929 (45 Stat. 1514); Act of June 21, 1930 (46 Stat. 791); and sections 2 (a), 3, and 10, Act of May 25, 1932 (47 Stat. 165-166; U. S. C., title 8, secs. 18, 354, 377, 378, 384, 387, 388, 389, 391, 392, 393, 394, 395, 403, and 405);

Proviso to second paragraph of section 4, chapter XII, Act of July 9, 1918, chapter 143 (40 Stat. 885; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 366);

Second proviso to section 1, Act of August 31, 1918, chapter 166 (40 Stat. 955); Act of November 6, 1919, chapter 95 (41 Stat. 350; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 3); Sections 1, 2, 3, and 4, Act of September 22, 1922 (42 Stat. 1021-1022); as amended by sections 1 and 2, Act of July 3, 1930 (46 Stat. 854); section 4, Act of March 3, 1931 (46 Stat. 1511–1512); and section 4, Act of May 24, 1934 (48 Stat. 797; U. S. C., title 8, secs. 367, 368, 368a, 369, and 369a);

Act of June 8, 1926 (44 Stat. 709; U. S. C., title S, sec. 399a);

Section 4, Act of February 25, 1927 (44 Stat. 1235; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 358a); Act of March 2, 1929, chapter 536 (45 Stat. 1512-1516) (except sec. 6 (e) and sec. 7 (b)); as amended or added to by sections 4, 5, and 6, Act of May 25, 1932 (47 Stat. 165-166); and sections 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6, Act of April 19, 1934 (48 Stat. 597-598; U. S. C., title 8, secs. 106a, 106b, 106c, 356, 377b, 377c, 379, 380a, 380b,' 382, 388, 399b (a), 399b (b), 399b (c), 399b (d), 399c (a), 399c (b), 399c (c), 399d, 399e, and 402);

Section 1, Act of March 4, 1929 (45 Stat. 1545; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 373);
Act of June 21, 1930 (46 Stat. 791; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 18);

Section 2, Act of July 3, 1930 (46 Stat. 854; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 369);

Act of February 11, 1931 (46 Stat. 1087; U. S. C., title 8, sec. 366a);

Act of March 3, 1931 (46 Stat. 1511-1512) (except section 4 (b), thereof) (U. S. C., title 8, secs. 9, 372a, 396, and 397);

Section 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, and 10, Act of May 25, 1932 (47 Stat. 165–166); as amended by section 2, Act of April 19, 1934 (48 Stat. 597; U. S. C., title 8, secs. 356 (a), 377, 377b, 384, 388, 399b (b), and 399b (c));

Act of April 19, 1934 (48 Stat. 597-598: U. S. C., title 8, secs. 106a (b), 380a, 399b (a), 399b (b), 399b (c), 399c (a), 399f, and 402);

Sections 1, 2, 3, and 4, Act of May 24, 1934 (48 Stat. 797; U. S. C., title 8, secs. 6, 8, 17a, and 368); and

Second proviso to Act of June 27, 1934 (48 Stat. 1245, ch. 845; U. S. C., title 48, sec. 733b);

Act of June 24, 1935, chapter 288 (49 Stat. 395);

Act of June 24, 1935, chapter 290 (49 Stat. 397);
Act of June 25, 1933, chapter 811 (49 Stat. 1925-1926);
Act of June 25, 1936, chapter 801 (49 Stat. 1917);
Section 3, Act of July 30, 1937 (50 Stat. 548);
Act of August 4, 1937, chapter 563 (50 Stat. 548);
Act of May 16, 1938, chapter 225 (52 Stat. 377):
Joint Resolution of June 29, 1938 (52 Stat. 1247);

Act of June 20, 1939, chapter 224 (53 Stat. 843-844);
Act of August 9, 1939, chapter 610 (53.Stat. 1273);

And any other Acts or parts of Acts in conflict with the provisions of this Act, except for the purposes of section 346 of this Act.

The repeal herein provided shall not terminate nationality heretofore lawfully acquired, nor restore nationality heretofore lost under any law of the United States or any treaty to which the United States may have been a party. SEC. 504. If any provision of this Act shall for any reason be declared by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such declaration shall not invalidate the remainder of this Act.

TITLE II

SEC. 601. This Act shall take effect from and after 90 days from the date of its approval.

The CHAIRMAN. The consideration of this bill followed a message received from the President as follows:

To the Congress of the United States of America:

I transmit herewith a report concerning the revision and codification of the nationality laws of the United States, submitted upon my request, by the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Labor. The report is accompanied by a draft code with three appendixes containing explanatory matter, prepared by officials of the three interested Departments who are engaged in the handling of cases relating to nationality.

The report indicates the desirability from the administrative standpoint of having the existing nationality laws now scattered among a large number of separate statutes embodied in a single, logically arranged, and understandable code. Certain changes in substance are likewise recommended.

In the enclosed letter forwarding the report to me the Secretary of State calls attention to a single question on which there is a difference of opinion between the Departments of Justice and Labor on the one hand and the Department of State on the other hand. If the committees of Congress decide to consider this question, the views of the three Departments may be presented directly to them, I commend this matter to the Congress for the attentive consideration which its wide scope and great importance demand. FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT, Enclosures: (1) Report; (2) draft code and annexes; (3) from the Secretary of State.

THE WHITE HOUSE, June 13, 1938.

The CHAIRMAN. Under date of June 1, 1938, a draft code was prepared by a committee comprising the Honorable Cordell Hull, Secretary of State; Hon. Homer Cummings, Attorney General; and Hon. Frances Perkins, Secretary of Labor, and submitted to the President with the following letter of submittal:

The PRESIDENT,

The White House:

JUNE 1, 1938.

By your Executive order of April 25, 1933, you designated the undersigned a committee to review the nationality laws of the United States, to recommend revisions, and to codify the laws into one comprehensive nationality law for submission to the Congress.

In pursuance of this order a committee of advisers, composed of six representatives of the Department of State, six of the Department of Labor, and one of the Department of Justice, was appointed to study the existing laws governing nationality, and to prepare a draft code, embodying such changes and additions as might seem desirable, together with a report explaining the same. Because of the wide field covered by these laws, the complexity of the problems involved and certain obstacles which could not have been foreseen, the report was not completed until August 13, 1935.

In view of the unusual importance of this subject, which is designed to determine the basic status of nationality itself, upon which so many rights and obligations depend, the draft code mentioned above was thoroughly reviewed by offi

cials of the three Departments, some of whom had taken no part in its preparation. As a result of this review and of conferences between these officials, various changes were made in the original draft.

While the nationality laws of nearly all foreign states have in recent years been completely revised and codified, the laws of the United States on this subject are found scattered among a large number of statutes, and it is sometimes difficult to reconcile the provisions of different statutes. On the other hand, there are no statutory provisions fixing the nationality status of the inhabitants of certain of the outlying possessions of the United States, including American Samoa and Guam.

The nationality problem in the United States is especially complex and difficult for several reasons. In past years large numbers of persons of foreign origin have come to the United States, have had children born to them in this country, and have subsequently returned to reside in the foreign countries from which they came, or have moved on to other foreign countries, taking their Americanborn children with them. In some cases the parents while in the United States obtained naturalization as citizens thereof, and in such cases children born to them in foreign countries after such naturalization have acquired citizenship of the United States at birth, under the provision of the existing law (R. S. 1993). Children born in the United States to persons of the classes mentioned acquired at birth citizenship of the United States, and in many cases they also acquired at birth the nationality of the foreign states from which their parents came, thus becoming vested with dual nationality. Dual nationality has also attached at birth to children born in certain foreign countries having in their law of nationality the territorial rule (jus soli) to parents who acquired American nationality at birth or through naturalization.

The draft code submitted herewith is divided into five chapters, as follows: Chapter I, Definitions; Chapter II, Nationality at Birth; Chapter III, Nationality Through Naturalization; Chapter IV, Loss of Nationality; and Chapter V, Miscellaneous.

Since the citizenship status of persons born in the United States and the incorporated Territories is determined by the fourteenth amendment to the Constitution, the proposed changes in the law governing acquisition of nationality at birth relate to birth in the unincorporated Territories and birth in foreign countries to parents one or both of whom have American nationality. Cases of the latter kind are especially difficult of solution, in view of the necessity of avoiding discrimination between the sexes, and of the fact that, under the laws of many foreign countries, the nationality thereof is acquired through birth in their territories.

With regard to chapter III, it may be observed that naturalization constitutes a vital part of the nationality system of the United States, and the naturalization measures proposed by the committee of advisers constitute a considerable portion of the committee's proposals.

United States citizenship is a high privilege and ought not to be conferred lightly or upon a doubtful showing. The experience of the naturalization courts and administrative officers who have had to deal directly with the problems presented has demonstrated, however, the need for an accurate, comprehensive, and detailed code by which naturalization is to be conferred and any abuse of the process remedied. No alien has the slightest right to naturalization unless all statutory requirements are complied with, and every certificate of citizenship must be treated as granted on condition that the Government may challenge it in regular proceedings for that purpose and demand its revocation unless issued in accordance with statutory requirements.

The proposed code herewith represents a studied effort to draft a measure which would conform to the constitutional requirement that the rule of naturalization be uniform and facilitate the naturalization of worthy candidates, while protecting the United States against adding to its body of citizens persons who would be a potential liability rather than an asset.

The provisions of Chapter IV, Loss of Nationality, are of special importance. Loss of nationality is in all cases to result from the existence of stated facts. In this relation mention may be made of the provision of section 501, in which diplomatic and consular officers are required to send to the Department of State reports concerning persons found by them to have committed acts resulting in loss of American nationality under the provisions of chapter IV of the proposed act. It is important to note that such reports are intended merely for the information of the Department of State, the Department of Labor, and any other branches of the Government which may be interested.

« ÎnapoiContinuă »