History of Denaturalization in Timeline

Denaturalization refers to the involuntary loss of citizenship, often targeting ethnic minorities or political dissidents. It can stem from criminal actions or errors during naturalization, such as fraud. Post-9/11, its use has risen against those accused of terrorism. However, denaturalization is widely regarded as a human rights violation due to the internationally recognized right to nationality, as enshrined in Article 15 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

1906: Naturalization Act of 1906 in the United States

In 1906, the United States passed the Naturalization Act as part of a broader trend of denaturalization laws in the Western world.

1914: British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act in 1914

In 1914, the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act was passed in Britain, as part of a series of denaturalization laws enacted in the Western world during the early twentieth century.

1915: French Laws in 1915

In 1915, France enacted laws related to denaturalization, amidst a period of increasing denaturalization laws in the Western world.

1918: British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act in 1918

In 1918, Britain passed another British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act, adding to the denaturalization laws enacted in the Western world.

1918: End of Mandatory Loss of Citizenship

Until 1918, most countries denaturalized women who married foreigners; however, in the decade after World War I, eighteen countries ended the mandatory loss of citizenship for married women.

1920: Deportation of Emma Goldman

In 1920, anarchist Emma Goldman was denaturalized and deported to Finland bound for the Soviet Union among a group of over 200 "aliens" by the United States.

1921: Denaturalization of White Émigrés by Soviet Union

In 1921, the Soviet Union denaturalized two million former citizens of the Russian Empire, the "white émigrés", rendering them stateless.

1923: United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind

In 1923, the US Supreme Court case United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind determined that Indians were legally non-white and could not be considered citizens, leading the US government to attempt to strip naturalized Indian-Americans of their citizenship.

1927: French Laws in 1927

In 1927, France enacted further laws related to denaturalization, continuing a trend started earlier in the century.

1933: German Denaturalization Law of 1933

In 1933, Germany enacted a denaturalization law initially targeting political dissidents living outside the country.

1935: Loss of Citizenship Rights for German Jews in 1935

In 1935, all German Jews lost their citizenship rights, and those who emigrated were denaturalized en masse, facilitating the confiscation of their property.

1938: Denaturalization of Jews in Czechoslovakia

In 1938, the Second Czechoslovak Republic denaturalized Jews who fled or were expelled from the Sudetenland after its annexation to Germany.

1941: Denaturalization of Jewish Emigres and Deportees in 1941

In 1941, Nazi Germany denaturalized all Jewish emigres and German Jews who were deported to Nazi ghettos or concentration camps.

1943: Denaturalization of Turkish Jews

By 1943, 93% of those denaturalized by Turkey were Turkish Jews, placing them at high risk during the Holocaust.

1948: Denaturalization of Palestinians

In 1948, during the foundation of the State of Israel, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were effectively denaturalized and became refugees.

1949: Denaturalization of Indian Tamils in Sri Lanka

In 1949, Sri Lanka denaturalized the Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka and attempted to deport them to India.

1951: The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt

In 1951, philosopher Hannah Arendt linked nationality to the "right to have rights" in her book 'The Origins of Totalitarianism'.

1955: Hannah Arendt on Deprivation of Citizenship

In 1955, Hannah Arendt argued that "No state, no matter how draconian its law, should have the right to deprive citizenship."

1961: 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness

In 1961, the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness was established. It opposes denaturalization leading to statelessness, except in cases of fraud in obtaining nationality or if a state declared at ratification about laws allowing denaturalization for serving or receiving benefits from another state, or actions severely harming the state's interests.

1973: United Kingdom Denaturalization

In 1973, the United Kingdom stopped the practice of denaturalization, and did not denaturalize anyone between 1973 and 2002.

1974: Canadian nationality law

In 1974, Canada discontinued the practice of revoking nationality from naturalized citizens who returned to their country of origin, a practice previously embedded in Canadian nationality law.

1982: Burma Citizenship Act of 1982

In 1982, the Burma Citizenship Act led to the denaturalization of the Rohingya people, an ethnic group in Myanmar, which is cited as an element of the Rohingya genocide.

2002: Change in UK Denaturalization Laws

In 2002, the United Kingdom changed its laws to allow the Home Secretary to denaturalize individuals without an independent review, leading to a surge in denaturalizations.

2006: Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006

In 2006, the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act in the UK allowed the Home Secretary to revoke British nationality if "the Secretary of State is satisfied that such deprivation is conducive to the public good".

2013: Dominican Citizens of Haitian Descent Denaturalized

Beginning in 2013, approximately 200,000 Dominican citizens of Haitian descent were retroactively denaturalized in the Dominican Republic, a measure driven by the desire to reduce the number of black Haitians in the country.

2014: EU Countries with Denaturalization Provisions

As of 2014, over a dozen European Union countries had provisions for denaturalization if a citizen resides abroad for an extended period.

2014: British law allows denaturalization under certain conditions

In 2014, British law was amended to permit the denaturalization of naturalized British citizens who do not possess any other citizenship if the Home Secretary reasonably believes they could acquire citizenship of another country.

2019: Exclusion from India's National Register of Citizens

In 2019, almost 2 million people (6% of the population of Assam) were excluded from India's National Register of Citizens, with Bengali Muslims at the highest risk of denaturalization and indefinite detention.

2019: US Department of Homeland Security Uses ATLAS Software

In 2019, the US Department of Homeland Security employed the software ATLAS, running on Amazon Cloud, to scan records of naturalized Americans, flagging approximately 124,000 for manual review regarding denaturalization.

2021: Citizens Stranded in the Middle East

As of 2021, numerous citizens from various European countries are stranded in the Middle East because their governments refuse to repatriate them without formal denaturalization.