Tongan nationality law
Nationality law is the law of a sovereign state, and of each of its jurisdictions, that defines the legal manner in which a national identity is acquired and how it may be lost. In international law, the legal means to acquire nationality and f ...
is regulated by the
1875 Constitution of Tonga, as amended; the Nationality Act, and its revisions; and international agreements entered into by the government of Tonga. These laws determine who is, or is eligible to be, a national of Tonga. The legal means to acquire
nationality
Nationality is a legal identification of a person in international law, establishing the person as a subject, a ''national'', of a sovereign state. It affords the state jurisdiction over the person and affords the person the protection of the ...
, formal legal membership in a nation, differ from the domestic relationship of rights and obligations between a national and the nation, known as
citizenship
Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection".
Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...
. Tongan nationality is typically obtained either on the principle of
jus soli, i.e. by birth in Tonga or under the rules of
jus sanguinis, i.e. by birth abroad to parents with Tongan nationality. It can be granted to persons who have lived in the country for a specific period of time, or who have an affiliation to the country through naturalisation.
Acquiring Tongan nationality
Nationality in Tonga is acquired at birth or later in life by naturalisation.
By birth
Birthright nationality applies to:
* Persons born anywhere to at least one parent with Tongan nationality, if the parent was born in Tonga.
By naturalisation
Regular naturalisation in Tonga is acquired by application solely at the discretion of the
monarch
A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power i ...
. Applicants must provide evidence that they are of good character; have familiarity with the
Tongan language
Tongan (English pronunciation: or ; ') is an Austronesian language of the Polynesian branch native to the island nation of Tonga. It has around 187,000 speakers. It uses the word order verb–subject–object.
Related languages
Tongan is on ...
; intend to live there, and have resided within the territory for five years. Persons who may attain nationality by naturalisation include:
* Persons married to Tongan nationals, subject to taking an
oath of allegiance;
* Women who formerly lost their nationality because of marriage, if the marriage has terminated may reacquire nationality without a residency period;
* Minor adoptees and
foundlings
Child abandonment is the practice of relinquishing interests and claims over one's offspring in an illegal way, with the intent of never resuming or reasserting guardianship. The phrase is typically used to describe the physical abandonment of a ...
, upon completion of an adoptive order;
* Minor children of a naturalised subject; or
* Persons who are deemed to have humanitarian need for nationality.
Loss of nationality
Tongan nationals may not