Alien - Definition - Law Dictionary Home Dictionary Definition alien

Definition :

Alien [fr. alienigena, alibi natus, Lat.], a person not born within His Majesty's dominions and allegiance (q.v.). See definitions in the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Acts, 1914 and 1933, infra. At common law aliens were subject to very many disqualifications, the nature of which is shown by the (English) Act of 1844, 7 & 8 Vict. c. 66, which greatly relaxed the law in their favour. It provided, inter alia, that every person born of a British mother should be capable of holding real or personal estate; that alien friends might hold every species of personal property except chattels real; that subjects of a friendly power might hold lands, etc., for the purposes of residence or business for a term not exceeding twenty-one years; and it also provided for aliens becoming naturalized.

Alien, (UK) is a person who is neither a Common-wealth citizen nor a British protected person nor a citizen of the Republic of Ireland. Aliens therefore include both persons having the nationality or citizenship of some other sovereign State recognized by the United Kingdom. Halsbury's Laws of England, Vol. 4(2), 4th Edn., Para 66, p. 76.

The (English) Naturalization Act, 1870 (33 & 34 Vict. c. 14), repealed the above and other Acts, and contained further provisions in favour of aliens, but this Act, together with several others, has been repealed and the statute law on the subject is now contained in the British nationality and Status of Aliens Act, 1914, as amended by the Acts of the same name of 1918 and 1922. This Act is divided into three parts, the first (s. 1) dealing with natural-born British subjects; the second (ss. 2-9) with the naturalization of aliens; and the third (ss. 10-28) containing certain general and supplemental provisions, relating to the national status of married women and infant children, loss of British Nationality, the status of aliens, and procedure and evidence.

The effect of the Act is shortly as follows: By s. 1 the following persons are deemed natural-born British subjects:--

(a) Any person born within His Majesty's dominions and allegiance; and

(b) Any person born out of His Majesty's dominions, whose father was a British subject at the time of that person's birth and either was born within His Majesty's allegiance or was a person to whom a certificate of naturalization had been granted or had become a British subject by reason of any annexation of territory, or was at the time of that person's birth in the service of the Crown, or his birth was registered at a British Consulate within one year (or with the consent of the Secretary of State two years) after its occurrence, or if born after 31st December,1914, a person who would have been a British subject if born before 1st January, 1915, and who was born within twelve months after 1st August, 1922; and

(c) Any person born on board a British ship whether in foreign territorial waters or not:

Provided that the child of a British subject, whether that child was born before or after the passing of the Act, will be deemed to have been born within His Majesty's allegiance if born in a place where by treaty, capitulation, grant, usage, sufferance, or other lawful means, His Majesty exercises jurisdiction over British subjects. Any person whose British nationality is conditional on registration at a British Consulate shall cease to be a British subject unless within one year after he attains the age of twenty-one (or some other age authorized by regulation) he asserts his British nationality by a declaration of retention registered in accordance with regulations made under the Act (as amended by the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act, 1933 (23 & 24 Geo. 5, c. 49), and divests himself of any other nationality; and see MARRIED WOMAN.

A person born on board a foreign ship will not be deemed to be a British subject by reason only that the ship was in British territorial waters at the time of his birth.

Except as otherwise expressly provided, nothing in s. 1 is to affect the status of any person born before the commencement of the Act. See R. v. Albany, etc., Superintendent, (1915) 3 KB 716.

By s. 2 the Secretary of State may, on application and in his absolute discretion, grant a certificate of naturalization to an alien who satisfies the Secretary--

(a) That he has either resided in His Majesty's dominions for a period of not less than five years in the manner required by the section, or been in the service of the Crown for not less than five years within the last eight years before the application; and

(b) That he is of good character and has an adequate knowledge of the English language; and

(c) That he intends if his application is granted either to reside in His Majesty's dominions or to enter or continue in the service of the Crown.

The residence required is residence in the United Kingdom for not less than one year immediately preceding the application, and previous residence in some part of the King's dominions, here or elsewhere, for four years within the last eight. If the Secretary of State thinks fit, a period spent in the service of the Crown may be treated as equivalent to a period of residence in the United Kingdom. The certificate does not take effect till the applicant has taken the oath of allegiance. The certificate gives the grantee all the rights, powers, and privileges and subjects him to all obligations, duties and liabilities of a natural-born British subject, and gives him the status of such a subject (s. 3).

S. 4 deals with the granting of special certificates in cases of doubt, s. 5 with the case of persons under disability, s. 6 with the case of persons previously naturalized, and s. 7 empowers the Secretary of State to revoke certificates obtained by false representations or in the case of a person who has communicated or traded with an enemy or within specified limits been fined or imprisoned in the Empire, or who was not of good character at the date of the certificate. S. 8 empowers the Governments of British possessions to grant certificates of Imperial naturalization, and s. 9 provides that the provisions of the Act as to naturalization shall not have effect within the Self-Governing Dominions unless the Government of the Dominion adopts them.

The third part of the Act deals with the national status of married women (s. 10) (see below), the status of widows (s. 11), the status of children (s. 12), the loss of British nationality by foreign naturalization (s. 13), and declarations of alienage (s. 14). By s. 15 power is given to naturalized subjects to divest themselves of their status in certain cases, but (s. 16) with a saving of obligations incurred before the loss of nationality.

The (English) Act of 1933 (23 & 24 Geo. 5, c. 44), repealings. 10, supra, gave facilities to married women of British nationality to retain that nationality in certain cases.

With certain exceptions, no alien enemy was to be naturalized for ten years after the termination of the Great War.

The important question of the status of aliens is dealt with by ss. 17 & 18, which are as follows:--

17. Real and personal property of every description maybe taken, acquired, held and disposed of by an alien in the same manner in all respects as by a natural-born British subject; and a title to real and personal property of every description may be derived through, from or in succession to an alien in the same manner in all respects as through, from or in succession to a natural-born British subject:

Provided that this section shall not operate so as to--

(1) Confer any right on an alien to hold real property situate out of the United Kingdom; or

(2) Qualify an alien for any office or for any municipal, parliamentary, or other franchise; or

(3) Qualify an alien to be the owner of a British ship; or

(4) Entitle an alien to any right or privilege as a British subject, except such rights and privileges in respect of property as are hereby expressly given to him; or

(5) Affect any estate in real or personal property to which any person has or may become entitled, either mediately or immediately, in possession or expectancy, in pursuance of any disposition made before the twelfth day of May, 1870, or in pursuance of any devolution by law on the death of any person dying before that day.

18. An alien shall be triable in the same manner as if he were a natural-born British subject.

It should, however, be observed that the right to own land which has been conferred on companies registered under the Companies Act, 1929, notwithstanding the Mortmain Acts, has not been extended to alien companies established outside Great Britain and carrying on business in England (q.v.), and see Part XI. Of the Act (ss. 343 eseq.).

Ss. 19 to 24 deal with questions of procedure and evidence, the Secretary of State being empowered to make regulations for carrying into effect the objects of the Act. S. 25 contains a saving for letters of denization, and s. 26 a saving for the powers of Legislatures and Governments of British possessions; and s. 27 defines a 'British subject' as meaning a person who is a natural-born British subject, or a person to whom a certificate of naturalization has been granted, and an 'alien' as a person who is not a British subject.

The Regulations now in force are the (English) Naturalization Regulations, 1933 (S. R. & O. 1933, No. 1141).

Aliens are now controlled by the (English) Aliens Restriction Act, 1914, as amended by the (English) Aliens Restriction Amendment Act, 1919. By an Order in Council aliens may be prohibited from landing or leaving the United Kingdom: may be deported, made to register themselves, and many other provisions may be made. The Act was originally a war measure, but has to date been continued annually. The Secretary of State frequently deports undesirable aliens upon the commendation of Courts of Summary Jurisdiction. Reference should be made to the above-mentioned Acts.

As to the position of an alien residing within the realm who violates the local allegiance which he owes to the Crown, see Johnstone v. Pedlar, 1921 AC 262, and the cases there cited, and DEPORTATION.

Aliens may be insured persons under the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1935 (25 Geo. 5, c. 8), s. 1, and the National Health Insurance Act, 1936, s. 2.