History of Canadian Nationality Law - Imperial and Federal Legislation, 1868-1914

Imperial and Federal Legislation, 1868-1914

At common law, a person born within Her Majesty's dominions became a British subject at birth. The various colonies of the British Empire passed their own laws determining how naturalization as a subject could take place, as well as what status aliens possessed, within their respective jurisdictions. Upon the passage of the Constitution Act, 1867, the Parliament of Canada was given authority over "Naturalization and Aliens", by virtue of section 91(25).

The Aliens and Naturalization Act, 1868 was the first federal Act to be passed, and it provided that persons that had been previously naturalized in any part of the Dominion possessed the same status as anyone naturalized under that Act. In addition:

• Aliens could apply for naturalization after three years' residence in Canada.
• Alien-born women became naturalized by marriage to a natural-born subject or to a husband naturalized under the Act.
• The laws in Nova Scotia and the former Province of Canada that allowed aliens to hold property were kept in force.

The 1868 Act was replaced by the Naturalization and Aliens Act, 1881, which came into force on 4 July 1883. It made the rules allowing aliens to hold property uniform throughout the Dominion, and otherwise standardized the law along the same lines as the Naturalization Act 1870 of the United Kingdom.