WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has allowed new citizens to not take an oath to Australia.
OUR VERDICT
False. The oath is still a requirement and no changes have been made to it under the Albanese government.
AAP FactCheck – The Albanese government has not made any changes to the citizenship oath or removed the requirement that it be recited at ceremonies, despite claims online.
New citizens are still required to take the oath, also known as a pledge of commitment to Australia, at citizenship ceremonies.
The false claim appears in a January 26 Facebook post1.
“Albanese started chipping away at our culture and country the moment he formed government, by standing in front of three flags,” the post reads.
“Today, he eroded it further by allowing new citizens to not take an oath to Australia.”
The Facebook user cites an X post2 as the source of the claim.
The pledge of commitment was introduced in 1993 by the Keating government under the Australian Citizenship Amendment Act3, and came into effect in January 1994.
The legislation repealed the oath of allegiance, which required citizens to swear allegiance to the Commonwealth monarch at the time and their heirs and successors, and replaced it with a pledge of commitment to Australia.
It reads: “From this time forward, under God, I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people, whose democratic beliefs I share, whose rights and liberties I respect, and whose laws I will uphold and obey.”
People can choose to repeat a version that omits “under God”.
Individuals who attend a ceremony to become Australian citizens are still required to take this pledge.
It is a legal requirement and citizenship does not become official until it is recited, according to the Home Affairs website4.
The pledge must be made by everyone who was aged 16 and over at the time they applied to become a citizen.
However, the Citizenship Act outlines exemptions5, including for those with a permanent physical or mental incapacity, and for those born to a former Australian citizen (section 26).
These settings have not changed under the Albanese government.
A spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs pointed AAP FactCheck to the department’s website6, which states the pledge is still required by law.
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Sources
- https://archive.md/pqr78
- https://x.com/Ausbobsmit/status/2015690857182290070
- https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/num_act/acaa1993334/s8.html
- https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/citizenship/ceremony#:~:text=You%20will%20not%20become%20an%20Australian%20citizen%20until%20you%20have%20made%20the%20pledge%20of%20commitment%20to%20Australia.
- https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/cth/consol_act/aca2007254/s26.html#:~:text=is%20aged%20under,7)%20or%20(8).
- https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/citizenship/ceremony
- https://www.poynter.org/ifcn/
- https://www.threads.net/@aapfactcheck
- https://bsky.app/profile/aapfactcheck.bsky.social
- https://www.tiktok.com/@aapfactcheck
- https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI1hQghM1xMcPnn2UOZ1hBqBqurt9GT4I
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