Citizenship of India: Laws and Myths
Acquisition and Determination of Indian Citizenship There are four ways in which Indian citizenship can be acquired: birth, descent, registration and naturalisation. The provisions are listed under the Citizenship Act, 1955. By Birth : Every person born in India on or after 26.01.1950 but before 01.07.1987 is an Indian citizen irrespective of the nationality of his/her parents. Every person born in India between 01.07.1987 and 02.12.2004 is a citizen of India given either of his/her parents is a citizen of the country at the time of his/her birth. Every person born in India on or after 3.12.2004 is a citizen of the country given both his/her parents are Indians or at least one parent is a citizen and the other is not an illegal migrant at the time of birth. By Registration : Citizenship can also be acquired by registration. Some of the mandatory rules are: A person of Indian origin who has been a resident of India for 7 years before applying for registration. A person of Indian origi