Constitutional Court reserves judgement in the DA Abroad’s Citizenship Court Case
5 November 2024
The Constitutional Court today reserved judgement in the DA Abroad’s citizenship court case following a virtual hearing.
This comes after a protracted court battle led by the DA Abroad in which the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruled that any South African who lost their citizenship after acquiring another nationality remains a South African citizen.
This ruling was the result of the DA challenging the constitutionality of Section 6(1)(a) of the South African Citizenship Act 88 of 1995. This section currently mandates that South Africans automatically lose their citizenship if they acquire a second nationality while not being a minor, by a voluntary and formal act other than marriage, unless they actively apply for and obtain a ‘retention of citizenship’ document from the Minister of Home Affairs.
Despite the SCA’s judgment in 2023, which the then-Minister of Home Affairs chose not to appeal, the Constitutional Court still needs to ratify this decision.