DEPARTMENT OF HOME AFFAIRS UMNYANGO WEZINDABA ZASEKHAYA DEPARTEMENT VAN BINNELANDSE SAKE DEPHATEMENTE YA MERERO YA TSA SELEGAE

Streekverteenwoordiger Regional RepresentativePrivaatsak X9031 Private BagKAAPSTAD/CAPE TOWN 800019S7-"-' 4

Mrs H L Bernstein 57 Lock Crescent Kidlington Oxon ENGLAND 0X5, 1HF

Dear Mr* Bernstein

SOUTH AFRICAN CITIZENSHIP: YOURSELF

I refer to your enguiry in connection with the abovementioned matter. According to available information you are a South African citizen by birth in terms of section 2(1)(a) of the South African Citizenship Act, 1995 (Act No 88 of 1995).As a South African citizen you are entitled to permanent residence in South Africa.Yours faithfully

TEL: 462 4970 FAX: 461 7686 REF: 15/2/1/1

DEPARTMENT OF HOME AFFAIRS UMNYANGO WEZANGAPHAKATHI DEPARTEMENT VAN BINNELANDSE SAKE DEPHATEMENTE YA MERERO YA TSA SELEGAE

BI-1155

Streekverteenwoordiger Regional Representative 462 4970Privaatsak X9031 Private Bag REF:

k a a p s t a d /c a p e t o w n 8000199S 03- 2 2Mr L Bernstein 57 Lock Crescent Kidlington Oxon ENGLAND D X 5, I H F

Dear Mr Bernstein

CITIZENSHIP: YOURSELF AND YOUR WIFE, HILDA LILIAN BERNSTEIN

I refer to your enguiry in connection with the above matter.Kindly advise whether you formally applied for British citizenship in 1969.

Yours faithfully

burger\am-bern

MC

Any further correspondence should be addressed to

The Under Secretary of State, Home Office, Princeton House, 271-277 High Holbom, London,

W .C.i

quoting:

Your reference:

B 225271

H O ME O F F I C E T o l w o r t h T o w e r , S u r b i t o n , S u r r e y

Telephone: 01-399-5191, ext. b f t

Miss F Bernstein 5 Rothwell Street LONDON NW1 i7 June 1970Dear Miss BernsteinWith reference to your application for registration as a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies under sec. 6(1) of the British Nationality Act 1948, as extended by section 1 and the 1st Schedule to the South Africa Act 1962, I am writing to say that such registration is now only open to South African citizens who applied and gave notice of their intention to apply for registration under paragraph 2 of the 1st Schedule to the South Africa Act 1962 on or before 31 Decemter 1965.As there is no trace in the Home Office of your having given such notice before 31 December 1965, I am afraid we are unable to proceed with your application for registration made on 27 April 1970. Ihe only way in which you could now acquire citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies would be by naturalisation and a leaflet explaining the qualifications is enclosed.

Yours sincerely

ENC1MISS J H MACKSLCKSN Nationality Division

HOME OFFICEWHITEHALL

S.W.l

You sent no on 20th April tho enclosed letter from IIlso F. Bernstein who wishes to acquire citizenship of the United Kin^don and Colonies* I an sorry X have not been able to aend you an earlier reply.I can appreciate Ilso Bernstein’s feelings on being told that she is expected to apply for naturalisation, and I will try to explain irliy she io in this position, She was a cltisen of South Africa at birth in 1951 end accordingly a British sub,]cot. V.hcn South Africa left the Commonwealth all South African citizens who had no o thcr oJrC-JLiii to *j i.53h nationality coased to be British subjects end became aliens in United Kingdom law* Special provision was cade in the South Africa Act 1062 which enabled South Africans resident in the United Kingdom to continue until the end of 1965 to be treated as British subjects .tor the purpose of acquiring citizenship cf the United Kingdom and Colonies by registration under soction 6(1) of the British Nationality Act llJ4ii. Those South Africans not then qualified to apply for registration wore able to preserve their right to do co by giving the Hone Secretary formal notice of intention to

apply when qualified to do so*Under section 6(1) of the 1048 Ant (as Rrnondpd) any Connonwealth citizen or British subject of full are who has bosn ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom for the five years immediately preceding an application is entitled to be registered as a citizen cf the United Kingdom and Colonies* Once an applicant has been so registered it is open to him to apply for"the registration also of any of his minor children under the discretionary powers of the Koiso Secretary given in

section 7 of the Act*Plins Temstoin and her family became ordinarily resident in this country in September 1S64* Her father and other members of tho family gave the Home Secretary notice in November 1965 of their intention to apply within five years of

/their

A* W, Stallard, Esq*, M.P.

their date of arrival for registration under scction 6(1) of the Act. At that time Ilr* Bernstein was sent a leaflet explaining, among other matt era, that the liono Secretary had ■power to register minor children* Hr# Bernstein could have applied in tieptenber 1969 for hia own registration since he had by then completed five years* ordinary residence here, and might, in view of tho publicity thore had been about the lowering of tho ago of majority, have enquired about the position of his daughter, who although over 18 was still a minor under the law as it stood at thin tioe* li’. Bernstein did not however submit an application for his own registration until April 1970. After some delay because of the difficulty of producing certain documents his application was approved and he was registered as a citizen of tho United Kingdom and Colonies on 30th larch 1971* An application for tho registration of liia minor son aged 14 is still under consideration; but because by April 1970 Mss Bernstein had, because of the operation of the Fairtily Law Reform Act 1969, become of full ©go, her father could not apply for her registration as a minor child. Accordingly, since she has since that date been a parson of iull ego her only course now is to apply for a certificate of naturalisation*

I sympathise with Fisa Bernstein in that if an application for naturalisation is granted the foe will be nore than she would have had to pay for registration as a minor, but I am afraid there is no action the Hcrie Secretary can take in the matter since the law gives him no discretion to 'vary these particular requirementa» I enclose an application fora for naturalisation in case Hiss Bernstein wishes to apply, and perhaps you would be good enough to pass this on to her*

I ain sorry that it is not possible for me to send you a more helpful reply#

(LORD VJIIJDLESHAM)

Collection Number: A3299 Collection Name: Hilda and Rusty BERNSTEIN Papers, 1931-2006

PUBLISHER: Publisher: Historical Papers Research Archive Collection Funder: Bernstein family Location: Johannesburg

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This document is part of the Hilda and Rusty Bernstein Papers, held at the Historical Papers Research Archive, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.