3. A foreigner acquiring Chinese nationality by reason of being recognised by parents must satisfy the following conditions: (a.) Such person must not be of full age according to the law of his or her own country. (b.) Such person must not be the wife of a foreign national. 4. Foreign nationals and persons without nationality may be naturalised if they have obtained permission from the Ministry of the Interior. The said permission shall not be granted by the Ministry of the Interior except to persons satisfying the following conditions: (a.) Having had a domicile in China for not less than five years continuously. (b.) Having attained the age of 20 years and being sui juris according to the law of China and of their country. (c.) Being of good character. (d.) Being possessed of sufficient property or of technical ability sufficient to enable them to support themselves. (e.) Being without nationality or losing their nationality by reason of their acquiring Chinese nationality. In the case of persons without nationality being naturalised as Chinese citizens, the condition (b) above shall be determined by reference to Chinese law only. 5. The wife of a foreign national shall not be naturalised unless her husband is naturalised at the same time. 6. The following classes of foreigners at present domiciled in China may be naturalised notwithstanding their not satisfying condition (a) of Article 4: (a.) A person whose father or mother has been a Chinese citizen. (b.) A person whose wife has been a Chinese citizen. (c.) A person born in China. (d.) A person who has had a domicile in China for not less than ten years continuously. Foreign nationals included under (a) to (c) shall not be naturalised unless they have continuously had a domicile in China for not less than three years, but this limitation shall not apply to foreign nationals included under (c) whose fathers or mothers shall have been born in China. 7. A foreign national having a domicile in China whose father or mother is a Chinese citizen may be naturalised notwithstanding failure to satisfy conditions (a) or (b) or (d) of Article 4. 8. A foreign national who has attained to high public honours in China may be naturalised notwithstanding failure to satisfy conditions (a), (b), (c), (d) and (e) of Article 4. In granting permission for naturalisation in cases such as the last mentioned, the Ministry of the Interior shall have first obtained the sanction of the President. 9. Notice that naturalisation has taken place shall be published in the Government Gazette." Until after the publication of such notice, naturalisation [sic] cannot be pleaded against a bona fide third party. 10. The wife of a person naturalised and his children under full age according to the law of his own country acquire Chinese nationality together with him, but this shall not apply in cases in which there is contrary provision in the law of the country to which the wife or the children below full age of such person belong. The wife of a naturalised foreigner, if unable by reason of the above-mentioned exception to this article to be naturalised together with her husband, may be naturalised notwithstanding failure to satisfy conditions (a), (b), (c), (d) and (e) of Article 4. 11. Naturalised foreigners and the wives, naturalised together with their husbands, of such naturalised foreigners shall be unable to hold the following public offices: (a.) President or Vice-President. (b.) Secretary of State or Head of Ministry. (c.) Member of the Legislature or of local self-governing body. (d.) Head of Supreme Court. (e.) Head of Administrative Court. (f.) Head of Audit Bureau. (g.) Ambassador or Minister abroad. (i.) Civil Governor of province. In the case of persons naturalised in accordance with Article 8, the Ministry of the Interior may, after five years have elapsed from the time of naturalisation, apply to the President for permission to waive the above restrictions with the exception of the first. In other cases the same may take place after the lapse of ten years from the time of naturalisation. Chapter III.-Loss of Nationality. 12. A Chinese citizen shall lose his or her Chinese nationality in any one of the following events: (a.) On becoming the wife of a foreign national and thereby acquiring the husband's nationality. (b.) On being recognised by his or her father, the father being a foreign national. (c.) On being recognised by his or her mother, the mother being a foreign national and the father being of unascertainable identity or not recognising his paternity. (d.) On voluntary acquisition of foreign nationality. (e.) On becoming, without the consent of the Chinese Government, a civil official or of doing military service in a foreign country and refusing to obey the order of the Chinese Government to resign; (b) and (c) apply only to a person not of full age according to Chinese law, or who is not the wife of a Chinese citizen. Loss of nationality under (d) is limited to persons who. being of not less than 20 years of age, are sui juris according to Chinese law and in whose cases the consent of the Ministry of the Interior has been given. 13. Loss of nationality under (d) of Article 12 shall take place only in cases in which the Ministry of the Interior is satisfied that none of the following conditions exist: (a.) That the person has attained the age for military service and that such service has neither been performed nor remitted. (b.) That the person is engaged in performing military service. (c.) That the person holds office as a civil or military officer, a member of the Legislature, or a member of a local self-governing body. 14. A Chinese citizen to whom one of the following conditions apply shall not lose nationality notwithstanding the existence of one of the conditions (a) to (e) of Article 12 and of the absence of any one of the conditions (a) to (c) of Article 13: (a.) That the person is accused, or is under suspicion of being guilty of a criminal offence. (b.) That the person has been sentenced to punishment for a criminal offence and that the sentence has not been completely carried out. (c.) That the person is defendant in a civil lawsuit. (d.) That the person is one against whom execution is being levied and by whom the judgment debt has not yet been satisfied. (e.) That the person has been declared bankrupt and has not yet been discharged. (f.) That the person owes land or other taxes which are unpaid or has been subjected to judicial orders respecting unpaid land or other taxes and has not yet completely carried out such orders. 15. The wife of a denaturalised person and the child under full age of such person shall, in the case of such wife or child acquiring foreign nationality together with the husband or father, thereby lose Chinese nationality. 16. Persons losing Chinese nationality thereby lose all such rights as can only be exercised by a Chinese citizen. In the event of the possessor of rights of the above character losing his Chinese nationality and of his not having handed the same over into Chinese possession within one year from the date of such loss, such rights shall revert to the National Treasury. Chapter IV.-Reversion to Chinese Nationality. 17. Chinese citizens who have lost their nationality by reason of marriage may, on the dissolution or cessation of such marriage relations, and if they are domiciled in China and fulfil condition (e) of Article 4, revert to Chinese nationality on obtaining the permission of the Ministry of the Interior. The above is applicable to a wife having lost her nationality under Article 15. 18. A person losing his or her nationality under section (d) of Article 12, having a domicile in China and fulfilling conditions (c), (d) and (e) of Article 4 may, with the permission of the Ministry of the Interior, revert to Chinese nationality, but this does not apply to a person previously naturalised as a Chinese citizen who has subsequently lost his or her Chinese nationality or to the children of such person. The above shall apply to a child fulfilling condition (b) of Article 4, and who has lost his or her Chinese nationality under Article 15. 19. Article 10 shall be applicable to the cases specified under Articles 17 and 18. 20. A person who has recovered his Chinese nationality shall not within three years of the date of such recovery hold any public office specified under (a) to (i) of Article 11. The Ministry of the Interior may apply to the President for authority to waive the above restriction. Chapter V.-Appendix. 21. The rules for enforcement of this Law shall be fixed by instructional mandate. 22. This Law shall be enforced from the date of its promulgation. AGREEMENT between British, French, Japanese and United States Banking Groups for the formation of a Financial Consortium in China.-New York, October 15, 1920.* [Approved by the British, French, Japanese and United States Governments.] AN Agreement made the 15th day of October, 1920, between The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, having its office at 9, Gracechurch Street, in the City of London (hereinafter called "the Hong Kong Bank ") of the first part; The Banque de l'Indo-Chine, having its office at 15bis, Rue Laffitte, Paris (hereinafter called the French Bank ''), of the second part; The Yokohama Specie Bank, Limited, having its office at Yokohama, in Japan (hereinafter called "the Japanese Bank"), of the third part; and Messrs. J. P. Morgan and Co., Messrs. Kuhn, Loeb and Co., The National City Bank of New York, Chase National Bank, New York, The Guaranty Trust Company of New York, Messrs. Lee, Higginson and Co. of Boston and the Continental and Commercial Trust and Savings Bank of Chicago (hereinafter called "the American Managers "), acting as to the United Kingdom by Messrs. Morgan, Grenfell and Co., of 22, Old Broad Street, in the City of London, and as to France by Messrs. Morgan, Harjes and Co., of Paris, of the fourth part; Whereas the Hong Kong Bank, the French Bank, the Japanese Bank and the American Managers are acting for the purposes of this Agreement as the representatives of the British, French, Japanese and American groups respectively; And whereas the British, French, Japanese and American groups were formed with the object of negotiating and carrying out Chinese loan business; And whereas their respective Governments have undertaken to give their complete support to their respective national groups, the parties hereto in all operations undertaken pursuant to the Agreement hereinafter contained and have further undertaken that in the event of competition in the obtaining of any specific loan contract the collective support of the diplomatic representatives in Peking of the four Governments will be assured to the parties hereto for the purpose of obtaining such contract; And whereas the said national groups are of the opinion * Parliamentary Paper, "Miscellaneous No. 9 (1921)." |