A bill to strip terrorists of citizenship was dropped
Barnaby Joyce, a member of Parliament (MP), brought a bill on people who are citizens of two countries. It never passed. It was taken off the list of bills waiting in Parliament on 27 October 2026. So nothing in it is law.
Official name: Australian Citizenship Amendment (Stripping Terrorists of Australian Citizenship) Bill 2026
- Say a person is a citizen of Australia and another country, is 18 or over, and is found guilty of a terror crime. If the crime was serious enough, the court would have had to end their Australian citizenship.
- It would have applied to people born Australian as well as people who became citizens later.
- No one could have been left with no citizenship at all.
- After prison, the minister would have had to take every step that makes sense to send them out of Australia.
- It was a private bill, brought by one MP. It never passed. It was taken off the list on 27 October 2026, so none of this is happening.
Who it affects
- Adults who are citizens of two countries and are found guilty of terrorism: A court would have had to cancel their Australian citizenship if their crime showed they had turned against Australia.
- Judges sentencing terrorism cases: They would have had to check a list of questions and make the order if the tests were met.
- The minister in charge of citizenship: They would have had to take every step that makes sense to remove the person from Australia after release.
Why it was brought in
Barnaby Joyce is the MP who brought this bill. He wanted people with two citizenships, who are found guilty of terror crimes, to lose their Australian citizenship and be sent out of the country.
It is a private bill. That means one MP brought it, not the government. A person with two citizenships is a citizen of Australia and of another country.
His notes on the bill say the aim is to make Australia safer. They say these people are a danger to everyone else who wants to live safely in Australia.
The main citizenship law is the Australian Citizenship Act 2007. It already lists some serious crimes that can lead to losing citizenship. This bill added a new and stricter path for terror crimes.
When a court must cancel citizenship
Under the bill, a person found guilty of a terror crime would lose their Australian citizenship if the court found three things were true.
One: they are 18 or older. Two: they are an Australian citizen. Three: their crime was so serious that it shows they have turned against Australia. In plain words, the crime was a deep betrayal of the country.
The word in the bill is "must". Once those three tests are met, the judge has to order the person to stop being a citizen. The judge would not get to choose. An order is the judge's formal ruling.
To decide if the crime is that serious, the judge must look at several things. One is whether the crime goes against Australia's basic values and freedoms. Another is how long the person was involved, and how deeply.
The judge must also weigh how big the planned attack was and what harm it really did. They must ask if it hurt or killed people, or was meant to.
Limits and who it covers
A court could not make the order if the person would end up with no citizenship anywhere. So it only reaches people who are also citizens of another country.
It applies no matter how a person became Australian. Someone born here is treated the same as someone who became a citizen later.
Say a 25-year-old was born in Sydney. They are also a citizen of another country through a parent. If found guilty of a serious terror crime, they could lose their Australian citizenship.
A terror crime here means a crime in the terror part of the Criminal Code. That is the main national law on crimes. Five rules in that part do not count as terror crimes for this bill.
Normally a national law called the Crimes Act sets out how federal sentences, jail time and release work. It would not apply to these citizenship orders.
Removal after prison
Once a court ends someone's citizenship, the minister in charge of citizenship must take every step that makes sense to send them out of Australia. This must happen as soon as it can after they leave prison. The bill does not say where they would be sent.
The bill also takes one serious crime off the current list in the citizenship law. The notes call this a tidy-up. It does not change who is affected by the new rule.
Human rights
Mr Joyce's notes say the bill limits two rights. One is the right to enter your own country. The other is the right to move around freely. A person who loses citizenship and is sent away loses both.
These rights are in a treaty on civil and political rights. A treaty is a written deal between countries. Australia has signed this one. Mr Joyce says limiting these rights is fair because it protects innocent people from terror attacks.
Dropped after time ran out
Mr Joyce brought the bill into the House on 30 March 2026. The House is the larger house of Parliament. On that day he moved to start debate on its main idea. MPs did not debate it after that.
On 27 October 2026 the bill was taken off the Notice Paper. That is the list of bills waiting to be dealt with. It happened under a rule of the House. So it did not pass. It would need to be brought in again to have another go.
To become law, it would have needed to pass the House and then the Senate. The Senate is the second house of Parliament. Then the Governor-General would have signed it. That is the person who stands in for the King. If passed, it would have started the day after that.
Its journey through Parliament
| 30 Mar 2026 | House of Representatives: Introduced and read a first time |
| 30 Mar 2026 | House of Representatives: Second reading moved |
| 27 Oct 2026 | House of Representatives: Removed from the Notice Paper in accordance with (SO 42) |