The Attorney General’s Office acknowledges the Privy Council’s decision to uphold the judgement in the landmark ruling made by Supreme Court Justice Ian Winder in 2020 Shannon Tyreck Rolle and 4 others . This decision affirms that children born out of wedlock to Bahamian fathers and foreign mothers are citizens of the Bahamas at birth and do not have to wait until they are 18 years old to apply for citizenship.
The ruling is an important step towards ensuring equal citizenship rights for all children, irrespective of their parents’ marital status.
It is expected to impact the lives of many individuals in our country positively. The Attorney General’s Office will work diligently to ensure the implementation of the Privy Council’s decision and to review the existing citizenship legislation in light of this new development.
We would also like to take this opportunity to remind the public that the government remains committed to addressing other citizenship issues, including granting automatic citizenship to children born abroad to married Bahamian women and their foreign husbands. The government will continue its efforts to create a fair and just citizenship framework for all Bahamians.
