DOMICILE ACT 1979

NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA DOMICILE ACT 1979 As in force at 6 December 2018 Table of provisions 1 Short title ......................................................................................... 1 2 Commencement .............................................................................. 1 3 Interpretation ................................................................................... 1 4 Operation of Act............................................................................... 1 5 Abolition of rule of dependent domicile of married woman .............. 2 6 Domicile of origin ............................................................................. 2 7 Capacity for independent domicile................................................... 2 8 Domicile of certain children.............................................................. 2 9 Domicile of choice ........................................................................... 3 10 Domicile in a union .......................................................................... 3 11 Evidence of acquisition of domicile of choice................................... 3 ENDNOTES -- 1 of 6 -- -- 2 of 6 -- NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA ____________________ As in force at 6 December 2018 ____________________ DOMICILE ACT 1979 An Act to abolish the dependent domicile of married women and otherwise to reform the law relating to domicile 1 Short title This Act may be cited as the Domicile Act 1979. 2 Commencement This Act shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by the Administrator by notice published in the Gazette. 3 Interpretation In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: Commonwealth of Australia means the territory comprising the States and the Australian Capital Territory, the Jervis Bay Territory and the Northern Territory of Australia. country includes any state, province or other territory: (a) that is one of 2 or more territories that together form a country; and (b) domicile in which can be material for any purpose of the laws of the Territory. union means any country that is a union or federation or other aggregation of 2 or more countries and includes the Commonwealth of Australia. 4 Operation of Act (1) The domicile of a person at a time before the commencement of this Act shall be determined as if this Act had not been enacted. (2) The domicile of a person at a time after the commencement of this Act shall be determined as if this Act had always been in force. -- 3 of 6 -- Domicile Act 1979 2 (3) Nothing in this Act affects the jurisdiction of any court in any proceedings commenced before the commencement of this Act. (4) This Act has effect to the exclusion of the application of the laws of any other country relating to any matter dealt with by this Act. 5 Abolition of rule of dependent domicile of married woman The rule of law under which a married woman has at all times the domicile of her husband is abolished. 6 Domicile of origin The rule of law whereby the domicile of origin revives upon the abandonment of a domicile of choice without the acquisition of a new domicile of choice is abolished and the domicile a person has at any time continues until he acquires a different domicile. 7 Capacity for independent domicile (1) A person is capable of having an independent domicile if: (a) he has attained the age of 18 years; or (b) he is or has at any time been married, and not otherwise. (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a person who, under the rules of law relating to domicile, is incapable of acquiring a domicile by reason of mental incapacity. 8 Domicile of certain children (1) In this section: (a) child means a person under the age of 18 years who is not, and has not at any time been, married; and (b) references to the parents of a child include references to parents who are not married to each other. (2) Where, at any time, a child has his principal home with one of his parents but his parents are living separately and apart or the child does not have another living parent, the domicile of the child at that time is the domicile that that parent has at that time and thereafter the child has the domicile that that parent has from time to time or, if that parent has died, the domicile that that parent had at the time of death. -- 4 of 6 -- Domicile Act 1979 3 (3) Where a child is adopted, his domicile: (a) if, upon his adoption, he has 2 parents – is, at the time of the adoption and thereafter, the domicile he would have if he were a child born to those parents; and (b) if, upon his adoption, he has one parent only – is, at the time of the adoption, the domicile of that parent and thereafter is the domicile that that parent has from time to time or, if that parent had died, the domicile that that parent had at the time of death. (4) A child ceases to have, by virtue of subsection (2), the domicile or last domicile of one of his parents if: (a) he commences to have his principal home with his other parent; or (b) his parents resume or commence living together. (5) Where a child has a domicile by virtue of subsection (2) or (3) immediately before he ceases to be a child, he retains that domicile until he acquires a domicile of choice. (6) Where the adoption of a child is rescinded, the domicile of the child shall thereafter be determined in accordance with any provisions with respect to that domicile that are included in the order rescinding the adoption and, so far as no such provision is applicable, as if the adoption had not taken place. 9 Domicile of choice The intention that a person must have in order to acquire a domicile of choice in a country is the intention to make his home indefinitely in that country. 10 Domicile in a union A person who is, in accordance with the rules of the common law as modified by this Act, domiciled in a union but is not, apart from this section, domiciled in any particular one of the countries that together form the union is domiciled in that one of those countries with which he has for the time being the closest connection. 11 Evidence of acquisition of domicile of choice The acquisition of a domicile of choice in place of a domicile of origin may be established by evidence that would be sufficient to establish the domicile of choice if the previous domicile had also been a domicile of choice. -- 5 of 6 -- ENDNOTES Domicile Act 1979 4 ENDNOTES 1 KEY Key to abbreviations amd = amended od = order app = appendix om = omitted bl = by-law pt = Part ch = Chapter r = regulation/rule cl = clause rem = remainder div = Division renum = renumbered exp = expires/expired rep = repealed f = forms s = section Gaz = Gazette sch = Schedule hdg = heading sdiv = Subdivision ins = inserted SL = Subordinate Legislation lt = long title sub = substituted nc = not commenced 2 LIST OF LEGISLATION Domicile Act 1979 (Act No. 78, 1979) Assent date 13 July 1979 Commenced 21 September 1979 (Gaz G38, 21 September 1979, p 1) Married Persons (Equality of Status) Act 1989 (Act No. 76, 1989) Assent date 12 December 1989 Commenced 12 December 1989 Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration and Other Legislation Amendment 2018 (Act No. 30, 2018) Assent date 5 December 2018 Commenced 6 December 2018 (s 2) 3 GENERAL AMENDMENTS General amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table of amendments to this reprint) are made by the Interpretation Legislation Amendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22, 2018) to: s 1. 4 LIST OF AMENDMENTS s 5 sub No. 76, 1989, s 7; No. 30, 2018, s 15 s 8 amd No. 30, 2018, s 16 -- 6 of 6 --