The Indian government officially notified the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 on Friday, January 10, bringing the controversial legislation into force nearly a month after it received presidential assent.

The Act amends the Citizenship Act of 1955, which has governed Indian citizenship by birth, descent, registration and naturalization since its enactment. The CAA introduces expedited citizenship provisions for non-Muslim religious minorities—Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians—from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who entered India before December 31, 2014 due to religious persecution.

By reducing the naturalization period from 11 years to five, the government says the law offers relief to vulnerable groups. The CAA builds on earlier amendments to citizenship law, including changes made in 1986 and proposals first introduced through the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, which had lapsed without passage.

Despite the law now being in force, opposition to the CAA continues, with critics maintaining that it discriminates on the basis of religion and undermines India’s secular constitutional framework. Supporters continue to defend it as a targeted humanitarian intervention rather than a broad change to citizenship policy.