Politicians from across the political spectrum, from One Nation to the Greens, are calling for an independent review to check the citizenship status of every MP and senator in the wake of recent resignations.
But federal health minister Greg Hunt said citizenship was a matter for "individuals" and seemed to dismiss the case for an independent audit.
"I think the presumption is that everyone is an Australian citizen. If there are individuals, or individual cases are raised where there's a legitimate concern, then it'll be up to each individual to clarify those," he told ABC Radio on Friday.
"Effectively we go through this process of an audit at each election, when each of us signs a declaration that we are an Australian citizen, and only an Australian citizen, and that we're in compliance with Section 44 of the constitution."
Labor MP Anthony Albanese said he was "confident" Labor had already done a thorough vetting of its own members.
"We’ve checked out all our people, all our people are fine," he said.
Turnbull government frontbencher Christopher Pyne rubbished the case against his colleague Matt Canavan, who plans to take his dual citizenship case to the High Court because his mother allegedly enlisted him for Italian citizenship without his knowledge or consent.
"On that basis, Kim Jong Un could make us all citizens of North Korea and we'd all have to resign," Mr Pyne told the Nine Network.
"You can't just make me a citizen of another country without me knowing it and then apparently I'd have to resign from the House of Representatives."
One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts, now himself mired in historical citizenship doubts, is one of the leading voices calling for a parliamentary inquiry.
He contacted the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House asking them to investigate.
Malcolm Roberts under pressure on citizenship documents
Senator Roberts says he received confirmation of his renunciation of British citizenship on December 5, 2016, months after last year’s federal election.
However, the Queensland senator insists he took all reasonable steps to renounce with the British consulate in the months prior to receiving the formal reply.
Senator Roberts has been under increasing pressure to release documents of his renunciation after fresh reports surfaced claiming he had travelled under a British passport as a child and was listed on a registry of British nationals born overseas.
It comes as Nationals Senator Matt Canavan became the latest politician to become embroiled in the dual nationality fiasco engulfing federal parliament, after the resignations of Greens deputy leaders Scott Ludlam and Larissa Waters.
Section 44 of the Constitution forbids parliamentarians from being dual citizens.
The One Nation senator has insisted he’s neither a citizen of the UK nor India, where he was born.
But on Thursday night he detailed the timeline of events leading up to the receipt of the British citizenship renunciation letter to Sky News.
He said he sent three emails to the British consulate asking if he was a British citizen from May 1, 2016.
He wrote again on June 6, saying he believed he was not a British citizen but formally renounced it, “if it existed”.
He finally received the confirmation from British officials on December 5.
The federal election was held on July 2, 2016.
Senator Roberts said he finally got the reply “after a lot of badgering”.
“I’ve taken all steps that I reasonably believe necessary,” he said.
A previous High Court decision around Section 44 found that a parliamentarian must have taken “all reasonable steps” to renounce their other citizenship.
The Australian Electoral Commission also advises candidates they will be “disqualified from election to parliament if they do not take “all reasonable steps” to renounce their other citizenship before nomination.”
Labor Senator Sam Dastyari said sending emails to renounce wasn't enough:
Senator Roberts says he’s confident of his case withstanding a challenge, based on legal advice.
“I only ever thought I was an Australian citizen, that’s all I believed, that I am an Australian citizen only,” he said.
