Modes of Acquiring and
Loosing Citizenship
Ways of Acquiring Citizenship
There are two broad categories by which people get
access to citizenship of a nation.
1) Citizenship by birth
2) Citizenship by Naturalization
•
Citizenship by birth
• is the right of anyone born in the territory of a state
• A majority of people in almost all countries of the world
get citizenship by birth.
• This simply means you became a citizenship of your
country since the time of your birth in that country.
• However, there are two types of Birth.
1. Birth by soil
2. Birth by blood
Cont..
1. Birth by soil
• The place of birth serves as the basis for acquiring
citizenship.
• A person becomes a citizen of a state where he is born
irrespective of the citizenship of the parents.
• For example a child born in the USA of foreign parents is
a American.
Cont..
2. Birth by blood
• Citizenship of a state may also be acquired by a person on
the basis of the nationality of either parents.
• Hence, children take their parents nationality regardless of
where they are born. This refers to the blood line.
• For example, in America USA citizenship is granted by
blood relationship to a child born abroad if one parent is an
American.
Citizenship by Naturalization
• It is a process by which a state grants its citizenship to
foreigners as a result of some voluntary acts and interaction
of the individual.
• There are some pre-requisites vary from one country to
another, among them;
1. Length of residence which vary from 1-10 years, one has
to reside in that country for at least five years.
2. Age of applicant: which varies from 18 to 25 years. The
person who applies for foreign citizenship should be at
least 18 years old.
Cont..
3. Health status: the applicant should be physically and
mentally healthy.
4. Criminal records od individuals: the applicant should be
free from criminal records such as drug smuggling and
terrorism.
5. Ability of national language.
Types of Citizenship by
Naturalization
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Through registration
Through marriage
Through legitimizing
Special legislation
By subjection
By cessation
By option
1. Through registration
• Naturalization through registration is the legal act or process
by which a non-citizen of a country may
acquire citizenship or nationality of that country.
• It also refers to conferring citizenship on an individual who
has migrated to the state.
• In most natives and naturalized citizens have identical rights
and deities.
• But there are distinctions as well; in USA a naturalized
citizen has no right to be president or vice president.
2. Through marriage
• One can also get citizenship through marriage.
• This means individual marrying the citizen of USA foe
example; can get the citizenship of their partner after
fulfilling stipulated requirements.
3. Through legitimizing
• This is a process by which stateless children are legally
acquire citizenship through parenthood or guardianship to
citizen of that state.
4. Special legislation
• When certain nation grants its citizenship to foreigners
freely.
• An example is Diversified Immigrant Visa (DIV)
5. By subjection
• when a part of territory of a state is subjected by another
state either through annexation or purchase, all the
inhabitants of the territory become the citizenship of the
later state.
6. By cessation
• when a part of territory of a state is ceded to another state,
all the citizens of former state acquire the citizenship of the
letter state.
7. By option
• When a state is partitioned into two or more states, the
citizen has an option to become the citizen of any of the
successor states.
Ways of losing citizenship
1. Renunciation of citizenship: is the voluntary act of
renouncing one's citizenship or nationality.
2. Deprivation refers to situations where a State actively
takes nationality away from its citizens. For example as a
punishment for serious criminal act.
3. Substitution: this is called nationality by substitution,
whereby he loses the state's nationality and acquires the
nationality of another State.
End