Belarusian Citizenship in 1991-2002
The first citizenship act after the Belarusian declaration of independence was adopted on October 18, 1991.
The Citizenship Act (1991) has not declared succession of citizenship of the Byelorussian SSR. Citizens of the USSR who had permanently resided in Belarus were recognized by the Act as citizens of the Republic of Belarus.
Belarusian citizenship could be acquired:
- by birth
- by naturalization
- by registration (since amendments of June 15, 1993)
Citizenship by birth could be acquired if both of the parents were citizens of the Republic of Belarus. The same applied if only one of the parents was a citizen of Belarus and at the same time the child was born in Belarus, or in the case where at least one of his parents had permanent residence in Belarus. Citizenship was also granted to a child that was born in Belarus to stateless parents.
Citizenship by naturalization could be gained if the applicant:
- had permanent residence in Belarus for 7 years preceding application
- had sufficient knowledge of one of state languages
- had a legal source of income in Belarus
Read more about this topic: Belarusian Citizenship
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