Most states of the world do not recognize the presence of two citizenships. Most often, upon receipt of a new citizenship they require the abandonment of the old. However, some states have international agreements that automatically terminate citizenship. Russia has such agreements with a number of countries that were previously part of the USSR: with Georgia, Belarus, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
If states do not have such agreements, then a person will have to go through a rather complicated and lengthy procedure.
The Law on Citizenship of Ukraine
The main provisions on citizenship are covered in the Law “On Citizenship”. The procedure is described in more detail in the order of March 27, 2001 No. 215.
But the most important thing is that according to the current legislation of Ukraine it is impossible to renounce citizenship. There is only a termination procedure, also provided for loss.
Russian legislation
Not so long ago, without renouncing Ukrainian citizenship, it was impossible to obtain a Russian passport. Last year, the State Duma adopted a law on the basis of which a certificate of renunciation of citizenship of another country is no longer required from a person who wants to become a Russian. The migration service only needs to submit a notarized application. One copy of the paper remains in Russia, the other is sent to Ukraine. Also, confirmation of the refusal by Ukraine is no longer required.
Exit procedure
Refusal of citizenship of Ukraine is possible only with the consent of the person himself. Confirmation is an appeal to the government bodies of the person concerned with a corresponding statement. If there are no circumstances for refusal, the state should not impede desire.
Before starting the procedure for renouncing citizenship of Ukraine, a person must enter the desired country of residence according to the permanent residence procedure, be registered at the consulate. If this is not done, it will be much more difficult to lose citizenship and will have to travel to Ukraine.
What to submit documents
If a person decides to refuse, then the diplomatic mission or consulate must apply with the following documents:
- a copy of a foreign passport issued in Ukraine;
- a document that confirms the new citizenship already obtained, or that the applicant is in the process of obtaining it.
You will also need photographs measuring 3.5 X 4.5 cm. In addition, you will have to pay for renouncing citizenship of Ukraine, and fill out an application. To date, the state duty is 210 US dollars (about 14 thousand rubles).
All copies of documents and photographs are submitted in four copies.
Form 20
The Law on Citizenship of Ukraine involves filling out an application in a special form in case of refusal of citizenship. This form was approved by order of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs No. 185 dated September 15, 2006.
The form is compiled according to the type of questionnaire, in which there are questions on the left side and the applicant must enter the answers on the right side. A photo is glued in the upper right corner.
The first column prescribes F.I.O., if there were changes, then information is necessarily specified about this. The second column indicates the date of birth, and the third indicates nationality. The fourth section indicates the place of birth.
Further, the circumstances in which a new citizenship was received, the date of departure from Ukraine, are prescribed in the model for renouncing citizenship of Ukraine. The seventh section indicates the body that issued the documents on permanent residence. The next section provides information on whether the applicant is a resident of a state.
The ninth section prescribes information and indicates the document that will confirm that citizenship will not be refused in the future.
The last columns contain the following information:
- education;
- marital status;
- address of the last place of residence in Ukraine;
- contact details of the applicant.
The application is mandatory certified by a notary.
It is recommended to submit an application personally. However, not all regions of Russia have diplomatic missions and consulates, such bodies are only in 17 regions. Specialists in the field of international relations do not recommend sending documents and a notarized statement by mail. Moreover, such a procedure is provided only for extreme cases:
- if the applicant is seriously ill;
- if the region of residence is a natural disaster;
- if a future Russian citizen is under arrest.
Simply put, filing documents by mail requires good reason and insurmountable circumstances. Moreover, during a preliminary check of documents at the consulate, specialists can identify errors and inaccuracies that need to be addressed immediately.
However, the law does not prohibit filing documents through an authorized representative.
If it’s about a child
If the child has not yet reached the age of 14, then one of the parents submits an application for renunciation of citizenship in his application. In addition to their documents, you should submit documents for the child:
- copy of birth certificate;
- a copy of a document confirming that the child is a citizen of Ukraine;
- documents that confirm that the child has already received a new citizenship, or his documents are under consideration.
For children aged 14 to 18, a special application form is provided for filling in under number 21. A document must also be attached to the application, which confirms that the child lives outside the country on a permanent basis.
Form 22 is provided for situations when parents have already refused citizenship, and the child is still a citizen of Ukraine, or one of the parents is a citizen of another country.
Terms of consideration
The consulate has one month to review the documents. During this period, service specialists must check the correctness of the documents, if there are any shortcomings, then they are returned to the applicant for elimination. If everything is in order, then the documents are transferred to the commission under the President of Ukraine on citizenship issues.
In general, the entire procedure for considering applications for renouncing citizenship of Ukraine takes 8-20 months. The legislative acts stipulate that this procedure cannot take more than 2 years, although this period does not include the periods allotted for sending documents between states.
The result of consideration of renunciation of citizenship is the decision of the President of Ukraine. After that, the diplomatic service decides that the documents proving the citizenship of Ukraine are invalid. The applicant is obliged to submit them to the consulate, in return he will be issued with a relevant certificate.
Is it necessary to refuse?
Indeed, there are countries that recognize dual citizenship; in this case, renunciation is not necessary to initiate. However, it should be remembered that Ukrainian legislation does not recognize dual citizenship, therefore for a country such a person will forever remain a citizen of Ukraine. On the other hand, the presence of a second passport may become a reason for deprivation of citizenship.
When can they rob?
The law on renunciation of citizenship provides for other cases in which a person may be deprived of citizenship:
- if the documents were obtained by fraud, falsification or other illegal actions;
- voluntary military service (which is not alternative) in the territory of another state.
The child automatically loses citizenship if the adoptive parents are citizens of another country, and in a number of other cases.
In such situations, the deadlines are as long as with a voluntary refusal. The result is also a presidential decree.
The diplomatic services, consulate and migration service of Ukraine can initiate the procedure. Moreover, the procedure does not involve any payment.
When can they refuse?
Even if all the documents for renouncing the citizenship of Ukraine are collected, there is a possibility that this can be denied. In particular, they will not be deprived of citizenship if a person has an outstanding conviction, or if there are outstanding obligations. And it doesn’t matter if it’s not a paid loan, alimony or debt for utilities. They will not issue a refusal if there is a judicial proceeding or pre-trial proceedings against the applicant, and the enforcement proceedings are open.
Renunciation of dual citizenship
To live in Russia, it is not necessary to refuse the citizenship of Ukraine. But not all countries look so loyally at two passports. If you decide to move to Belarus, you will have to abandon your previous citizenship without fail. The same rules apply in all countries of Central Asia and almost throughout Africa.
Ukraine itself ambiguously considers dual citizenship, while there is no direct prohibition on possessing a second passport.