These questions from a correspondent of "Radio Prague" are answered by Pavla BOUČKOVÁ, legal counsel for citizenship matters at the Czech Helsinki Committee.
- What are the basic conditions for obtaining Czech citizenship? How long must one reside in the country?
- The applicant must have resided in the Czech Republic for at least five years with permanent residence status and have no criminal record. They must also be fluent in Czech. The tax police must confirm that the applicant has regularly paid taxes, social security and health insurance contributions during their stay in the country. The applicant will also have to renounce their own citizenship, but only after the Czech authorities issue them a notification of granting Czech citizenship. From that moment, the applicant generally has one year to renounce the citizenship of their homeland.
However, with the permission of the Ministry of the Interior, almost all conditions can be circumvented. Most often, the ministry agrees to reduce the mandatory five-year period of residence in the Czech Republic on the basis of permanent residence, but the very existence of permanent residence, even for the shortest time, is mandatory. The five-year requirement is generally not applied to foreign spouses of Czech citizens.
- Difficulties often arise when processing renunciation of previous citizenship. The Czech Republic does not recognize dual citizenship, and not all countries are willing to let their citizens go easily.
- Sometimes there are real fears that a person who wants to renounce the citizenship of a particular country could become a victim of repression by that state. Young people, for example, fear that they will be urgently conscripted into the army at home. This problem is especially acute in countries where wars are ongoing. There are cases where consulates refuse to process documents for renunciation of citizenship and send the person to their homeland for a certificate. And not everyone can go there, again, for various reasons. Some states do not issue such certificates at all and do not allow the possibility of renouncing citizenship.
Czech authorities in such cases may not insist on providing a document confirming renunciation of previous citizenship, but each specific situation must be explained and documented to Czech officials. The Ministry of the Interior treats explanations from foreigners with great distrust and suspicion, and in case of the slightest doubt, makes a decision not in favor of the applicant.
Czech immigration laws strictly divide foreigners residing in the country into two groups. The first is family members of Czech citizens, that is, mainly husbands and wives. The second group consists of everyone else. For example, if a Ukrainian marries a Czech woman, he can obtain permanent residence and citizenship within a couple of years. If a Ukrainian moves to the Czech Republic with his Ukrainian wife, he can apply for permanent residence only after 10 years of residence in the country, and for citizenship only after 15 years after moving to the Czech Republic. In this regard, Czech laws are among the strictest in Europe.
The cherished dream of most foreigners living in the Czech Republic is called "permanent residence" (PR). A permanent residence holder obtains almost all the rights of a citizen of the country, except for the right to participate in elections and the right to receive a Czech passport for international travel. But, as already mentioned, they have to wait and live on annual visas for a full 10 years. For legitimate reasons, permanent residence can be obtained earlier.
- What could such reasons be?
- In the case of a person who has already lived in the Czech Republic for several years and came from a country where some kind of disaster has occurred. This could be war or a natural disaster. The main thing is that the applicant can prove that they simply have nowhere to return. In an accelerated manner, foreign citizens of Czech origin can also obtain permanent residence, for example, Czechs from Ukraine or Kazakhstan.
I want to draw attention to two aspects again. A foreigner who is illegally in the Czech Republic cannot obtain permanent residence, even if they marry here or have a child born here. Such cases often occur in my practice. In most cases, for some reason, they are Ukrainians who have lived illegally for several years, then marry Czech women and think that all problems are solved. In fact, it is the opposite: the problems are just beginning. Because it is very difficult to obtain even an annual visa (let alone permanent residence) for a person whose illegal stay in the Czech Republic has become known to immigration authorities.
And second, if a person's legal stay in the country has ever been interrupted, if there is any gap between annual visas, even one day, then they will also have problems. Because the foreign police will claim that you have not lived in the Czech Republic for the necessary 10 years.
- They say that it is very beneficial to be a stateless person. They say you can come to any country, and everywhere they are obliged to grant you citizenship...
- I would not advise anyone to choose that option. I know many such people and I assure you that being a stateless person is far from a lottery win. If such a person does not have Czech permanent residence, the authorities will refuse to issue them a passport with which they can travel. Thus, the person becomes unable to travel abroad. Moreover, they will likely have problems renewing their Czech annual visa.
But even if a person has a foreign passport, traveling in such a status is quite difficult. A stateless person needs a visa for all countries without exception. Moreover, some European states fundamentally do not issue visas to such people. Stateless status is a legally difficult situation, and I do not recommend anyone intentionally becoming such.