Belarus approves bill on citizenship

On December 21, at the tenth session of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the seventh convocation, the senators approved the draft law "On Amendments to the Law of the Republic of Belarus "On Citizenship of the Republic of Belarus.

According to BelTA, the draft law aims to improve the legislation on citizenship, taking into account the practice of its application, to ensure national security and solve the problems of the state migration policy.

Among the main innovations of the draft law are the introduction of the obligation to take the oath by persons acquiring Belarusian citizenship, as well as the definition of additional grounds for reversing the decision to acquire Belarusian citizenship if a person refuses to take the oath, regulating the procedure for assessing the level of knowledge of one of the state languages when applying for Belarusian citizenship.

The amendments introduce the obligation of the citizens of the Republic of Belarus to notify in writing or in electronic form the competent bodies of the presence of the citizenship of a foreign state, residency permit or any other document of a foreign state, which provides the right to benefits and other advantages in connection with the political, religious views or national affiliation. In addition, for a uniform interpretation and application in practice, the law "On Citizenship of the Republic of Belarus" is being adjusted in terms of defining the range of persons who acquire citizenship of the Republic of Belarus by birth.