Estonia: Information on whether a two-year residency requirement for citizenship application must be immediately prior to application, or whether a long-term resident prior to independence could reside in Estonia from 30 March 1990 to 1 April 1992, leave for two years, and then apply upon return
| Publisher | Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 December 1994 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | EST19098.E |
| Cite as | Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Estonia: Information on whether a two-year residency requirement for citizenship application must be immediately prior to application, or whether a long-term resident prior to independence could reside in Estonia from 30 March 1990 to 1 April 1992, leave for two years, and then apply upon return, 1 December 1994, EST19098.E, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6abf548.html [accessed 22 May 2013] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
For information on residency requirements necessary for citizenship application, please consult article 6 of the attached Estonian law on citizenship, enacted in 1938, amended on 11 December 1939, and re-enacted in November 1991. Information on whether there have been any amendments to this article is not currently available to the DIRB.
In telephone interviews on 25 November and 5 December 1994, a representative of the Consulate General of the Republic of Estonia in Toronto provided the following information. The residency requirements for a citizenship application are two consecutive years of residence immediately prior to the application. An individual cannot live in Estonia for two years, then leave Estonia for two years, and then apply for citizenship upon return, as the qualifying years of residence are no longer present.
In telephone interviews on 28 November and 2 December 1994, a representative of the Joint Baltic-American National Committee, an organization based in Rockland, Maryland, that lobbies for an American foreign policy favourable to the Baltic Republics, provided the following additional information. The residency requirements for citizenship are three of the last five years. If a person resided in Estonia for any two years during the last four years, then the person could apply for citizenship, the granting of which requires another year. The two years do not have to be immediately prior to the application. The deadline for making an application for citizenship based on residency requirements has been extended to March 1995.
This response was prepared after searching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
References
Consulate General of the Republic of Estonia, Toronto. 5 December 1994. Telephone interview with representative.
. 25 November 1994. Telephone interview with representative.
Joint Baltic-American National Committee, Rockland, Maryland. 2 December 1994. Telephone interview with representative.
. 28 November 1994. Telephone interview with representative.
Attachment
Estonia. Law on Citizenship. 1939. (DIRB citizenship and nationality legislation file)
