[1]NATIONALITY OF CHILDREN BORN OF ETHIOPIAN SUBJECTS IN ETHIOPIAN OR ABROAD

1.         Any person born in Ethiopia or abroad, whose father or mother is Ethiopian, is an Ethiopian subject.

NATIONALITY IN CASE OF MARRIAGE BETWEEN ETHIOPIANS AND FOREIGNERS

2.         A lawful marriage of an Ethiopian subject with a foreign woman confers the Ethiopian nationality upon her.

3.         Lawful marriages in this case are as follows:

(a)         A marriage contracted in Ethiopia of an Ethiopian with a foreign woman, in accordance with the form of the Ethiopian Religion or with the form of an Ethiopian civil marriage, creating between wife and husband a community of goods.

(b)        A marriage contracted abroad of an Ethiopian subject with a foreign woman, in accordance with the law and the forms of the place where the marriage is contracted.

4.         A lawful marriage contracted abroad of an Ethiopian woman with a foreigner deprives her of the Ethiopian nationality if her marriage with the foreigner gives her the nationality of her husband; otherwise she keeps her Ethiopian nationality. In case when the woman, losing her Ethiopian nationality, is the proprietor of real estate the administration of her property shall be settled in conformity with the law given to that effect by the Imperial Ethiopian government.

5.         Lawful marriages in this case are as follows:

(a)         A marriage contracted in Ethiopia of an Ethiopian woman with a foreigner before the consular authorities of the husband.

(b)        A marriage, contracted abroad, of an Ethiopian woman with a foreigner in accordance with the national law of the husband and with the legal forms of the place where the marriage is contracted.

NATIONALITY OF CHILDREN OF A MARRIAGE BETWEEN ETHIOPIAN AND FOREIGN SUBJECTS

6.         Every child born in a lawful mixed marriage, a provided for in the preceding Articles, follows the nationality of its father.

A child born of an Ethiopian father and a foreign mother united by the bonds of a lawful marriage should, however, prove before the Ethiopian Authorities that he does not belong to the original nationality of his mother, if requested to do so.

7.         A child born in lawful marriage of an Ethiopian mother with a foreigner is always able to recover the benefit to Ethiopian nationality, provided he lives in Ethiopia and proves he is completely divested of the paternal nationality.

NATIONALITY OF CHILDREN LEGITIMATED BY LAWFUL MARRIAGE BETWEEN ETHIOPIAN AND FOREIGN SUBJECTS

8.         If the lawful marriage according to the national law of the foreign father is posterior to the birth of the child issued from his relations with an Ethiopian woman, the child legitimated through this subsequent marriage follows the nationality of his foreign father only on condition that the national law of the latter confers upon him the foreign nationality with all inhering rights. Otherwise the child preserves his Ethiopian nationality.

NATIONALITY OF CHILDREN LEGITIMATED WITHOUT SUBSEQUENT MARRIAGE OF FOREIGN FATHER WITH MOTHER BEING ETHIOPIAN SUBJECT

9.         The legitimation, without subsequent lawful marriage between the foreign father and the Ethiopian mother, of the child issued from the relation outside marriage deprives the child of his Ethiopian nationality only if the legitimation, made in accordance with the forms of law of the foreign father, confers upon the child thus legitimated the nationality of his father with all inhering right.

NATIONALITY OF ETHIOPIAN CHILD ADOPTED BY A FOREIGNER

10.        The adoption of an Ethiopian child by a man or woman of foreign nationality, the adoption being made in accordance with the forms of law of the adopting person, does not imply any change of the adopted child's original nationality.

LOSS OF ETHIOPIAN NATIONALITY

11.        Loss of Ethiopian nationality:

(a)        Ethiopian subject who acquires another nationality.

(b)        Ethiopian woman through marriage with a foreigner. (Art. 4).

12.       

(1)        Every foreigner fulfilling the following conditions:

(a)        Of full age according to the regulations of the national law.

(b)        Resident in Ethiopia for at least five years.

(c)        Able to earn his living, to provide for himself and his family,

(d)        Knowing Amharic language perfectly, speaking and writing it fluently,

(e)        Proving that he has not previously been condemned to any punishment for crime or break of common law. may obtain the Ethiopian nationality.

(2)        If the Imperial Ethiopian Government deems any foreigner who applies for Ethiopian citizenship to be of value or if it finds other special reason which convinces it that the applicant should be granted citizenship it may grant him/her Ethiopian citizenship even if he/she does not fulfil the requirements prescribed in Article 12(b) and (d) of the Nationality Law of 1930.

CONSOLIDATION NOTE
Amd. Berhanena Selam, Vol. 9. No. 41 (October 5. 1993) (adding Subarticle (2)).

13.        The application for naturalization shall be made by the interested person to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

To this application shall be attached the foreigner's identity papers together with a certificate of impunity.

14.        A special Government commission comprising the Minister of Interior, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and another Dignitary of the Empire shall examine the application, proceed to necessary inquiries and after having heard the applicant in person approve or refuse the naturalization.

15.        The naturalization shall be conferred by decree and the new Ethiopian subject shall take an oath of allegiance to the Empire before the commission.

16.        The naturalization thus conferred does not extend its effects to the legitimate wife of the naturalized man, unless she applies personally for this benefit.

RE-ADMISSION TO ETHIOPIAN NATIONALITY

17.        Original Ethiopian subjects having acquired a foreign nationality may always obtain the benefit of Ethiopian Nationality when they return to reside in the country and apply to the Imperial Government for re-admission.

18.        An Ethiopian woman having lost her Ethiopian nationality through her marriage with a foreigner may resume it after the dissolution of this marriage by reason of divorce, separation or the death of her husband, if she returns to domicile in Ethiopia and applies to the Ethiopian Government for re-admission to her original Ethiopian nationality.

The present law abrogates every law previously promulgated on this subject.

Done at Addis Ababa this 22nd day of July, 1930 (15th of Hamle 1922).



[1]* INTRODUCTORY FOOTNOTE

This Proclamation, one of the few laws promulgated before the Italian invasion of Ethiopia is still effective, was published in Berhanena Selam newspaper, Vol. 6, No. 30 (July 24, 1930); amd.

Berhanena Selam, Vol. 9 No. 41 (October 5, 1933). The English Version given here is a translation from the French version of the Original.

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