Jordan: Whether an ethnic Palestinian who has a Jordanian birth certificate, was born in Nablus after 1967 and whose parents also have Jordanian birth certificates and passports is permitted to enter Jordan and enjoy all the rights and privileges available to a citizen of Jordan (1973-2004)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 9 November 2004 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | JOR43099.E |
| Reference | 2 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Jordan: Whether an ethnic Palestinian who has a Jordanian birth certificate, was born in Nablus after 1967 and whose parents also have Jordanian birth certificates and passports is permitted to enter Jordan and enjoy all the rights and privileges available to a citizen of Jordan (1973-2004) , 9 November 2004, JOR43099.E , available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/42df61177.html [accessed 17 September 2023] |
| 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. |
No information could be found on whether an ethnic Palestinian who holds a Jordanian birth certificate, was born in Nablus after 1967, and whose parents also have Jordanian birth certificates and passports can enter Jordan and have the same rights as citizens of Jordan. Attempts by the Research Directorate to contact a representative of the embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, within time constraints, were unsuccessful.
However, general information on the rights of Palestinians in Jordan is relevant. On the Website of the Palestinian Diaspora and Refugee Center (Shaml), Uri Davis, who is an honorary research fellow at the Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, University of Durham in the United Kingdom, a founding member of the Movement Against Israeli Apartheid in Palestine (MAIAP) and an observer member with the Palestinian National Council (NCCAR 13-29 Sept. 2004), states that "Jordanian citizens of Palestinian origin in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan ... have the full rights of citizenship and all its obligations, the same as any other citizen irrespective of origin" (Shaml n.d.).
Information on how citizenship is acquired in Jordan is also relevant. The Jordanian Nationality Law, 1954, explains how citizenship can be acquired through descent, and states that nationality can be given by the father to his children (Ch.1 Art. 3.3, Ch.2 Art. 9; see also US Mar. 2001). For further information on the Jordanian Nationality Law, 1954, which details the various means of acquiring Jordanian citizenship, please refer to JOR38134.E of 15 January 2002.
According to Jordan's Law No. 6 of 1954 on Nationality, Jordanian nationals include "[a]ny person who has acquired ... a Jordanian passport under the Jordanian Nationality Law, 1928, as amended Law No.6 of 1954." However, in 1988 distinct types of Jordanian passports were created (Shaml n.d.). On 15 November 1988, King Hussein of Jordan "dissolve[d] the unity between the East Bank and the West Bank of the Kingdom, ceding the West Bank to the PLO [Palestinian Liberation Organization]" (ibid.; see also Forced Migration Feb. 2004). At that time, those who lived in the West Bank lost their Jordanian citizenship (ibid.; Shaml n.d.) and the separation of Jordanian passports into two different types occurred (ibid.). However, as Palestine was not officially recognized as a state, those who lived in the West Bank could not be granted Palestinian citizenship and were therefore stateless (ibid.; Forced Migration Feb. 2004).
According to Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2003, in Jordan there are two kinds of passports: the first is a full-citizenship five-year passport given to Jordanian nationals (25 Feb. 2004, Sec. 2d; see also Shaml n.d.). The second is a two- or three-year passport, which is a travel document only (ibid.; Country Reports 2003 25 Feb. 2004, Sec. 2d). Uri Davis has stated that there is a third type of passport: a "1 year 'temporary' passport" which is rare and which is given to those whose "registered residence is in the occupied Gaza strip," and which is also only a travel document (Shaml n.d.). The holders of the temporary or travel-only passports have no "'democratic' civil, political, social or economical citizenship rights" (ibid.).
For further information on passports and the rights conferred upon their holders, please refer to JOR42905.E of 2 September 2004, JOR41921.E of 12 August 2003, JOR41491.E of 9 May 2003, JOR38134.E of 15 January 2002, JOR35084.E of 25 August 2000, JOR24656.E of 8 October 1996, JOR22351.E of 29 November 1995, and JOR19723.E of 24 February 1995.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2003. 25 February 2004. "Jordan." United States Department of State. Washington, DC.
Forced Migration. February 2004. Oroub Al Abed. "Palestinian Refugees in Jordan."
Jordan. 1954. Law No. 6 of 1954, on Nationality. (UNHCR REFLEG)
National Council on Canada-Arab Relations (NCCAR). 13-29 September 2004. "Uri Davis Canadian Lecture Tour."
Palestinian Disapora and Refugee Center (Shaml). n.d. Uri Davis. "Palestine Refugees at the Crossroad of 1996 Permanent Status Negotiations."
United States. March 2001. Office of Personnel Management. Citizenship Laws of the World.
Additional Sources Consulted
Internet sites, including: Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to the United States, Nablus Municipality, U.S. Committee for Refugees, United States Department of State.
Oral sources: Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to Canada, Embassy of the Hashemite Kindgom of Jordan to the United Kingdom, Embassy of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to the United States.