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How to get citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Citizenship represents a permanent legal relationship between an individual and a state/country, from which certain rights and obligations arise for a citizen. Each country in its laws determines the conditions under which certain persons will be considered its citizens. Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) has a complex citizenship system: there is citizenship of B&H existing at the state level, and entity citizenships (Federation of B&H and Republika Srpska), where all entity citizens are automatically citizens of B&H. The Constitution of B&H stipulates that no one may be arbitrarily deprived of citizenship or left stateless. The following is an overview of the methods of acquiring citizenship of B&H according to current regulations, with a special emphasis on acquiring citizenship by descent (based on parents), which is important for persons born abroad who originate from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Ways to acquire B&H citizenship

According to the B&H Law on Citizenship, citizenship can be acquired in five basic ways:

• By descent/origin – based on the citizenship of the parents (ius sanguinis).
• By birth on the B&H territory – in special cases (ius soli, prevention of statelessness).
• By adoption – if a child is adopted by a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
• Naturalization – admission to citizenship upon request, subject to meeting prescribed conditions.
• By international agreement – according to bilateral treaties on dual citizenship.

These methods of acquiring citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina are explained in detail below.

Acquisition of B&H citizenship by origin (through parents)

The most common basis for acquiring B&H citizenship is origin, that is, the citizenship of the child's parents. B&H applies the principle of ius sanguinis, which means that the citizenship of the child primarily depends on the citizenship of the parents. A child born after the entry into force of the Constitution of B&H (in 1994) acquires the citizenship of B&H by origin in the following situations:

• Both parents are B&H citizens: If both parents were B&H citizens at the time of the child's birth, the child automatically acquires B&H citizenship regardless of the place of birth. It does not matter whether the child was born in Bosnia and Herzegovina or abroad – in both cases, with two citizen parents, the child is a B&H citizen from birth.
• One parent citizen of B&H, child born in B&H: If one parent was a citizen of B&H at the time of birth, and the child was born on the territory of B&H, the child also acquires B&H citizenship by descent.
• One parent a citizen of B&H, child born abroad: In this case, there are additional conditions. If only one parent is a B&H citizen, and the child was born outside of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the child has the right to citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but in order to retain it, he/she must be registered as a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina by the age of 23 with the competent authority (diplomatic-consular representation of Bosnia and Herzegovina abroad or municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina). Therefore, persons born in the diaspora from one parent who is a B&H citizen should register their B&H citizenship by their 23^rd birthday. Otherwise, after the age of 23, they lose the automatic right to B&H citizenship by origin. An exception is the case when the child would otherwise remain stateless – then he/she acquires B&H citizenship without fulfilling this deadline. A very important note for those persons older than 23 years of age who have not exercised this right: If there is evidence that a person was treated or registered as a citizen of B&H before reaching the age of 23 – e.g., entered in the parent's passport as a citizen of B&H (example: entry in the mother's passport), an application was submitted or an entry was made at the diplomatic and consular representations, a certificate of registration/deregistration of residence in B&H, an extract from the civil registries with registered citizenship of B&H, and alike, - then the age limit of 23 is not considered an obstacle for acquiring/establishing citizenship. In such cases, an application is submitted for subsequent registration or reconstruction of the entry in the records.
• Special situations: If one parent is a B&H citizen, and the other is a stateless person or was a citizen of the former SFRY at the time of the child's birth, a child born abroad also acquires the citizenship of B&H by origin according to earlier regulations. Also, adoption by citizens of B&H has the effect of acquiring citizenship by origin – a child of foreign citizenship or without citizenship who is fully adopted by citizens of B&H (full adoption) acquires citizenship of B&H by origin.

It is important to emphasize that persons who acquire B&H citizenship by descent are considered citizens from the moment of birth. In practice, this means that many descendants of emigrants from B&H who were born abroad are already citizens of B&H by descent, although they may not have B&H documents – it is necessary to make a subsequent registration in the civil registries (through the diplomatic-consular network of B&H or in the municipality) in order to be issued a certificate of citizenship and other documents. Many B&H citizens in the diaspora have foreign citizenship acquired by birth or naturalization in other countries, but at the same time they are entitled to citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina by descent of their parents. Age is not an obstacle here – even if a person is older than 23 years, if both parents were citizens of B&H at the time of their birth, he/she can still be registered as a citizen of B&H (because in that case citizenship is acquired automatically). In the case where only one parent is a B&H citizen, and the application deadline of 23 years of age has been missed, there are options for later acquisition of citizenship through facilitated naturalization or special procedures – legal advice is recommended in such situations.

Acquisition of B&H citizenship by birth on the territory (ius soli)

Bosnia and Herzegovina does not primarily grant citizenship by place of birth, except for the purpose of prevention statelessness. A child born or found on the territory of B&H after the entry into force of the Constitution acquires the citizenship of B&H on the basis of birth on the territory (ius soli) if he/she would otherwise remain stateless – i.e., if both parents are unknown, of unknown nationality or stateless. This provision ensures that no child born in B&H is stateless. In all other cases, the citizenship of a child born in B&H is determined by the citizenship of the parents (origin), and only if the child cannot acquire the citizenship of the parents, B&H grants citizenship based on birth on its soil.

Acquisition of B&H citizenship by adoption

When a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina fully adopts a child under the age of 18, that child acquires the citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina on the basis of adoption. The condition is that the adoption is complete and legally binding. In this way, the status of adopted children is equalized with biological children in terms of citizenship.

Acquiring B&H citizenship through naturalization (admission)

Naturalization is a way of acquiring citizenship of B&H based on a voluntary request by a foreigner who meets the conditions prescribed by law. For foreigners who wish to become citizens of B&H, the law provides for quite detailed criteria, which are listed in the Law on Citizenship of B&H.

In addition to the above, an important condition for naturalization is the applicant's willingness to renounce his/her previous citizenship before acquiring B&H citizenship. The law requires a person to renounce or otherwise lose his/her previous citizenship, unless there is a bilateral agreement between B&H and that country that regulates the issue of dual citizenship otherwise. Renunciation of previous citizenship will not be required if it is not permitted or cannot be reasonably required (e.g., if the other country does not allow the release of citizenship or sets unworkable conditions). In practice, this means that candidates for naturalization in B&H must provide evidence of the release or renunciation of previous citizenship, unless they are citizens of countries with which B&H has special agreements on dual citizenship (more on this below).

Note: Bosnia and Herzegovina currently has bilateral agreements on dual citizenship with the Republic of Serbia, the Republic of Croatia and the Kingdom of Sweden. Citizens of these countries can acquire citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina without renouncing their original citizenship, and citizens of B&H can also retain B&H citizenship when acquiring citizenship of these countries. For citizens of other countries, it is common practice to renounce their previous citizenship when naturalizing in B&H. However, the fact is that B&H does not have an effective mechanism for monitoring dual citizenship, which means that individuals from countries without agreements sometimes manage to retain foreign citizenship, unless the foreign country requests a waiver upon naturalization. There are also plans to expand the number of dual citizenship agreements (e.g., an initiative for an agreement with Germany) in order to make it easier for former B&H citizens to regain B&H citizenship without losing their newly acquired foreign citizenship.

Facilitated naturalization: The law provides for special, more favorable conditions for certain categories of foreigners applying for B&H citizenship. The most significant example is the acquisition of citizenship based on marriage to a B&H citizen. The spouse of a B&H citizen may acquire citizenship through facilitated naturalization if he or she meets the following conditions:

• that the marriage with a citizen of B&H lasted at least 5 years before submitting the application and is still ongoing at the time of submission;
• that he/she has an approved permanent residence in B&H;
• to renounce their previous citizenship before acquiring B&H citizenship (unless the foreigner is a citizen of Serbia, Croatia or Sweden, where an agreement on dual citizenship is in force).
• that he/she does not represent a threat to the security of B&H.

Other requirements (such as language proficiency, finances, criminal records) are not explicitly required by the Law in these cases, or are already met through the requirement of permanent residence. Facilitated naturalization accelerates and simplifies the acquisition of citizenship for spouses of B&H citizens.

Special cases: The law also allows easier acquisition of citizenship for some other categories:

• Former citizens of B&H who renounced B&H citizenship in order to acquire or retain citizenship of another state have the right to reacquire B&H citizenship under a simplified procedure, under certain conditions.
• Emigrants returning to B&H, as well as the first and second generation of their descendants settling in B&H, may apply for B&H citizenship with exemption from meeting certain requirements (two of the general requirements may be waived). In practice, this means that, for example, returnees from the diaspora and their children/grandchildren may obtain citizenship without meeting the full conditional period of residence or similar requirements.
• A minor child whose one parent has acquired B&H citizenship can also obtain B&H citizenship by naturalization (subsequent registration), provided that the child has a temporary or permanent residence in B&H and that the parent submits an application on his/her behalf (with the consent of the child if he is over 14 years old).
• Stateless persons (also apatridi in Bosnian) and refugees can acquire B&H citizenship under mitigated conditions – they are only required to have continuously resided in B&H for 5 years in that status before submitting an application (other conditions are partially waived).
• Naturalization in the interest of B&H: Exceptionally, the Council of Ministers of B&H may grant citizenship to a foreigner even if he or she does not meet all legal requirements, if it assesses that the admission of that person to B&H citizenship would represent a special interest for the state (e.g., recognized experts, athletes (sportsmen), investors, etc.).

Acquiring B&H citizenship based on an international agreement

Bosnia and Herzegovina may conclude international agreements on dual citizenship with other states, based on which it is easier for citizens of those states to acquire citizenship while retaining their previous citizenship. An example of such an agreement is the Agreement on Dual Citizenship between B&H and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (now the Republic of Serbia), concluded in 2002. Based on this agreement, citizens of Serbia can acquire B&H citizenship under simplified conditions without losing their Serbian citizenship, and vice versa. The agreement stipulates, for example, that a Serbian citizen who wants B&H citizenship must be 18 years old, have registered residence in B&H for at least 3 years (or 1 year if married to a B&H citizen), not have been convicted of serious felonies, not have an expulsion order, and that he/she respects the legal system of B&H. It is also explicitly stated that acquiring a second citizenship will not be conditioned by renunciation of the previous one in these cases.

In addition to Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina has concluded bilateral agreements on dual citizenship with Croatia (in 2007) and Sweden (in 2003). Accordingly, citizens of Croatia and Sweden can also acquire B&H citizenship without renouncing their citizenship (and B&H citizens can retain B&H citizenship if they acquire the citizenship of those countries). These agreements have enabled the largest number of naturalizations in B&H in recent years to be on this basis – for example, many citizens of Croatia and Serbia annually become citizens of B&H on the basis of agreements. For citizens of countries with which B&H does not have such agreements (e.g. citizens of Western European countries, the USA, etc.), the general conditions for naturalization still apply, including the requirement to renounce previous citizenship. However, persons of B&H origin who have acquired other citizenships (such as citizens of Germany, Austria, the USA, Canada, etc.) often use the basis of origin to obtain B&H citizenship in order to avoid losing foreign citizenship – because through descent/origin, they acquire B&H citizenship as an additional one, from birth, which is legally different from naturalization.

How to obtain citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Frequently asked questions

Q: I live abroad and have a foreign citizenship, and one or both of my parents are citizens of B&H. Do I have the right to citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina?

A: Yes. According to the law, every child whose parent is a citizen of B&H has the right to B&H citizenship by descent/origin. If both parents were citizens of B&H at the time of your birth – you are automatically a citizen of B&H from birth regardless of where you were born, you just need to be registered (entered) in the civil registry of B&H citizens. If only one parent was a B&H citizen at the time of your birth, and you were born abroad, then you should have submitted an application for registration of B&H citizenship before reaching the age of 23. If this has not been done, it does not necessarily mean that you have lost your right – it is possible to initiate the procedure for subsequent acquisition of citizenship (through a facilitated procedure or naturalization). In any case, you have grounds for B&H citizenship by descent, and we recommend that you contact the competent diplomatic and consular mission of B&H for advice on registering for citizenship. Many people in the diaspora exercise their right to B&H citizenship precisely on the basis of origin, even if they already have foreign citizenship.

Q: What are the main ways to acquire citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina?

A: B&H citizenship can be acquired in five ways: by descent/origin (through parents who are citizens of B&H), by birth on the territory of B&H (if the child would otherwise be stateless), by adoption (full adoption by a B&H citizen), by naturalization (admission to citizenship upon request with fulfilled conditions), and on the basis of an international agreement (dual citizenship under bilateral agreements).

Q: Does Bosnia and Herzegovina allow dual citizenship? Do I have to renounce my current citizenship if I acquire B&H citizenship?

A: Dual citizenship in B&H is limited. According to the Constitution of B&H, dual citizenship is allowed only if there is a bilateral agreement between B&H and that country. Currently, B&H has such agreements with Serbia, Croatia and Sweden, so citizens of those countries can become B&H citizens without renunciation, and vice versa. For all other countries, the law stipulates that a foreigner must renounce their previous citizenship before acquiring B&H citizenship. In practice, this means that you will have to submit proof with your application for naturalization that you have initiated a release or have already renounced your previous citizenship (unless you come from a country with which B&H has an agreement). The exception are cases when a foreign country does not allow release – then B&H can grant citizenship without a formal renunciation. Also, if you acquire citizenship by descent/origin, then renunciation of your other citizenship is not required, because you are considered a B&H citizen from birth. In short, B&H does not formally allow dual citizenship with most countries, but thanks to agreements and the basis of origin, many have two (or more) passports.

Q: Can I acquire B&H citizenship based on marriage to a B&H citizen? What are the conditions?

A: Yes, marriage to a B&H citizen enables easier acquisition of citizenship. The basic conditions are: that the marriage has lasted at least five years and is still ongoing at the time of submitting the application, that you have been granted permanent residence in B&H, and that you meet certain security requirements (e.g. that you do not pose a threat to security). In this case, renunciation of previous citizenship is also required, unless you are a citizen of Serbia, Croatia or Sweden (dual citizenship agreement). The advantage of facilitated naturalization of spouses is that it does not require meeting all the conditions as for regular naturalization – for example, a certain number of years spent in B&H is not required (permanent residence that you have already obtained based on marriage is sufficient), nor is a special language test or proof of finances required. This makes the procedure faster and simpler. To initiate the procedure, you submit an application to the Ministry of Civil Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina (through the municipality or entity Ministry of Interior Affairs), with documentation proving that the above conditions have been met and a declaration of marriage to a B&H citizen.

Q: How long does the procedure for acquiring citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina last?

A: The length of the procedure depends on the basis on which citizenship is acquired. If it is a matter of registering citizenship by origin (e.g., a child born abroad to B&H parents and under the age of 23), the procedure can be relatively quick – often a few weeks after submitting the proper documentation. On the other hand, with naturalization (admission to citizenship), the procedure is longer. It is necessary to carry out checks to ensure that all conditions are met, which includes collecting more evidence and consent from various authorities. In practice, naturalization can last from several months to a year or more, depending on the complexity of the case. For facilitated naturalization of spouses or readmission of former citizens, the procedure is somewhat shorter than for standard naturalization. In any case, the competent institutions strive to issue a decision as soon as possible after the received application has all the necessary documentation.