Iranian nationality law contains principles of both '' jus sanguinis'' and ''

jus soli ''Jus soli'' ( , , ; meaning "right of soil"), commonly referred to as birthright citizenship, is the right of anyone born in the territory of a state to nationality or citizenship. ''Jus soli'' was part of the English common law, in contras ...

''. The full nationality law is defined in Book 2 of the Civil Code of Iran, Articles 976 through 991.

Definition of Iranian nationals

Article 976 of the Civil Code of Iran defines who is an Iranian national: # All residing in Iran except those whose foreign nationality is established; the foreign nationality of such persons is considered to be established if their documents of nationality have not been objected to by the

Iranian Government The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran ( fa, نظام جمهوری اسلامی ایران, Neẓām-e jomhūrī-e eslāmi-e Irān, known simply as ''Neẓām'' ( fa, نظام, lit=the system) among its supporters) is the ruling state a ...

. # Those born in Iran or outside whose father is Iranian. # Those born in Iran of unknown parentage. # People born in Iran of foreign parents, one of whom was also born in Iran. # People born in Iran of a father of foreign nationality who have resided at least one more year in Iran immediately after reaching the full age of 18; in other cases their

naturalization Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...

as Iranian subjects will be subject to the stipulations for Iranian naturalization laid down by the law. New legislation passed by the Iranian Parliament in 2012 grants

permanent residency Permanent residency is a person's legal resident status in a country or territory of which such person is not a citizen but where they have the right to reside on a permanent basis. This is usually for a permanent period; a person with suc ...

to children born to Iranian mothers and foreign fathers. # Every woman of foreign nationality who marries an Iranian husband. # Every foreign national who has obtained Iranian nationality.

Citizenship transfer through mother

A new policy allowing Iranian women to pass down their citizenship to their children at birth started to effect from 2020. As of mid-November, about 75,000 people had applied for citizenship under the new law.

Naturalisation

An application for naturalisation as an Iranian must be submitted to either directly to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or through the Governors, or the Governors-General and must contain certified copies of identity documents in relation to the applicant and his family (wife and children). certificate certifying period of residence, clean criminal record, sufficient property and employment that ensures a livelihood.

Deprivation of citizenship, dual nationality

Iran does not recognize dual nationality, and considers dual citizens as Iranian citizens only. Nevertheless, article 977 of the Civil Code of Iran deals with

multiple citizenship Multiple/dual citizenship (or multiple/dual nationality) is a legal status in which a person is concurrently regarded as a national or citizen of more than one country under the laws of those countries. Conceptually, citizenship is focused on t ...

. As a consequence of Paragraphs 4 or 5 of article 976, some Iranian minors may have multiple citizenship. If they wish to retain the non-Iranian nationality after age 18, they have to inform Iran's

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

. In theory, voluntary renunciation of Iranian citizenship is possible for persons over the age of 25, subject to approval by the Council of Ministers. However this rarely occurs in practical terms.
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Travel freedom

In 2016, Iranian citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 37 countries and territories, ranking the

Iranian passport Iranian passports, also known as Persian passports, are issued to nationals of Iran for the purpose of international travel. The passport serves as a proof of Iranian citizenship. The Iranian passports are burgundy, with the Iranian emblem embla ...

98th in the world according to the

Visa Restrictions Index The Henley Passport Index (abbreviation: HPI) is a global ranking of countries according to the travel freedom enjoyed by the holders of that country's ordinary passport for its citizens. It started in 2006 as Henley & Partners Visa Restrictio ...

Notes

References

* * {{Nationality laws Iranian nationality law