Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

nationality law Nationality law is the law of a sovereign state, and of each of its jurisdictions, that defines the legal manner in which a national identity is acquired and how it may be lost. In international law, the legal means to acquire nationality and for ...

is regulated by the

Constitution of Liberia The Constitution of Liberia is the supreme law of the Republic of Liberia. The current constitution, which came into force on 6 January 1986, replaced the Liberian Constitution of 1847, which had been in force since the independence of Liberia ...

, as amended; the Aliens and Nationality Law, and its revisions; and various international agreements to which the country is a signatory. These laws determine who is, or is eligible to be, a national of Liberia. The legal means to acquire

nationality Nationality is a legal identification of a person in international law, establishing the person as a subject, a ''national'', of a sovereign state. It affords the state jurisdiction over the person and affords the person the protection of the ...

, formal legal membership in a nation, differ from the domestic relationship of rights and obligations between a national and the nation, known as

citizenship Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

. Nationality describes the relationship of an individual to the state under international law, whereas citizenship is the domestic relationship of an individual within the nation. Liberian nationality is based on descent from a person who is

Negro In the English language, ''negro'' is a term historically used to denote persons considered to be of Black African heritage. The word ''negro'' means the color black in both Spanish and in Portuguese, where English took it from. The term can be ...

, regardless of whether they were born on Liberian soil, ''

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 ...

'', or abroad to Liberian parents, ''

jus sanguinis ( , , ; 'right of blood') is a principle of nationality law by which citizenship is determined or acquired by the nationality or ethnicity of one or both parents. Children at birth may be citizens of a particular state if either or both of t ...

''. The Negro clause was inserted from the founding of the colony as a refuge for former slaves to prevent economically powerful communities from obtaining political power. It can be granted to persons with an affiliation to the country, or to a permanent resident who has lived in the country for a given period of time through naturalization.

Acquisition

Nationality is acquired in Liberia at birth, or later in life through naturalization.

By birth

The primary means of obtaining nationality in Liberia is birth on Liberian soil, jus soli, or by descent from a Liberian national, jus sanguinis. Nationality is restricted to those who are Negro and no provision is made for

foundlings Child abandonment is the practice of relinquishing interests and claims over one's offspring in an illegal way, with the intent of never resuming or reasserting guardianship. The phrase is typically used to describe the physical abandonment of a ...

orphans An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...

discovered in the territory with unknown parentage. The Liberian Aliens and Nationality Law 1973 is in conflict with the 1986 Constitution. For example, the constitution does not contain provisions for birth on Liberian soil and requires descent from a Liberian, but the nationality statute provides for children who are born in the territory whose parents do not have

diplomatic immunity Diplomatic immunity is a principle of international law by which certain foreign government officials are recognized as having legal immunity from the jurisdiction of another country.

. Another discrepancy is that the constitution states nationality can be acquired through a mother or father, but the nationality statute restricts acquisition for children born abroad to fathers. Further, under the nationality law children born abroad to a Liberian mother and foreign father are required to naturalize to obtain nationality, but the constitution states only that they must renounce any other nationality they might have upon reaching the

age of majority The age of majority is the threshold of legal adulthood as recognized or declared in law. It is the moment when minors cease to be considered such and assume legal control over their persons, actions, and decisions, thus terminating the contr ...

. Similarly, fathers of children born abroad under the Aliens and Nationality Law are required to have lived in Liberia before the birth of the child and the child is required to reside in Liberia at majority, but no such provisions are part of the constitution. Human rights organizations have formally commented upon the discriminatory nature of the nationality statutes as well as the lack of provisions regarding Liberia's international legal obligations under treaties and conventions the country has executed.

By naturalization

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 ...

in Liberia is restricted to persons who are of Negro descent. To naturalize, an applicant must make a declaration of intent to naturalise before a Circuit Court, followed by the actual petition for naturalization which must be filed between the second and third anniversary dates of the declaration of intent. General provisions for naturalization include that the applicant has attained legal majority (age twenty-one) and is of good and moral character; that they reject anarchy and believe in the principles of the constitution; and that they can demonstrate that they have established at least a two-year residency in the country. At his discretion, the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

may waive the residency requirements. Applicants are required to renounce prior nationalities and swear an

Oath of Allegiance An oath of allegiance is an oath whereby a subject or citizen acknowledges a duty of allegiance and swears loyalty to a monarch or a country. In modern republics, oaths are sworn to the country in general, or to the country's constitution. For ...

to uphold the laws and constitution of Liberia and defend the republic. Minor children may be included in the naturalization petition if they were born outside of the country and their father naturalizes; however, not if they were born in Liberia and not if their mother naturalizes. There are no provisions for children who are adopted by Liberians to obtain nationality in the Aliens and Nationality Law, nor are there special provisions for the naturalization of spouses of nationals.

Loss of nationality

Liberians are allowed to

renounce {{Short pages monitor