Ukraine will simplify obtaining citizenship and introduce a citizen's oath
The head of the State Migration Service of Ukraine, Maxim Sokolyuk, states that the constitutional norm of “single citizenship” in Ukraine will remain, but the requirement to renounce another citizenship in order to obtain a Ukrainian passport is expected to be abolished, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“It is now being determined how the new procedure will be formalized, but some things are already clear. The constitutional norm of “single citizenship” will remain: it means that we will continue to perceive people as citizens of Ukraine only, regardless of whether they also have a passport of another state. And the change will be that we will not require renunciation of another citizenship in order to obtain a Ukrainian passport. There will be some restrictions in relation to countries with a migration risk, which includes the aggressor state,” he said in today’s interview with the European Pravda publication.
The official noted that the first step in this direction has already been taken, namely, presidential bill No. 2590 has been submitted for consideration to the Verkhovna Rada.
“This document will probably still have to be discussed in parliament, it may be changed. It is possible that there will be additional projects on this issue. But the vector of change has been set by the president,” Sokolyuk emphasized.
At the same time, the head of the department noted that if the state wants to integrate new citizens into Ukrainian society, then there must be a certified test of knowledge of history and the Ukrainian language.
“We need courses that will issue a state certificate. Because now formally there is such a requirement, but in practice they bring certificates from some school stating that the person knows the Ukrainian language at a sufficient level for communication. And when we check, it turns out that the school did not issue this certificate, it was not registered anywhere, and the person does not understand Ukrainian at all,” he stated.
In addition to testing knowledge of history and language, according to Sokolyuk, it is necessary to introduce a citizen’s oath, as in most countries of the world.
“Now there is no oath of citizenship of Ukraine! Therefore, this is our proposal, and it is reflected in the presidential draft amendments to the citizenship law. If you are a citizen of Ukraine from birth, then you probably do not need to take the oath. And if a person accepts Ukrainian citizenship under other articles, including for those who do not have this first citizenship, this is a very necessary procedure,” added the head of the Migration Service.
He also noted that violation of the oath can be punished, including deprivation of citizenship.
On December 13, President Vladimir Zelensky submitted to the Rada a draft law “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine Regarding Citizenship Issues,” providing, in particular, for the release of contract military personnel and Russians persecuted in their homeland from the obligation to submit an obligation to terminate foreign citizenship when acquiring Ukrainian citizenship at subject to their taking the oath of citizenship of Ukraine.
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