Obtaining the citizenship of Belarus will become easier for foreigners

12.04.2021

From June 18, 2021, the Law of the Republic of Belarus No. 67-Z of December 10, 2020 introduces the following amendments to the Law “On Citizenship of the Republic of Belarus”, which will significantly simplify the procedure for obtaining the citizenship.

  • Foreigners can apply for the citizenship of Belarus, if they have contonuously resided in the country for 5 years after receiving a permanent residence permit (previously – 7 years). The period of residence in Belarus will be considered continuous if, within the last 5 years prior to the application for the citizenship, a foreigner left Belarus for a period of no more than 90 days in a calendar year.
  • Foreigners permanently residing in Belarus who have been married to the citizens of Belarus for at least 3 years and have a common minor child – a citizen of Belarus, will be able to obtain the citizenship on a preferential basis.
  • Foreigners who have received higher education in Belarusian educational institutions and have been working in Belarus in accordance with labour legislation for at least 3 years will also be able to obtain the citizenship of Belarus using the simplified procedure (registration procedure).
  • The grounds for rejecting to take cognizance of an application to obtain the citizenship have been changed, and also the grounds for terminating the procession of such an application have been determined (for example, failure to provide together with the application the required materials/documents which are the basis for obtaining the citizenship; deportation of a foreigner from Belarus during the application procession, etc.).

In this regard, we recommend you to pay attention to the upcoming changes to assess their applicability to your company’s foreign employees who are interested in obtaining the citizenship of Belarus.