- 1 result found
- 2014
- Netherlands
- Clear
Court name: Council of State of the Netherlands (Raad van State)
State: Netherlands
Date of decision:
Legal instruments: 1961 Statelessness Convention, Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)
Key aspects: Acquisition of nationality, Burden of proof, Childhood statelessness, Standard of proof, Statelessness determination
The case concerns a child born in the Netherlands to an undocumented mother of Chinese origin. The child is registered in the municipal records as having an "unknown" nationality. The mother attempts to register him as "stateless" to strengthen his claim to Dutch citizenship, but cannot meet the high standard of proof set by the municipality for registering statelessness. The Court sides with the municipality in this case, but implies that the legislator ought to establish a statelessness determination procedure in the Netherlands.