in the country can acquire nationality. 4 Thus, although the nationality law contains safeguards against specific causes of statelessness, significant gaps persist, meaning that every child born in Iran will not be guaranteed their right to acquire a nationality. 10. The 2016 census data shows that the population of Iran is 79.9 million.5 However, there is no accurate data on how many persons are stateless or at risk of statelessness in the country. Gender Discrimination 11. Iran is one of 25 countries in the world, which continues to deny women equal rights as men in conferring nationality on their children.6 Further, Iran is not party to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which stipulates, in Article 9, that women and men have equal rights to pass their nationality onto their children. The gender discrimination in Iran’s nationality law, heightens the risk of statelessness for children born of an Iranian mother and a stateless or undocumented foreign national father. The children of Iranian women and undocumented Afghan men in particular are often at risk of statelessness.7 As a result, these children are by birth excluded from full participation in society. In turn, they are unable to pass a nationality to their children, creating a intergenerational cycle of risk of statelessness. 12. Women are also denied the right to confer nationality on non-national spouses, a right that is reserved for men. Every woman of foreign nationality who marries an Iranian husband is considered an Iranian national. Non-national men who are married to an Iranian woman and have a child with the Iranian national may apply for governmental approval to become a national. 13. According to the law, Iranian women are stripped of their nationality if they marry and automatically acquire their spouse’s nationality, according to the laws of the spouse’s country. 14. Women’s inability to confer nationality on children and non-national spouses, and to retain their nationality on an equal basis with men, inhibits women’s ability to freely choose a 4 Article 976 of Iran Nationality Law states: “The following persons are considered to be Iranian subjects: 1) All persons 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. 2) Those whose fathers are Iranians, regardless of whether they have been born in Iran or outside of Iran; 3) Those born in Iran of unknown parentage;4) Persons born in Iran of foreign parents, one of whom was also born in Iran. 5) Persons born in Iran of a father of foreign nationality and have resided at least one more year in Iran immediately after reaching the full age of 18; otherwise, their naturalization as Iranian subjects will be subject to the stipulations for Iranian naturalization laid down by the law. 6) Every woman of foreign nationality who marries an Iranian husband. 7) Every foreign national who has obtained Iranian nationality.” http://irandataportal.syr.edu/nationality-law [Accessed March 09, 2019]. 5 https://www.amar.org.ir/Portals/1/census/2016/Census_2016_Selected_Findings.pdf. 6 Background Note on Gender Equality, Nationality Laws and Statelessness, 2019, 7 http://www.icana.ir/Fa/News/386247. 3