The project completed the following activities, in the order outlined below: 1) Polling stateless persons in the districts of the first cluster; 2) Collecting and processing information received from field teams; 3) Collecting official information from State bodies on stateless persons; 4) Collecting information on stateless persons in the second cluster; 5) Interviewing heads of local communities and local administration employees; 6) Mapping stateless persons’ places of residence in the first cluster; 7) Holding focus group meetings with relevant State institutions; 8) Analyzing national legislation and authorities’ practices; and 9) Developing recommendations. ANALYSIS OF LEGISLATION OF THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC ON MIGRATION AND THE NATURALIZATION OF ALIENS AND STATELESS PERSONS The legal basis for entry, exit and residence of aliens and stateless persons in the Кyrgyz Republic Entry to the Kyrgyz Republic In the Kyrgyz Republic external migration is regulated by the Constitution, by the law On External Migration of 17 July 2000, by the law On the Legal Status of Aliens in the Kyrgyz Republic of 14 December 1993 and by other legal provisions and international agreements. Article 16, Paragraph 8 of the Constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic enshrines the right of everyone to freedom of movement and choice of residence within the territory of the Kyrgyz of Republic as well as the right of citizens to freely leave and return to the Kyrgyz Republic. The legal status of aliens is defined by the law On the Legal Status of Aliens in the Kyrgyz Republic of 14 December 1993. Article 24 of this law also covers stateless persons. According to Article 5, aliens can permanently reside in the Kyrgyz Republic if they hold a residence permit issued by law-enforcement agencies. Aliens who stay in the Kyrgyz Republic on different grounds are considered to be staying temporarily. They are obliged to register their passports or equivalent papers in accordance with established procedures and to leave the country on expiration of the permitted term of stay. The law On External Migration (17 July 2000) declares the following documents to be mandatory for aliens and stateless persons to legally enter, stay or depart from Kyrgyzstan: • A valid international passport or substitute document issued by the competent agencies of the country of citizenship or permanent residence, proving their identity; • A valid visa of the Kyrgyz Republic. Agreements between the Kyrgyz Republic and other states can ease these restrictions. For example the Agreement between the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic and Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan on Mutual Trips of Citizens of 3 October 2006 allows for visa-free entry. In addition, a Decree of 7 February 2009 approved a list of 45 foreign states, whose citizens enjoy a simplified visa regime. 8 The Situation of Stateless Persons in the Kyrgyz Republic: Findings of Surveys Commissioned by the UNHCR