REFUGEES FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION UNHCR, APRIL 2023 o • • • • inclusion within the qualifying period of residence for naturalisation a period of time resident in Uganda as a refugee. o automatic transmission of citizenship to the child of registered or naturalised citizens born after the parent acquired citizenship. o simultaneous acquisition of citizenship of minor children born before a parent has registered or naturalised when the parent is granted citizenship. o grant of citizenship to those born on the territory who are not granted any other citizenship at birth, including the children of those who are not members of the ethnic groups listed in the constitution, in line with the provisions of the ACRWC and the Children Act and as pledged in 2019. o inclusion of refugees within the categories of applicant eligible to acquire citizenship by registration. Adopt regulations to clarify that the presumption of citizenship for foundlings applies to older children and adults found on the territory whose parents are unknown, if they appeared to be five years or under at the date found (according to inquiry) and not only at the date the person comes to the attention of the authorities in line with UNHCR Guidelines on Statelessness No.4. Publish statistics on acquisition of Ugandan citizenship by registration and naturalisation, including a breakdown for refugees and former refugees. Review the provisions on permanent residency, with a view of making permanent residency status accessible to long-term refugees, if they desire, giving them more stable rights in the country of asylum and facilitated access to citizenship. Amend the Citizenship Regulations to provide for the immediate registration as citizens of foreign children adopted by Ugandan citizens. Amend the law to provide that adopted children have the status of citizens by birth (and therefore could transmit citizenship to their own children, under the current legal regime). Civil registration and identity documents • • Step up efforts to ensure that refugees have up to date identity documents, extend the validity period for refugee identity documents, and ensure that police and other government officials, including in urban areas, are aware that refugee identity documents constitute valid proof of identity. Provide for the return of original identity documents to refugees who were required to surrender them when asylum applications were lodged, instead arranging for copies of these documents to be kept by the authorities. UNHCR Civil registration and civil registry documentation • • • • • 36 Develop operational guidance for birth registration for prevention of statelessness, including standards on best practices for the information recorded in birth certificates for children of refugees born in a country of asylum, and referral mechanisms in case of undetermined nationality to ensure that statelessness is identified and addressed. Measure progress on access to birth registration and certification for all those (irrespective of their age) born to refugee parents in the country of asylum and ensure this is recorded in the refugee/asylum registration database, together with a copy of the birth certificate, and reflected in registration standard operating procedures. Establish birth registration and certification of all refugees and asylum seekers and their children, irrespective of age, as an indicator for the prevention of statelessness. Include standard and tailored questions about civil registration, identity, and nationality documents within “intention solutions” surveys for refugees. Develop legal interpretative guidance on state obligations to provide administrative assistance in relation to a refugee's personal and civil status, in accordance with Article 12 in conjunction with