therefore covers situations where the written law is substantially modified when it comes to its implementation in practice.”29 It is important to note that the terminology used to describe a “national” varies from State to State. The statelessness definition in Article 1(1) incorporates a concept of “national” which reflects a formal link, of a political and legal character, between an individual and a State. This is distinct from the concept of “nationality,” which is concerned with membership of a religious, linguistic, or ethnic group. Moreover, a State may have various categories of “nationality” with differing names and associated rights. The fact that different categories of nationality have different rights associated with them does not prevent their holders from being a “national” for the purposes of Article 1(1).30 Effect of Different Categories of Nationality In some States, the rights associated with nationality are fewer than those enjoyed by nationals of other States, or these rights fall short of the requirements under international human rights obligations. However, this does not prevent the holders of this type of nationality from being treated as a “national” for the purposes of Article 1(1). Although diminished rights may raise questions as to the effectiveness of nationality and international human violations, this is not pertinent to the application of the stateless person definition in the 1954 Convention.31 Note that depending on the circumstances, the ability to access rights based on different categories of nationality may be relevant to an application for asylum, if it is based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. UNHCR has identified the following elements to consider in determining whether an individual is a national under the operation of a particular State’s laws: ! Automatic and non-automatic modes of acquisition or withdrawal of nationality: An examination of whether a State’s nationality laws convey nationality automatically, nonautomatically, or through some mixture of both, and the extent to which any provision applies to the individual, will help determine if she is a national. Practice Point Where acquisition of nationality is not automatic and an individual has not taken those affirmative steps to become a national, the individual is not considered a national and may be stateless. In other words, a stateless person who has the possibility of becoming a citizen under operation of a state’s laws is stateless until such time as she acquires citizenship. ! Identifying competent authorities for nationality matters in each State with which she has relevant links: This refers to the authority responsible for conferring or withdrawing nationality from individuals, or for clarifying nationality status where nationality is acquired or withdrawn automatically.32 Id. at ¶ 24. Id. at ¶¶ 52-56. 31 Id. at ¶ 53. 32 See id. at ¶¶ 27-31. 29 30 8