procedure however does not fully take into consideration the specific aspects of statelessness and does not in its present form guarantee a fair, efficient and consistent determination of statelessness and identification of stateless persons. The existing procedure could better address the specific situations and aspects of statelessness if it was adapted especially in terms of burden and standard of proof. The burden of proof between the applicant and Migri should be shared and the same standard of proof as for refugee status determination, namely, a finding of statelessness should be warranted where it is established to a “reasonable degree” that an individual is not considered as a national by any State under the operation of its law should be adopted.156 The possibility of an oral hearing157 should be strengthened in particular in cases where the determination is not linked to the asylum procedure (in which the applicant’s right to oral hearing has been guaranteed). Furthermore, the procedure in cases where the determination of citizenship status is linked to asylum procedure would also need to be strengthened in order to ensure consistency in terms of the authority, i.e. the Asylum Unit or the Nationality Unit of Migri, and also in terms of the conclusion of the determination itself. With regard to rights of stateless persons, there are very few provisions in the Finnish national legislation referring specifically to stateless persons; in principle, the rights of stateless persons depend on their residence status, similarly to other immigrants. In many respects, these provisions however guarantee the minimum rights to stateless persons as required by Finland’s international obligations, but there are also areas with gaps. For instance, according to Article 23 and 24 of the 1954 Convention, the Contracting States shall accord to stateless persons lawfully staying in their territory the same treatment with respect to public relief and social security as is accorded to their nationals. This obligation is fulfilled by Finland in the sense that the social security system of Finland is based on residence, not on nationality. However, as residence which can be considered as permanent in the meaning of the Act on Application of Social Security Legislation based on Residence is required, stateless persons who indeed reside in Finland lawfully but are not considered to reside in Finland permanently, are not covered by the Act and the residence-based, comprehensive social security system. Moreover, according to Article 27 of the 1954 Convention, Contracting States shall issue identity papers to any stateless person in their territory who do not possess a valid travel document. However, as there is no specific provision for identity documents issued for stateless persons and as identity documents generally are only issued to persons lawfully and permanently residing in Finland, stateless persons who are in Finland temporarily, pending the processing of their asylum or other residence permit application or unlawfully, are not provided with identity papers as required by the Convention. Furthermore, an additional obstacle for obtaining an identity document is the requirement of established identity, which is a challenge for many stateless persons. Therefore, in order to ensure that stateless persons can enjoy the rights guaranteed in the international treaties binding Finland, the need and possibilities of amending the current social security regime with regard to specific provisions for stateless persons should be looked into. The issuance of identity documents to stateless persons should also be looked into as part of the ongoing work with regard to the issuance of identity documents to asylum-seekers and immigrants whose identity has not been established. Furthermore, Finland’s reservations to the 1954 Convention should be reviewed with the view of lifting them, in light of the developments since 1968 when Finland acceded to the Convention and the current nationality legislation and practice. 44 156 This approach is encouraged in UNHCR’s Handbook on Protection of Stateless Persons, para 91. 157 UNHCR, Handbook on Protection of Stateless Persons: Right to an interview is recommended as one of the procedural safeguards in para 71. MAPPING STATELESSNESS IN FINL AND