 UNDERSTANDING STATELESSNESS IN THE SYRIA REFUGEE CONTEXT Some of the host States’ nationality laws discriminate against women in the conferral of nationality, in the same way as the Syrian law. Thus, Lebanese89 and Jordanian90 mothers cannot pass nationality to their children,91 which may lead to complications for accessing nationality for children of, for instance, a Jordanian mother and a refugee father, if the paternal link cannot be established92 or if the father is a stateless refugee. It should also be noted that in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon, female nationals are not able to transmit their nationality to a non-national spouse following marriage (whereas national men can pass nationality to a foreign spouse through marriage).93 Such rules will affect the prospects, for instance, for stateless refugees to acquire nationality through marriage to a national of the host community. The central question in protecting the right to nationality for refugees from Syria is preserving and documenting their link to Syria and their Syrian nationality. Access to civil registration and documentation plays a critical role in this regard – civil registration being the registration of key life events (such as births, deaths, marriages, etc.). Syrian law states that Syrian citizens should follow the personal status laws of the country in which they reside.94 Therefore, the main priority to prevent new cases of statelessness amongst the refugee population is ensuring access to the civil registration procedures in the host countries. As such, it is important to build an understanding of relevant procedures and requirements and how these apply to the refugee community. In general, Syrian refugees are subjected to the same rules and procedures that apply to nationals in the country of exile. The table below summarises the relevant procedures. 89 90 91 92 93 94 24 RESEARCH REPORT Decree No.15 on Lebanese Nationality including Amendments [Lebanon], 19 January 1925, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/44a24c6c4.html. Article 3 of Law No.6 of 1954 on Nationality (last amended 1987) [Jordan], 1 January 1954, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6b4ea13.html. Under Iraqi law, if a child is born abroad, then an Iraqi mother does not automatically transfer her nationality to her child as an Iraqi father would. Under Article 4 of Law No.26 of 2006, the Minister may consider Iraqi any person born outside Iraq to an Iraqi mother and an unknown or stateless father, if he chooses the Iraqi nationality, within one year from coming of age (reaching the age of maturity), unless he fails to do so, due to difficult circumstances, provided that he is residing within Iraq at the time of application for the Iraqi nationality. Article 4, Law 26 of 2006 - Iraqi Nationality Law [Iraq], 7 March 2006, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/4b1e364c2.html. While still being gender discriminatory, this provision is less likely to contribute to a risk of statelessness in the context of the Syria refugee situation given that it relates to children born outside Iraq. For instance because the child is born outside of wedlock or the refugee father lacks documentation needed to register the birth. Equality Now, The State We’re In: Ending Sexism in Nationality Laws, 2016, available at: http://www. equalitynow.org/sites/default/files/NationalityReport_EN.pdf, page 16. Legislative Decree 376 – Civil Status Code [Syrian Arab Republic], 1957.