JANUARY – JUNE 2025 Action 3. Remove gender discrimination from nationality laws As of July, the Kingdom of Eswatini took interim steps to prevent gender-discriminatory nationality provisions from blocking children’s access to birth registration. Through government-led out-of-court settlements, this approach remains in effect while awaiting mandated legislative reforms by the Constitutional Court. Action 4. Prevent denial, loss or deprivation of nationality on ethnic, racial, religious, political and other discriminatory grounds In February, the Parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic adopted a revised Law on Citizenship introducing ethnicity-based restrictions on acquiring citizenship and new grounds for deprivation of nationality, which could lead to arbitrary deprivation of nationality. UNHCR continues to advocate with State authorities for alignment with international standards. Action 6. In migratory context, determine statelessness and protect stateless persons and facilitate their naturalization UNHCR continues to advocate with Zambian authorities for an inclusive nationality law. In January, the Zambian Civil Liberties Union filed a constitutional petition challenging the citizenship registration requirements for refugees. In June, the Global Council for Strategic Litigation was admitted as amicus curiae in the case. The Court granted a six-month adjournment for a negotiated solution, inviting UNHCR to participate. In January, Iran’s Government withdrew from the Parliament a draft Bill on the Amendment of certain legal provisions pertaining to nationality, introduced in July 2024, that proposed regressive changes. These included removing nationality pathways for children born in Iran to non-Iranian parents, which would have increased risks of statelessness. In February, the Cabinet of Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic officially established a Statelessness Determination Procedure (SDP) with the support from UNHCR, fulfilling the country’s 2019 GRF pledge. UNHCR / DIP Statelessness Section In January, amendments to the Armenian Nationality Law paved the way for a shift from a paper based to a digitalized naturalization procedure, which will make the process more efficient. Further amendments to the Law on State fees raised the application fee but provided fee exemptions for refugees and stateless persons. In addition, UNHCR and IOM held a workshop in Armenia to review draft laws on asylum, citizenship, and migration. The draft Law on stateless persons, which aims to introduce a comprehensively regulated statelessness determination procedure, was presented to the Parliament, with UNHCR providing input on family reunification, work permit exemptions, and legal aid for stateless persons. In February, the High Court of the United Kingdom declared unlawful a change to the Immigration Rules, which had taken effect on 31 January 2024. The provision made it more difficult for family members to fulfil the requirements for family reunification when seeking to join a person recognized as stateless in the UK. As a result of the ruling, the UK government is required to amend the Immigration Rules. In Mali, the National Transitional Council adopted the Law on the Status of Stateless Persons, which was promulgated by the Head of State in May. The law includes the creation of a body responsible for protecting stateless persons. In May, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic signed a decree allowing foreign nationals and stateless people residing irregularly to legalize their stay by 10 June 2025 without administrative penalties. A Temporary Regulation will guide the implementation. In addition, in June, the Cabinet adopted amendments simplifying departure procedures for foreigners and stateless people whose stay had been irregular willing to leave voluntarily, reducing detention periods and introducing free exit visas, while maintaining support for vulnerable individuals unable to pay travel costs. Action 7. Ensure birth registration for the prevention of statelessness In 2025, UNHCR supported the expansion of expanded mobile birth registration in Haiti’s Sud 3