Discrimination on the basis of ethnicity; race; religion; age; sex; gender; disability; language; or sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC) is a cause of statelessness.1 Direct or indirect discrimination on these grounds is currently found in the nationality laws of more than 80 countries. The risks of statelessness associated with discriminatory nationality laws are underscored by the fact that more than 75% of the world’s known stateless populations belong to ethnic, religious or linguistic minority groups.2 This background note provides an overview of discrimination in nationality laws, and complements the UNHCR background note on gender discrimination in nationality laws.3 The note does not purport to be a comprehensive overview of all discrimination issues related to nationality law and practice, but simply aims to be provide relevant examples. 1 2 3 As well as compounded and intersectional forms of discrimination on the basis of multiple grounds. This percentage is based on statistics for stateless populations included in UNHCR’s 2016 Global Trends Report that are known to belong to an ethnic, religious or linguistic minority. It does not account for minority groups that compose a proportion of a known stateless population in a country but do not form the majority of that population. The percentage also does not include stateless minority groups for which UNHCR does not have adequate statistical data. UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Background Note on Gender Equality, Nationality Laws and Statelessness 2020, 14 July 2020, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5f0d7b934.html. U N H C R > B AC KG R O U N D N OT E O N D I S C R I M I N AT I O N I N N AT I O N A L I T Y L AW S A N D S TAT E L E S S N E S S 3