DIVISION OF INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (UNHCR) CP2500, 1211 Geneva 2 Switzerland E-mail: hqpro2@unhcr.org Website: www.unhcr.org This background paper was prepared for an Expert Meeting organized by UNHCR on the Concept of Stateless Persons in International Law. It has benefitted from the comments of Laura van Waas, Jorunn Brandvoll, Mark Manly, Santhosh Persaud, and especially Sibylle Kapferer. The views expressed in this paper are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the United Nations or UNHCR. This paper may be freely quoted, cited and copied for academic, educational or other non-commercial purposes without prior permission from UNHCR, provided that the source and author is acknowledged. The paper is available online at http://www.unhcr.org/protect. © United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 2010.