apply to all stateless persons, while others have certain residence requirements.197 Importantly, “[r]ecognition of an individual as a stateless person under the 1954 Convention also triggers the ‘lawfully staying’ rights, in addition to a right to residence. Thus the right to work, access to healthcare and social assistance, as well as a travel document must accompany a residence permit.”198 Substantive rights guaranteed to stateless persons include, inter alia, freedom of religion, the right to recognition of their personal legal status (especially marriage), property rights, the right of association, access to courts, the right to identity documents, certain rights to travel documents, certain rights to wage-earning employment, selfemployment, housing, public education, public relief, administrative assistance, and freedom of movement.199 This list is not exhaustive, and other international and regional human rights instruments and jurisprudence afford stateless persons additional rights. The Danish Aliens Act does not contain any provisions on statelessness or rights of stateless persons.200 However, an amendment of the Aliens Act was adopted in 2013, providing for rules on registration of foreigners’ personal data (including statelessness).201 Some of the rights of stateless persons under the 1954 Convention are however recognized in the administrative practice of the Danish Immigration Service. Thus, stateless persons are entitled to an alien’s passport,202 and they have a specific right to stay in Denmark for seven days after a decision on expulsion.203 Apart from this, the rights of stateless persons depend, like the rights of other foreigners, on the nature of their residence status. 3.4.2.1 The right of residence “Although the 1954 Convention does not explicitly require States to grant a person determined to be stateless a right of residence, granting such permission would fulfill the object and purpose of the treaty. This is reflected in the practice of States with determination procedures. Without a right to remain, the individual is at risk of continuing insecurity and prevented from enjoying the rights guaranteed by the 1954 Convention and international human rights law.”204 Thus, for persons who meet the international legal definition of a stateless person, the right to reside in a particular territory is paramount to their enjoyment of fundamental human rights. From the state perspective, the granting of the right to reside to persons recognized under international law as stateless allows the state to fulfill its international protection obligations. 52 197 For a comprehensive discussion on the proper interpretation of these terms, see UNHCR, Handbook, 30 June 2014, paras 147-152, (inter alia, making specific recommendations as to the granting of a residence permit; noting that the recognition of an individual as stateless “triggers the ‘lawfully staying’ rights;” discussing “habitual residence;”), paras 136-139 (discussing the “lawfully staying” rights as well as “habitually resident” provisions), and paras 140-143 (discussing international human rights law and its relevance to statelessness, in particular the ICCPR’s Article 12(4) “own country” provisions and its guarantee of “the right of entry, and thus the right to remain, of individuals with special ties to a State.”), available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/53b676aa4.html. 198 Ibid, para 150. 199 See ibid for a discussion of the proper interpretation of the 1954 Convention’s “lawfully staying” rights. 200 As mentioned earlier, there is no Danish law or decree providing for the grant of a statelessness status or regulating stateless persons’ rights in Denmark. 201 The case of Danish nationality law is different. The Nationality Act has for years contained provisions aiming at the reduction of statelessness, as described in Section 2.1 above. 202 In accordance with Article 28 of the 1954 Convention. 203 In line with Article 31 of the 1954 Convention, to which Denmark made a reservation as mentioned in section 3.2 above. 204 UNHCR Handbook, para. 147. For a comprehensive discussion of the right to reside and related rights, see also ibid, paras 147-152, (inter alia, making specific recommendations as to the granting of a residence permit; noting that the recognition of an individual as stateless “triggers the ‘lawfully staying’ rights;” discussing “habitual residence;”), paras 136-139 (discussing the “lawfully staying” rights as well as “habitually resident” provisions), and paras 140-143 (discussing international human rights law and its relevance to statelessness, in particular the ICCPR’s Article 12(4) “own country” provisions and its guarantee of “the right of entry, and thus the right to remain, of individuals with special ties to a State.”). Mapping Statelessness in Denmark