Article 8 governs deprivation of nationality. Article 8(1) provides, “A Contracting State shall not deprive a person of its nationality if such deprivation would render him stateless.” Articles 8(2) through 8(4) contain certain enumerated exceptions, as well as important procedural safeguards. Article 9 provides in its entirety: “A Contracting State may not deprive any person or group of persons of their nationality on racial, ethnic, religious or political grounds.” Norwegian law does not permit dual nationality. Under Article 23 of the Norwegian Nationality Act, a Norwegian citizen who acquires another nationality by application or explicit consent shall lose his or her Norwegian nationality.188 This provision contains a safeguard against statelessness. Article 24 governs loss of Norwegian nationality in certain cases of prolonged absence from Norway. This article contains a safeguard against statelessness, expressly providing that loss of Norwegian nationality will not occur if the person concerned will thereby become stateless. This is in accordance with Article 7(3) of the 1961 Convention. Under Article 25 of the Nationality Act, a Norwegian national who resides outside Norway and has another nationality is entitled to be released from his or her Norwegian nationality upon application. The individual may only be released from Norwegian nationality if it would be unreasonable to refuse to allow this. The Norwegian national cannot, however, be released from Norwegian nationality if it would result in statelessness. Article 26 provides that Norwegian nationality shall be revoked if the requirement of release from another nationality, as provided by Article 7(1)(h) in conjunction with Article 10 of the Nationality Act, has not been fulfilled, except under certain circumstances stipulated in the Article. According to UDI, its practice in relation to revocation of Norwegian nationality is carried out in accordance with the guidelines regarding the citizenship application process (n. Retningslinjer for behandling av statsborgersaker) from 22 March 2012 (last altered February 2014).189 UDI’s method is based on the extensive information it has on the various nationality legislations of different countries. The methods used when evaluating a possible revocation of Norwegian nationality in accordance with Article 26 therefore differs from one situation to another based on the information that UDI has gathered in relation to the applicant’s country of nationality about the possibility of renouncing that nationality. In countries where applicants are automatically released from their nationality when granted another nationality, the requirements for release do not apply.190 Hence, where an individual seeking to obtain Norwegian nationality is a national of a country that automatically releases its nationals from their citizenship where they obtain a second nationality, Norway does not require that they prove to Norway that they have been released from their original nationality. UDI will then emphasize the need that applicants from such countries have already been released from that nationality when they were granted Norwegian nationality or, at least, that they meet the one-year time limit of Article 10 of the Nationality Act. Norway has developed certain practices to protect nationals of foreign countries who are seeking to obtain Norwegian nationality. Where an individual seeking Norwegian nationality cannot, under the laws of his country of original nationality, be released from that nationality before obtaining another nationality or the promise thereof, UDI will issue a legally binding promise to grant Norwegian citizenship (n. “får et tilsagn om statsborgerskap”). The applicant can show that written promise to the authorities in the country of 188 Notably, a person who has lost Norwegian nationality due to acquisition of the nationality of another Nordic state has a right to recover Norwegian nationality by notification, provided that the person has a residence in Norway and can establish evidence of release from the other Nordic nationality, effective no later than the date of the acquisition, pursuant to Article 21 of the Nationality Act. 189 UDI Information on the Citizenship Act with Regulations, Chapter 11. 190 This is the case, for example, for nationals of China, Denmark, and India seeking Norwegian nationality. Email from UDI OPROS, dated 14 August 2012. UNHCR STOCKHOLM, OCTOBER 2015 47