as the mother), should also be treated as a foundling and should immediately acquire the nationality of the state of birth.12 14. It is also relevant to point to a specific rule for the avoidance of statelessness connected to the acquisition of the nationality of a parent (ius sanguinis). A child has the right to acquire the nationality of a parent, but states may make exceptions for children born abroad and provide for a special procedure for children born out of wedlock. However, if the child would otherwise be stateless, the child must always automatically acquire the nationality of the parent including in case of birth abroad.13 Moreover, a state may never make a distinction based on the maternal or paternal parentage.14 Therefore, the acquisition of nationality through the father (ius sanguinis a patre) needs to occur under the same conditions as the acquisition of nationality through the mother (ius sanguinis a matre).15 Moreover, a state may never regulate any ground for acquisition of nationality in a way that would result in ethnic, racial, or religious discrimination.16 15. A state may provide that a child of a national born abroad only acquires the nationality of this parent if (a) both parents are nationals; (b) both parents lodge a joint declaration; or (c) one parent lodges a declaration. A state may also differentiate between the first, second and subsequent generations born abroad. 16. A parent is a person who acquired this status under the law of the state involved or under foreign law but recognised in the state involved. It does not matter whether the legal status of a parent is based on genetic truth. A state 12. See UNHCR Guidelines on statelessness No. 4, para. 61. This is, for example, the case with the so-called “delivery under X” (“accouchement sous X”) in France. French law allows a woman who gives birth to a child out of wedlock to ask not to be mentioned as the mother in the birth certificate of the child (Article 326 French Code civil). Consequently, the child will not have a family relationship with that woman. Such children are therefore legally in a similar vulnerable position as foundlings and should enjoy the benefit of the statelessness avoiding rule of Article 2. Contracting states should not be able to subject such children to the application procedure of Article 1(1) and article 1(2). The same applies for legal systems which still require, that a mother must recognise her child born out of wedlock to establish a family relationship. The ECtHR concluded on 13 June 1979 in the case of Marckx v. Belgium (C-6833/74) that such requirement of recognition violates Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights. As a consequence of that decision, this requirement was abolished in the member states of the Council of Europe, but the construction still exists in several other countries. 13. See Article 6(1)(a) ECN and Principle 1 of Recommendation CM/Rec (2009)13. 14. See Article 9(2) of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women 1979); see also Genovese v. Malta, No. 53124/09, § 46, 11 October 2011. 15. See Principle 11 of Recommendation CM/Rec (2009)13. 16. See Article 5 ECN and Article 9 of the 1961 Convention. Page 10 ►Stateless children’s access to nationality