nationality,60 as well as guidelines adopted by UNHCR in the context of its mandate on statelessness.61 These developments have, moreover, had influence on the decisions of national courts, and on legal reforms undertaken by States.62 Scholars have noted a general trend towards liberalisation of access to citizenship for children born on the territory, and the influence of international norms on these developments (even as unconditional jus soli – the right to a State’s nationality based solely on birth in its territory -- has also been limited).63 As of 2025, the laws of most States within the Council of Europe provided for the grant of nationality to otherwise stateless children born in their territory (albeit some with further conditions);64 globally, 93 States had legal provisions to this effect.65 It is increasingly strongly asserted that there is sufficient State practice and support for the normative frameworks that the obligation to grant nationality to otherwise stateless children born in the territory of a State is now customary international law, binding even on those States that are not party to the relevant treaties.66 The Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness establishes a parallel obligation for the State of nationality of a parent to grant nationality to a child born outside of its territory if that child would otherwise be stateless.67 Since the dominant mode globally for attribution of nationality at birth is descent-based,68 this provision has been less contested. However, Chile, Brazil and other Latin American States with jus soli-based nationality laws that did not provide for acquisition of nationality in case of births outside their territory have faced – largely successful – campaigns to enable descent-based transmission of nationality to the foreign-born children of parents driven into exile under military governments. 69 In a 2024 decision relating to the children of Albanian Roma parents born in Greece, the UN Human Rights Committee affirmed this obligation at least in relation to otherwise stateless children, in a decision finding Albania in violation of Article 24 of the ICCPR (on the right of every child to birth registration and to acquire a nationality), for its discriminatory failure to enable Albanian Roma parents to register the births of children in Greece with the Albanian consulate, thus preventing the children from acquiring Albanian nationality.70 60 e.g. UN Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families and UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, ‘Joint General Comment No 4 of the CMW and No 23 of the CRC on State Obligations Regarding the Human Rights of Children in the Context of International Migration in Countries of Origin, Transit, Destination and Return’ (16 November 2017) UN Doc CMW/C/GC/4-CRC/C/GC/23, para 24. 61 UNHCR, ‘Guidelines on Statelessness No 4: Ensuring Every Child’s Right to Acquire a Nationality through Articles 1–4 of the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness’ (2012). 62 As this article was being finalised, the Antwerp Family Court affirmed the right to Belgian nationality of children born in Belgium to stateless Palestinian parents: ‘Belgian court annuls nationality revocations for children of Palestinian origin’ (European Migration Network, 27 February 2026) <https://emnbelgium.be/news/belgian-courtannuls-nationality-revocations-children-palestinian-origin>. 63 G-R de Groot and O Vonk, ‘Acquisition of Nationality by Birth on a Particular Territory or Establishment of Parentage: Global Trends Regarding Ius Sanguinis and Ius Soli’ (2018) 65 NILR 319. 64 European Committee on Legal Co-operation, ‘Compendium of Promising Practices on Access to Nationality for Stateless Children’ (Council of Europe 2025) <https://www.coe.int/en/web/cdcj/-/publication-of-thecompendium-of-promising-practices-on-access-to-nationality-for-stateless-children>. 65 See M Vink et al, ‘GLOBALCIT Citizenship Law Dataset, v3.0, Country-Year-Mode Data ([Acquisition]/[Loss])’ (GLOBALCIT, 2025) mode of acquisition A03b. 66 WT Worster, ‘Customary International Law requiring States to Grant Nationality to Stateless Children Born in their Territory’ (2022) 4 Statelessness & Citizenship Review 113; von Rütte (n 12) ch 4.III. 67 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness (n 23) art 4. 68 GLOBALCIT Citizenship Law Dataset (n 65), mode of acquisition A01. 69 UNHCR, Good Practices Paper – Action 1: Resolving Existing Major Situations of Statelessness (updated 2022); UNHCR, Good Practices Paper – Action 2: Ensuring that No Child is Born Stateless (2017). 70 Daniel Faslliu v Albania Communication No 3602/2019 (29 October 2024) UN Doc CCPR/C/142/D/3602/2019.