Flow Chart: Assessing a client’s citizenship status Conduct personal history interview: Step 1 • • • • • Where was client born? Where has client lived? Is client married? Family history: are clients parents or other relatives alive? Are they documented? What documentary proof does client have of his/her personal history? Has client tried but failed to access a birth certificate, ID or passport? Assess applicable citizenship and immigration law: • Step 2 • • • • Does the client’s birth country grant client nationality by birth on the territory? If so, what is the burden of proof (if any in the law or its regulations) and is client able to meet it? Does the law grant nationality on the basis of descent? If so, what is the burden of proof (if any is included in the law or its regulations) and is client able to meet it? Could client naturalise through a marriage or long term legal residence? Did client lose citizenship or was client deprived of citizenship? If client is not currently a citizen, is there any immigration process he or she could follow to access status that would lead to naturalisation? OR EITHER Step 3 A. Client is not stateless B. Client is at risk of statelessness Client qualifies as a citizen under a country’s laws. Client may be stateless if he has no enabling documentation and/or was turned away when trying to access citizenship. Client cannot be identified as stateless until he makes an attempt to access citizenship and is refused. B. Client is stateless Client does not qualify for citizenship under the law and/or is not viewed as a national by any country at present Enquire with competent authorities for confirmation of citizenship status Step 4 Competent authority will confirm if client: (1) is a citizen; (2) is not a citizen; (3) if client could qualify to acquire citizenship; or (4) if client is unable to acquire citizenship. Non-response is presumed as a negative response after a reasonable period (3-6 months). Step 5 50 Apply UNHCR guidelines to make final assessment of client’s citizenship or stateless status. Plan path forward to resolve client’s problem. Promoting citizenship and preventing statelessness in South Africa: A practitioner’s guide