dence which is required for residence permits of stateless persons in Kyrgyz Republic to be issued. The requirement to deal with multiple processes to obtain the status of immigrant has been identified as a factor impeding the acquisition of residency. 3.4 Civil documentation Birth: The Kyrgyz Republic must ensure that any child born in its territory is registered immediately after birth both according to its international obligation under the CRC, the ICCPR and the domestic 2006 Code of the Kyrgyz Republic on Children. Procedures for birth registration are provided in the 2005 Civil Status Acts Law and the 2001 Civil Status Registration Rules. Parents are required to submit an application for birth registration within one month, for which there is no associated cost (the 2005 Civil Status Law, Article 16.1 and 16.5, the Civil Status Registration Rules, section 2, para. 1 and section 1, para. 5). Birth registration cannot be rejected due to the failure of registering within the recommended one-month period.21 Identity documents of the parent(s) are required for a birth to be registered (the Civil Status Law, Article 14). Hospitals and midwives provide medical attestations of births. Birth registration is carried out by the offices of Registration of Civil Status Acts, commonly known as ZAGS, at the place of residence of the parents (Article 14) and the registration includes data such as: name, sex, date of birth, place of birth, parents’ names, ethnicities, nationalities, and address; it also includes the address, name seal and signature of the registrar (the Civil Status Law, Article 22 and 23). The 2001 Civil Status Registration Rules provide that registration of civil status acts concerning foreigners and stateless persons who reside in the Kyrgyz Republic, including the registration of birth, should be carried out as per the current legislation. As for birth registration of stateless persons children, the only reference in the 2001 Civil Status Registration Rules, appears in section 2, para. 23, which states that a child whose parent is a Kyrgyz national and the other a foreigner or a stateless person is registered upon the joint application of the parents. Stateless people who attended the Focus Groups reported that it is impossible to receive a birth certificate if proper identity documents are not submitted to the registration authority. However, in the South, the survey showed that approximately 97 percent of children of stateless persons that partook in the survey have been issued birth certificates. The survey found that families where a parent is a national of the Kyrgyz Republic and the other is stateless did not face any specific problems when registering the birth of their children, whereas families where both parents were stateless and therefore lack valid documentation do.22 Marriage: Nationals and stateless persons’ right to marry, is guaranteed by the 1993 Aliens Law and incorporated in the procedures set forth in the 2001 Civil Status Registration Rules. Marriage certificates are issued to couples after the registration of their marriage to the bodies for recording of civil status acts (para. 1. 14 in the 2001 Civil Status Registration Rules). 21 Ibid. 22 Supra n. 2, p. 23 Small Changes ‫ ـ‬Big Gains: An Action Plan to Prevent and Reduce Statelessness in the Kyrgyz Republic 74