Chapter 2 The Right to Nationality and Judgment TC/0168/13 of the Constitutional Court | 73 152. Article 36 of the 2004 General Immigration Law expanded the definition of foreign nationals “in transit” by providing that all nonresident foreign nationals, which would now include temporary workers, are regarded as persons “in transit” for purposes of the application of the article on Dominican nationality that appears in the Constitution of the Dominican Republic. 160 With that, the law provided that temporary workers were regarded as persons in transit, irrespective of how long they had been in Dominican territory; hence, their descendants could not acquire Dominican nationality as the parents now fell within one of the exceptions for acquisition of nationality in application of the principle of jus soli. Furthermore, article 152 of the General Immigration Law provided that a foreign national who, having entered the country with some temporary legal status, overstays the time authorized for him or her to stay shall be deemed to be “illegal”. 153. The General Immigration Law also established a procedure for registering the births of children born in Dominican territory to non-resident aliens and who, according to the criterion introduced with this law, are not entitled to Dominican nationality. Health clinics that provide care to a foreign woman, who does not have documentation proving her legal residency, will have to issue a pink record of birth, containing all of the mother’s personal information. This record is different from the official record of birth used in the case of Dominicans and serves as proof of birth but not nationality. Thereafter, the Central Electoral Board will record these records in the Foreigners’ Registry. 161 This procedure was first implemented in 2007, when the Central Electoral Board approved the “Registry of Children Born to Foreign-Born Mothers who do not have residency status in the Dominican Republic,” also known as the ‘foreigners’ registry’. 162 154. The Constitution in force at the time the General Immigration Law took effect was the 2002 Constitution, Article 11(1) of which defined Dominicans as: [a]ll persons born in the territory of the Republic with the exception of the legitimate children of foreigners resident in the country in diplomatic representation or in transit. 163 155. As for the meaning of the expression “in transit” for purposes of acquiring Dominican nationality, on December 14, 2005 the Supreme Court, serving as a constitutional court, delivered a judgment on the constitutionality of the 2004 General Immigration Law. In the Supreme Court’s judgment, it provided an interpretation of how the term foreign national “in transit” should be understood for purposes of acquiring Dominican nationality. The Supreme Court maintained that “transient” or “in transit” foreign nationals are those who do not have a residency permit issued by the Office of the Director General of Immigration. This interpretation established an equivalency between the expressions foreign nationals “in transit” and “persons with an irregular migratory situation,” irrespective of how 160 161 162 163 Ibid., Article 36. Dominican Republic, General Immigration Law, No. 285-04, August 15, 2004, Official Gazette No. 10291, August 27, 2004. Article 28. Dominican Republic, Central Electoral Board, Resolution No.02/2007. Approved April 18, 2007. Dominican Republic, Constitution of the Dominican Republic, July 25, 2002. Article 11(1). Inter-American Commission on Human Rights | IACHR