. Identification re ention and reduction o state essness individuals of Roma ethnicity often did not meet the criteria. Unable to go through the complex procedures without legal assistance, they were frequently left without birth certificates. Together with the Serbian Centre for the Advancement of Legal Studies – and funded by the ODIHR Project “Best Practice for Roma Integration” – Praxis and UNHCR gathered experts to develop a proposal for an appropriate legislative solution, taking the specific situation of undocumented individuals into consideration. With critical support from the Ombudsman’s Office, project partners engaged in intensive dialogue with parliamentarians, joint advocacy work and continuous efforts to raise public awareness on the seriousness of the problem and the efficacy of the solution. These efforts resulted in a draft model law on legal subjectivity, and subsequent amendments to the Law on Non-Contentious Procedures, adopted on 31 August 2012. The amendments facilitated a simplified procedure for establishing the time and place of birth of persons who had been long unsuccessful in meeting the complex administrative requirements, allowing for their births to finally be registered. This has reduced the number of “legally invisible” persons and bolstered prevention at the same time, since this phenomenon is passed on to the next generation. The results are evidenced in a June 2016 UNHCR survey conducted among Roma, Ashkali and Egyptians in Serbia (“Persons at Risk of Statelessness in Serbia – Progress Report 2010–2015”), which showed that the number of persons without identity documents among those populations dropped significantly from 2010 to 2015: from 6.8% to 3.9%. The report recommends further steps to address the final obstacles to birth and residence registration, and obtaining identity cards – steps that are essential to confirming nationality for all. See UNHCR, Persons at Risk of Statelessness in Serbia – Progress Report 2010– 2015, Belgrade, June 2016, available at: http://www.unhcr.rs/media/docs/UNHCR_ Brosura_Apatridi_ENGLESKI.pdf 56