3. Determination of statelessness and rights attached to the status 3.1 Introduction As noted in Chapter 1.1.1, a stateless person is defined in Article 1(1) of the 1954 Convention as “a person who is not considered as a national by any State under the operation of its law.” This definition identifies the persons who are entitled to the core protections of the 1954 Convention, with additional Convention rights depending on the individual’s residence status, as discussed below. While ultimately, only the acquisition of a nationality will end a person’s statelessness, in situations where this is not yet possible, it is necessary to protect stateless persons. A formal statelessness determination procedure makes it possible to identify those persons who are entitled to the protection regime of the 1954 Convention. For a statelessness determination procedure to be fair and efficient, a number of procedural safeguards must be taken into consideration. The procedure must be accessible for stateless persons,80 including “unreturnable” persons in detention, which also entails an obligation to provide information about the availability of the procedure. During the procedure, applicants should be entitled to certain rights.81 For example, they may not, in principle, be detained for reasons relating to their statelessness, and in situations where they are nevertheless detained, it must be a measure of last resort and the person may not be held with convicted criminals or individuals awaiting trial.82 Moreover, pending the outcome of the procedure, the applicant may not be expelled from the State where the procedure is ongoing.83 The 1954 Convention guarantees rights to stateless persons on a gradual, conditional scale, based on their degree of attachment to the State, with some protections applicable to all stateless persons, and others dependent on the precise legal status of the individual.84 Some provisions depend on whether the person is 80 UNHCR, Handbook, paras. 68-70. 81 Ibid., paras. 144-146. 82 Ibid., paras. 112-115. 83 Ibid., paras. 72 and 145. 84 For a detailed discussion, see Handbook, paras. 132-139. See also ibid. paras. 14 and 16 (on the status of a stateless person even prior to a formal determination of his or her statelessness). UNHCR STOCKHOLM, 2016 31