Statelessness in Czechia | January 2024 20 In Czechia, the evidence used in the process for determining statelessness can be categorised into two main groups: 1. Evidence relating to the individual case of the applicant and their personal history, and 2. Information relating to the applicant's country of origin or the legislation governing the acquisition and loss of nationality in the State under consideration. In contrast to the international protection procedure, where the primary responsibility for the protection of individuals rests with the host country, applicants for statelessness determination are usually required to make genuine and credible efforts to acquire a nationality from States with which they have links and to provide evidence of this. The MoI rarely contacts embassies or state authorities directly, but gathers pertinent information, including legislative documents and nationality laws, from the applicant's country of origin. This approach is often used to assess the applicant's claim and determine their statelessness. The requirement that persons should prove their statelessness in the procedure, in particular with a document from the embassy stating that they do not consider them as their nationals, has proved to be difficult and, in some cases, impossible in practice, since it is not in the individual's capacity to obtain such a document. Jurisprudence has concluded that the burden of proof is shared, and if the individual cannot prove their lack of nationality, the administrative authority must take the necessary steps to establish the facts.39 Evidence that may be useful to demonstrate a person’s identity, place of origin or former habitual residence, and statelessness includes – but is not limited to: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 39 the individual’s own statements about why they are stateless statements of relevant people who know them (e.g. from a stateless community) identity documents (e.g. birth certificate, extract from civil register, national identity card, voter registration document) passports or other travel documents (valid or expired) evidence of refusal of entry into a country of potential nationality parent’s or applicant’s marriage certificate citizenship certificate documents relating to renunciation of nationality, or any other legal documents or court decisions identity and travel documents of family members confirmation of registration with UNRWA, GAPAR, or some other relevant agency40 applications or correspondence relating to efforts to acquire or obtain proof of a nationality, including for example letters or emails to or from government officials, including embassies and consulates [where safe/appropriate to engage in such communication] statements or affidavits by people who accompanied the individual to an embassy or contacted an embassy or other institution to make enquires about nationality or identity school certificates or evidence relating to inability to attend school military service records medical records (including hospital / midwife birth records) See Case Law Database Note that while UNRWA registration may indicate a person’s Palestinian origin and confirm eligibility to receive UNRWA services within UNRWA’s area of operations, registration with UNRWA does not prove nationality or residence status, nor is such registration proof, on its own, that a person necessarily falls within or is excluded from the scope of the 1951 Convention or the 1954 Convention. See ENS & BADIL report, note 2. 40