Since then, important and steady changes in the law have protected the right of both men and women to transmit their Danish nationality to their children, as well as the children’s right to acquire both parents’ nationality. In 1978, the Nationality Act was amended to allow a Danish woman to transmit her nationality to her children born in wedlock to a foreign man. In 1998, an amendment granted children born out of wedlock in Denmark equal rights to children born in wedlock. In principle, the change was neutral as to whether the child was born in- or out-ofwedlock and had the effect that all children born in Denmark in and out of wedlock to a Danish parent acquired Danish nationality from the father as well as the mother. An exception remained for children born abroad and out of wedlock, who did not automatically at birth acquire Danish nationality from the father.27 If the father had custody of the child, it was, however, possible for the child to become naturalized.28 In 2014, the Nationality Act’s exception for children born abroad out of wedlock to a Danish father was abolished.29 As of 1 July 2014, “a child acquires Danish nationality by birth if the father, the mother or the co-mother is Danish”.30 Section 3 of the Nationality Act on immigrant descendants’ entitlement to Danish nationality was amended in 1968 in order to comply with Article 1 of the 1961 Convention. From that time, young non-Danish nationals could acquire Danish nationality by making a declaration when they were between the ages of 18 and 23 years and had resided in Denmark for at least five years before the age of 16, and permanently between the age of 16 and 21 years.31 Declarants who were stateless or could prove that they would lose their foreign nationality by the acquisition of Danish nationality could make the declaration between the age of 18 and 23 years.32 In 1998, access to Danish nationality was facilitated for young aliens, including stateless persons. According to the amended section 3, both groups could henceforth acquire Danish nationality by declaration between ages 18 and 23 years, if they had resided in Denmark for at least ten years in total, at least five of which must have been within the six-year period preceding the declaration. However, by the end of the following year, Section 3 of the Nationality Act was restricted, making acquisition of Danish nationality by declaration conditional on the absence of a criminal record.33 In 2004, another amendment of Section 3 was enacted providing that only descendants of Nordic origin were entitled (under the above-mentioned conditions) to Danish nationality by declaration.34 Other descendants of immigrants, including stateless persons born in Denmark, were as of 2004 referred to the process of naturalization granted by an Act of Parliament. With the amendments to Section 3 of the Nationality Act in late 1999 and 2004, the entitlement for persons born stateless in Denmark, as described under Articles 1(1)(b) and 1(2)(a) of the 1961 Convention, were no longer implemented in Danish law. In response, it was announced in the explanatory notes to the Bills providing for the changes to Section 3 of the Nationality Act, that stateless applicants who were covered by Article 1 of the 27 The former section 1(1) of the Nationality Act (Consolidation Act No. 422 of 7 June 2004) provided: “A child is a natural-born Danish national if born to a Danish father or a Danish mother. Where the child’s parents are not married and only the father is a Danish national, the child will only acquire Danish nationality if born within Denmark.” That provision applied to children who were born on 1 February 1999 and later. Available in English translation at: https://bit.ly/39wmuls. 28 Under the present naturalization circular, section 16, the custody requirement has been abolished. 29 See amendment of the Nationality Act by Act No. 729 of 25 June 2014 (providing for the automatic granting of citizenship at birth to all children of a Danish father, mother, or co-mother). For an English-language summary, see https://bit.ly/32VQXby. 30 See Act No. 729 of 25 June 2014, amending Section 1 of the Nationality Act. For an English-language summary of the new law governing transmission of Danish citizenship to children born abroad, see the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark in the United States, page on “Citizenship,” available at: http://usa.um.dk/en/travel-and-residence/citizenship/. 31 Residence in another Nordic country before the age of 16 and at least 5 years before the declaration was made equated residence in Denmark. 32 See Section 1(1) of Act No. 399 of 11 December 1968. Before, the Nationality Act incorporated some jus soli aspects by providing for access to Danish nationality for persons born and raised in Denmark at the age of majority. The birth criterion was repealed in 1968. 33 Act No. 1102 of 29 December 1999. 34 Act No. 311 of 4 May 2004. For background information on the processes that caused these changes, see the country profile of Denmark at the website of the EUDO Observatory on Citizenship, available at: http://eudo-citizenship.eu/country-profiles/?country=Denmark. UNHCR Representation for the Nordic and Baltic Countries 13