Children born to Stateless Persons 22. Children born to stateless former USSR citizens usually have birth certificates issued in Russia, but they face difficulties accessing rights and services connected to registration and citizenship (for example, healthcare and education). They can generally access primary school, but access to secondary school or state exam certification for children over 14 years old (passport age in Russia) is problematic as a passport is obligatory for all official procedures. College or university education is impossible. At the age of 16, administrative responsibility can be applied and they may be deemed to be “violators of migration rules”. 23. It must be noted in this regard, that Russia has obligations under Article 7 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child to respect every child’s right to acquire a nationality and to “ensure the implementation of these rights in accordance with their national law and their obligations under the relevant international instruments in this field, in particular where the child would otherwise be stateless.”17 The Deprivation of Nationality 24. In 2017, following a change in legislation,18 it became possible to deprive citizenship of naturalised Russian citizens, who are convicted of extremist and terrorism-related crimes. While raising concern about deprivation of nationality as a punishment, it must be noted that this new provision is only applicable to those who have another citizenship or have guarantees of obtaining one. However, According to UNHCR Guidance: An individual’s nationality … is neither a historic nor a predictive exercise. The question to be answered is whether, at the point of making an Article 1(1) determination, an individual is a national of the country or countries in question. Therefore, if an individual is partway through a process for acquiring nationality but those procedures are yet to be completed, he or she cannot be considered as a national for the purposes of Article 1(1) of the 1954 Convention.19 This provision can therefore create a new group at risk of statelessness in Russia, particularly as the likelihood of receiving a new citizenship once convicted as a terrorist is low. It is too soon to know how the new law will be implemented, but even before it came into force, in April 2017, three young men accused (but not yet convicted) of committing a terrorist attack in St. Petersburg were deprived of Russian citizenship on the grounds of “false information provided by the applicants” to Russian migration authorities.20 The Expulsion and Detention of Stateless Persons 25. Stateless persons are considered to be “foreign nationals” in laws regulating expulsion/deportation from the RF. Since stateless persons are considered to be “illegally staying in the RF” from the standpoint of the law and practice, expulsion/deportation rulings are issued even though there is nowhere to expel/deport them. The set phrase “foreign nationals and stateless persons” is repeated in many laws, 17 Article 7.1 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child Federal Law N 243-FZ (29.07.2017) that amended the laws “On citizenship of the Russian Federation” and “On legal situation of foreign citizens”. 19 UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Handbook on Protection of Stateless Persons, 30 June 2014, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/53b676aa4.html, Para 50. 20 All three are ethnic Uzbeks from Kyrgyzstan, who received Russian citizenship in 2009-2010. 18 6