Equatorial Guinea: Information on the process by which an individual can recover citizenship, including the level of discretion exercised by the authorities on the matter, when citizenship was lost because of marriage to a foreigner and residence abroad
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 March 1997 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | GNQ26367.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Equatorial Guinea: Information on the process by which an individual can recover citizenship, including the level of discretion exercised by the authorities on the matter, when citizenship was lost because of marriage to a foreigner and residence abroad, 1 March 1997, GNQ26367.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad1758.html [accessed 21 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
A representative at the Embassy of Equatorial Guinea in Washington, DC, stated during a 4 March 1997 telephone interview that a person outside Equatorial Guinea who wishes to recover his or her lost Equatorial Guinea nationality must contact the nearest embassy of Equatorial Guinea. The person must provide the embassy with a letter requesting reinstatement of his or her Equatorial Guinea nationality and an Equatorial Guinea passport. The letter must be accompanied by a written sworn declaration (declaración jurada) from the applicant renouncing his or her current nationality (or citizenship, depending on the country), and a copy of his or her birth certificate or other document showing that the person had or is entitled to claim Equatoguinean nationality. Other documents that could be submitted instead of a birth certificate are an old Equatorial Guinea passport or an old national identity card (carnet de identidad). If the person has none of these documents, a copy of the individual's original birth certificate or identity card can be requested from the authorities in Equatorial Guinea. The source indicated that the police in Equatorial Guinea keep a copy of every national's identity card. For a person who lost Equatoguinean nationality because he or she married a foreigner and lived abroad, and who presents the documentation indicated above, recovery of nationality and issuiance of an Equatorial Guinea passport would be automatic. Processing the documents and issuing the passport would take approximately one week.
The only recent information among the sources consulted on the level of discretion the authorities can exercise in the application and enforcement of law, although without specific references to questions of nationality of citizenship, is provided by the United States Department of State Country Reports 1996, which is available through the IRB Sharenet and at your Regional Documentation Centre.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
Reference
Embassy of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Washington, DC. 4 March 1997. Telephone interview with representative.
Additional Sources Consulted
Constitutions of the Countries of the World.
Juris Classeur.
Africa Watch/Human Rights Watch. Monthly.
Note:
This list is not exhaustive. Country and issue-specific publications available at the DIRB Resource Centre are not included in this listing.
