Global Caselaw Database on Statelessness
The Global Caselaw Database on Statelessness was established to strengthen access to jurisprudence on nationality, statelessness, and related human rights issues. It provides a practical resource for lawyers, academics, advocates, and decision-makers, complementing UNHCR and the Open Society Justice Initiative’s ‘Litigating the Right to Nationality: A Guide for Practitioners’ by bringing together decisions from courts and tribunals across different jurisdictions.
The database covers judgments that address statelessness directly, such as where the applicant is stateless or at risk of statelessness.
The Global Caselaw Database on Statelessness is an evolving tool and new cases will be added incrementally.
Want to offer feedback or suggest a case for inclusion in the Database? Contact our team
This initiative has been made possible with the support of UNHCR, the European Network on Statelessness, and Mallesons.
12 cases found
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Audiencia Provincial de Guipúzcoa
Date of decision: 11 May 2022
Region/country: Europe / Spain
On the Statelessness of the Child The Court of Appeal upheld the First Instance Court's conclusion that the child was stateless, a finding supported by an interpretation provided by a lead expert of the UNHCR, which was produced as evidence. The Government of Spain did not challenge this conclusion on appeal. Applying the definition under Article 1(1) of the 1954 Convention, the Court found that…
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D.Z. v Netherlands
Date of decision: 20 January 2021
Region/country: Europe / Netherlands
The Committee highlighted that, under Article 24(1), the primary consideration in decisions relating to a minor must be the best interests of the minor concerned as it forms an integral part of every child’s right to measures of protection. The Committee noted that, according to the UNHCR Guidelines on Statelessness No. 4, States must recognise an individual as not having the nationality of a State…
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G.T.B. v Spain
Date of decision: 16 November 2023
Region/country: Europe / Spain
Legal Classification of Complaints The European Court of Human Rights (‘the Court’) acknowledged that ill-treatment in breach of Article 3 of the Convention requires a minimum level of severity. In the present case, the Court had not received evidence to meet the threshold required by Article 3, so examined the case under Article 8. In addition, the Court recognised that the right to respect for…
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H.P. v Denmark
Date of decision: 19 January 2017
Region/country: Europe / Denmark
Article 8 The Court noted that Article 8 does not guarantee a right to acquire a particular nationality or citizenship, but acknowledged that an arbitrary denial of citizenship could, in certain circumstances, raise an issue under Article 8 due to its impact on private life. ‘Article 8 of the Convention does not guarantee a right to acquire a particular nationality or citizenship. Nevertheless, it cannot…
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Habbal et al v Argentina
Date of decision: 31 August 2022
Region/country: Americas / Argentina
On Resolution 1088 (expulsion and detention orders) The Court first found that the content of Resolution 1088 and the procedure followed for its adoption ‘constituted a breach of the obligations of the State’ (paragraph 80). The Court found the Respondent (1) unlawfully ordered the expulsion of a citizen (Article 22(5)); (2) failed to follow lawful procedures for expelling lawful permanent residents (Article 22(6)); (3) denied…
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Nystrom v Australia
Date of decision: 01 September 2011
Region/country: Asia / Australia
Article 12(4) – arbitrary deprivation of right to enter own country The majority of the Committee initially considered the ‘his own country’ requirement, viewing the concept as being broader than ‘country of his nationality’ and inviting consideration of matters such as longstanding residence, close personal and family ties and intentions to remain, as well as the absence of such ties elsewhere. It considered Australia to…
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Pham v Secretary of State for the Home Department
Date of decision: 25 March 2015
Region/country: Europe / United Kingdom
The Supreme Court ruled that the decision by the UK Home Secretary to strip the Appellant of British citizenship did not make him stateless, because the Appellant still held Vietnamese citizenship ‘under the operation of its law’ (Article 1(1) of the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons) at the time that decision was made. The Supreme Court first analysed the interpretation of…
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Regina (Begum) v Secretary of State for the Home Department
Date of decision: 26 February 2021
Region/country: Europe / United Kingdom
The Supreme Court held that the Court of Appeal misunderstood the scope of an appeal against a decision of the Secretary of State to refuse a person leave to enter the UK, as the scope is confined to assessing if the decision is in accordance with Section 6 of the Human Rights Act. As Ms Begum did not advance that argument before the Court of…
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S.N. and E.R. v. North Macedonia
Date of decision: 24 February 2020
Region/country: Europe / North Macedonia
Admissibility The Committee majority considered it was not precluded from considering the communication under Article 4(1) of the Operational Protocol. Therefore, the Committee declared the communication admissible in so far as it raised issues under Article 2(d), 2(f), 12(1), 12(2), 14(2)(b) and 14(2)(h) of the Convention. The dissenting member (Gunnar Bergby) dissented on the basis that the communication should have been found to be inadmissible…
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Sentenza n. 4262/2015
Date of decision: 04 November 2014
Region/country: Europe / Italy
The Supreme Court began by reaffirming that statelessness determination must go beyond formal nationality requirements and consider an applicant’s overall situation. It also recalled the 1954 Convention and Italian legislative provisions (Article 1 of the Consolidated Immigration Act; Legislative Decrees 25/2008 and 251/2007), which guarantee stateless persons the same fundamental rights as foreigners and direct access to ordinary courts, underscoring their constitutional importance. The Court…
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This initiative has been made possible with the support of UNHCR, the European Network on Statelessness, and Mallesons.