In our country today you can observe an amazing phenomenon: thousands of Russian military family members are legally citizens of other countries or stateless persons. Moreover, there are also officers, ensigns, midshipmen who can formally be considered as non-citizens, because if a person does not have an identity card with the State Emblem of the USSR (there are no others yet) an insert of a citizen of the Russian Federation or a passport with a double-headed eagle, which means that from a legal point of view, he is illegally wearing a Russian military uniform. After all, in accordance with the current legislation, only citizens of this state with documentary confirmation of this can serve in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.

The question, it would seem, is not worth a damn: there are many legal absurdities in our reality that the majority of the Russian people may simply not encounter during their entire life.

But no, the Orientir mail shows that the problem of non-citizenship is sometimes faced by military personnel and their family members in the Russian open spaces, like a wall made of high-quality concrete.

What is the procedure for acquiring citizenship of the Russian Federation? For a comment, we turned to the senior prosecutor of the International Law Department of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation, Candidate of Legal Sciences, Colonel of Reserve Justice Nikolai BAZHENOV.

As Nikolai Ivanovich explained, citizens of other states and stateless persons living both abroad and in Russia can acquire citizenship of the Russian Federation under certain conditions. Registration of documents for its purchase is carried out at the place of residence of the applicant: if the person lives on the territory of the Russian Federation, he applies to the internal affairs bodies of the Russian Federation, if outside the Russian Federation - to the diplomatic and consular offices of the Russian Federation in the country of residence of the applicant.

The usual condition for obtaining Russian citizenship is permanent residence on the territory of the Russian Federation of foreign citizens and stateless persons for a total of at least five years or three years continuously immediately before applying for Russian citizenship; these terms may be shortened or removed in cases where the specified persons:

- were citizens of the former USSR in the past;

- adopted a child who is a citizen of the Russian Federation;

- have high achievements

in the field of Russian science, technology and culture;

- have a profession or qualification of interest to the Russian Federation;

- have services to the peoples united in the Russian Federation, in the revival of the Russian Federation, in the implementation of universal ideals and values;

- had at least one of your direct ascending relatives in the past with Russian citizenship by birth.

There are the following grounds for obtaining citizenship of the Russian Federation by a person::

- as a result of his confession;

- by birth;

- in the order of its registration;

- as a result of admission to citizenship;

- as a result of restoration of Russian citizenship;

- by choosing citizenship (option) when changing the state affiliation of the territory.

As a result of recognition, citizens of the Russian Federation may be citizens of the former USSR permanently residing in the territory of the Russian Federation on 6.02.1992, if they have not declared their unwillingness to be citizens of the Russian Federation within one year from the date of entry into force of the Law of the Russian Federation "On Citizenship of the Russian Federation" of 28.11.1991 N 1948-1, as well as citizens of the former USSR permanently residing in the territory of the Russian Federation. those who live on the territory of the Russian Federation and temporarily left its borders before 6.02.1992 in connection with labor, official relations, training, medical treatment and private affairs and returned to Russia after the entry into force of the Law on Citizenship (Article 13 of the Law).

Acquisition of citizenship of the Russian Federation by birth concerns mainly children. If both parents become citizens of the Russian Federation, their children under the age of 14 automatically acquire Russian citizenship. When one of the child's parents is a citizen of the Russian Federation at the time of his birth, and the other is a stateless person, the child is a citizen of the Russian Federation regardless of the place of his birth. If the parents have different citizenship, one of whom is a citizen of the Russian Federation at the time of the child's birth, and the other has a different citizenship, the question of the child's citizenship, regardless of the place of birth, is determined by a written agreement of the parents. In the absence of such an agreement, the child acquires Russian citizenship if he was born on the territory of the Russian Federation.

A child who is located in the territory of the Russian Federation and whose parents are unknown is a citizen of the Russian Federation. A child born on the territory of the Russian Federation to parents who are citizens of other states is a citizen of the Russian Federation, if these states do not grant him their citizenship. A child born on the territory of the Russian Federation from a stateless person is a citizen of the Russian Federation (Articles 14-17 of the Law).

In the order of registration, that is, in accordance with Article 18 of the Law, citizenship of the Russian Federation can be acquired:

- persons whose spouse or direct ascending relative is a citizen of the Russian Federation;

- persons who, at the time of birth, had at least one of their parents as a citizen of the Russian Federation, but who acquired a different citizenship by birth, within five years after reaching the age of 18;

- children of former citizens of the Russian Federation who were born after their parents ' citizenship of the Russian Federation was terminated, within five years after reaching the age of 18.

Persons who wish to acquire Russian citizenship by registration submit the following documents to the internal affairs bodies or consular offices at their place of residence::

- application for acquisition of Russian citizenship;

- a copy of the birth certificate;

- a document or duly issued witness statement confirming that a spouse or relative in a direct ascending line belongs to the citizenship of the Russian Federation;

- a document confirming the parents ' past citizenship of the Russian Federation.

In cases that do not fall under the registration procedure, applications for citizenship of the Russian Federation are processed (Article 19 of the Law).

Internal affairs bodies accept applications and documents attached to them in one copy, and petitions and documents attached to them-in two copies.

Petitions of persons residing on the territory of the Russian Federation and other necessary documents, together with the conclusions of the territorial bodies of the FSB and Internal Affairs, are sent to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Department of Internal Affairs (GUVD). These internal affairs bodies, having received applications for acquiring citizenship of the Russian Federation and having studied them, make a decision in the form of an opinion approved by the Minister of Internal Affairs of the Republic, the head of the Department of Internal Affairs (GUVD).

All materials related to the application for citizenship of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Department of Internal Affairs (GUVD), send for conclusion to the territorial bodies of the FSB of the Russian Federation and after their return make a conclusion on them, which is signed by the head of the passport and visa service and approved by the Minister of Internal Affairs of the Republic, the head of the Department of Internal Affairs (GUVD). The documents issued in this way are sent to the Citizenship Commission under the President of the Russian Federation.

Petitions of persons residing outside the Russian Federation for admission to Russian citizenship, together with the necessary documents and the conclusion of consular institutions, are sent by the latter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, which submits them together with its conclusion to the FSB of the Russian Federation; the latter issues its conclusion and sends all materials to the Citizenship Commission under the President of the Russian Federation.

An application for admission to Russian citizenship may be rejected:

- if the person supports forcible change of the constitutional order in the Russian Federation;

- if the person is a member of political parties and other organizations whose activities are incompatible with the constitutional principles of the Russian Federation;

- if the person has been convicted and is serving a prison sentence for actions prosecuted under the laws of the Russian Federation.

Foreign citizens and stateless persons, when they are granted Russian citizenship, submit the following documents to the internal affairs bodies or consular offices at their place of residence::

- application to the President of the Russian Federation for admission to Russian citizenship;

- a document indicating the time of residence on the territory of the Russian Federation for at least five years or three years continuously immediately before applying, as provided for by the Citizenship Law;

- a document confirming the circumstances that give the right to a reduced period of residence (if any).

Persons whose citizenship of the Russian Federation has ceased due to adoption, establishment of guardianship or guardianship, as well as persons whose citizenship of the Russian Federation has ceased due to a change in the citizenship of their parents, can acquire Russian citizenship as a result of restoration within five years after reaching the age of 18 (Article 20 of the Law) by submitting the following documents::

- application for acquisition of Russian citizenship;

- copies of birth, adoption, custody or guardianship certificates.

- documents confirming the applicant's or his parents ' past citizenship of the Russian Federation, and in the absence of these documents - duly issued witness statements.

Persons who are not covered by the above provisions, in order to acquire citizenship by way of restoration, submit the following documents to the internal affairs bodies or consular offices::

- petition addressed to the President.

- documents confirming the applicant's past citizenship of the Russian Federation.

As a result of territorial changes, persons residing in the territory that has changed their state affiliation have the right to choose citizenship (optation) in accordance with the procedure and terms determined by an international agreement of the Russian Federation with the relevant state (Article 21 of the Law).

On the basis of the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of 24.10.1994, in certain issues of implementation of the Law of the Russian Federation "On Citizenship of the Russian Federation", persons who left for permanent residence in another state, and then returned to Russia, may be restored to Russian citizenship upon their personal applications. The right to restore Russian citizenship is granted to persons who were born in the territory of the RSFSR, were citizens of the USSR and did not express a desire to terminate their union citizenship, did not take citizenship of another country, left the territory of the former Union, and then returned to Russia for permanent residence.

The procedure for restoring citizenship lasts no more than ten days and is issued free of charge.

When restoring citizenship of the Russian Federation in accordance with this Decree, interested persons do not need to provide evidence that they do not have citizenship of other states. However, it is necessary to confirm that the citizen actually arrived in Russia for permanent residence, that is, registered, and that he was born on the territory of Russia.

If a person wishing to acquire Russian citizenship is a citizen of another foreign state, they must present a document indicating the attitude of the competent authority of the foreign state to their intention to acquire Russian citizenship.

The relevant authorities shall notify applicants of the decisions taken on citizenship issues within one week from the date of receipt of the notifications.

In case of a positive decision to acquire Russian citizenship, the applicant is issued a certificate of acquisition of Russian citizenship, which is signed by the head of the passport and visa service, certified with a stamp and is the basis for obtaining a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation (due to the shortage of forms, the procedure for obtaining this document may be delayed). In respect of persons who have acquired Russian citizenship and are subject to military registration in accordance with the Federal Law of the Russian Federation "On Military Duty and Military Service", a notice of acquisition of Russian citizenship is sent to the military commissariats at the place of residence.

At the end of the comment, our legal adviser gave the coordinates of the Citizenship Commission under the President of the Russian Federation for interested readers.:

1033132, Moscow, Ilinka str., 8/4, k. 20; phone numbers: (095) 206-47-87, 206-58-84.

And we went to the address - 17 Petrovka Street, building 2, where the UVIR of the Moscow Police Department is located. There we were kindly received by the deputy head of the citizenship department, police Lieutenant Colonel Nadezhda Vasilyevna LYUBEZNOVA, who we asked to answer the questions most often found in the letters of readers of our magazine.

Nadezhda Vasilyevna explained that military personnel of the Russian Army should definitely be citizens of the Russian Federation. This follows from the Decree of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian Federation "On the entry into force of the Law of the Russian Federation "On Amendments and Additions to the Law of the RSFSR" On Citizenship of the RSFSR " No. 5206/1-1 of 17.06.1993. Changes and additions were made due to the fact that the Law on Citizenship of the RSFSR did not mention military personnel.

Thus, paragraph 1 of Article 13 of the Law stipulates that "all citizens of the former USSR permanently residing on the territory of the Russian Federation on the date of entry into force of this Law are recognized as citizens of the Russian Federation, if within one year after this day they do not declare their unwillingness to be citizens of the Russian Federation." The decree also significantly supplements the Law on Citizenship with items directly related to the military. We give them verbatim.

"...2. For the purpose of uniform application of the Law of the Russian Federation "On Citizenship of the Russian Federation", establish that citizens of the former USSR who permanently reside in the territory of the Russian Federation and temporarily left the Russian Federation before February 6, 1992 in connection with labor, official relations, training, medical treatment and private affairs and returned to the Russian Federation. After the entry into force of the Law, citizens of the Russian Federation are recognized as citizens of the Russian Federation in accordance with part one of Article 13 of the Law.

3. Extend the first part of Article 13 of the Law of the Russian Federation "On Citizenship of the Russian Federation" to military personnel (officers, warrant officers, midshipmen, long-term service personnel of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, ministries and departments of the Russian Federation with troops and military formations, military personnel undergoing training in military educational institutions) who have taken the oath of allegiance the former Soviet Union or the Russian Federation, serving in military units under the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation on the territories of other states, including as part of the Joint Armed Forces of the Commonwealth of Independent States, as well as arriving for service on the territory of the Russian Federation after the entry into force of the Law.

4. Military personnel of the former USSR who do not fall under the first part of Article 13 of the Law of the Russian Federation "On Citizenship of the Russian Federation" and are not specified in paragraph 3 of this Resolution, acquire citizenship of the Russian Federation on general grounds.

5. The issue of withdrawal of a serviceman from the citizenship of the Russian Federation may be considered after his dismissal from military service or a decision to transfer to the army of another state."

It follows from this that military personnel who served in Russian military formations, at the time of entry into force of the Law (February 6, 1992), automatically become its citizens, and those who, for example, transferred from the Black Sea Fleet to the Naval Forces of Ukraine, and then, in the second half of February 1992, as a result of which they were transferred to the- in this way, they were accepted back, and they are already acquiring citizenship of the Russian Federation on a general basis. By the way, police Lieutenant Colonel Lyubeznova mentioned that there were cases of illegal acquisition of Russian citizenship in the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation.

When asked whether there are benefits in acquiring citizenship for family members of Russian military personnel who do not have one, Nadezhda Vasilyevna replied that they become full citizens on a general basis. The only exceptions are family members of military personnel of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation who, as of February 1, 1992, had a temporary residence permit at their place of service and did not acquire citizenship of another state. This provision applies to family members of military personnel whose military formations were stationed outside the borders of Russia.

According to our legal interlocutors, it is not so difficult to obtain Russian citizenship on a general basis. The issue of acquiring citizenship, for example, by way of registration under the Law should be resolved within six months, but, according to them, in practice it takes about a month. In this case, the application is submitted to the internal affairs bodies at the place of registration of the applicant.

Many of our readers are interested in whether it is possible to have dual or multiple citizenship. It turns out that to date, Russia does not have such ratified treaties with any country. Therefore, there can be no official dual citizenship. With Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, however, there is an agreement on a simplified form of obtaining citizenship. But only the only one. Although in reality, there are as many people with multiple passports as you want, because in fact, when obtaining Russian citizenship, the requirement to withdraw from the previous, other citizenship does not apply. In addition, there are practically no refusals to grant citizenship. If, for example, the wife of a Russian officer, for example, of Ukrainian, Estonian or Congolese origin, is denied the right to be called a full-fledged Russian citizen, then the decisions of the competent authority on refusal to register the acquisition or termination of Russian citizenship can be appealed to the court within a month (Article 46 of the Citizenship Law).

A refusal to accept applications and petitions on citizenship issues, violation of the terms of consideration of applications and petitions, as well as other actions of officials and authorized bodies that violate the procedure for considering citizenship cases and the procedure for executing decisions on citizenship issues of the Russian Federation, may be appealed in accordance with the established procedure to a higher official in the order of subordination Persons permanently residing outside the Russian Federation can appeal against illegal actions on the part of officials of diplomatic missions or consular institutions of the Russian Federation to the Moscow City Court.)

It turns out that all our non-citizen readers can legally enter into a stable legal relationship with the state, which is expressed in a set of mutual rights, duties and responsibilities based on recognition and respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms. This is exactly the case, by the way, with the Law of the Russian Federation "On Citizenship of the Russian Federation" of November 28, 1991 (as amended on June 17, 1993 and January 18, 1995.) interprets the concept of citizenship. And then, according to this Law, new citizens will be able to count on the most favorable legal conditions, protection and patronage of the Russian Federation - even outside its borders.

Captain of the 3rd rank Mikhail Sevastyanov, Pyotr NEKRASOV, special correspondents of Orientir

Permanent link to this publication: