The other day Cyprus restored the acceptance of applications from foreigners for citizenship by naturalization.
If everything is clear with the conditions for granting passports to new applicants, then what to do with those who applied before the new rules came into force is still unknown.
On Thursday, March 28, a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee of Internal Affairs was held in Cyprus, at which the question was raised by the head of the party DIKO Nicholas Papadopoulos. In particular, the MP offered to assist in the naturalization of some 3,500 people whose applications have been frozen as a result of the revision of the current legislation at the end of 2023.
Papadopoulos noted that after the adoption of the new version of the Law with the requirement to provide certificates of knowledge of the Greek language and the history of Cyprus, some gaps need to be addressed. He proposed several amendments to the new Law. Chief among them are:
- To consider applications submitted before the amendment of the Law through a lighter procedure (without the Greek language requirement), guided by the version of the rules that were in force until December 2023. At the same time, all 3.5 thousand applications that are hanging in the air should be processed in an accelerated procedure within the next eight months.
- Enable the children of foreigners applying for Cypriot citizenship to apply as soon as their parents are issued passports.
For his part, the head of the Parliamentary Committee on Internal Affairs and AKEL MP Aristos Damianou said that the new Law does not mention the observance of international conventions regarding the rights of people with disabilities. By the way, the updated version does not mention the exemption from some requirements for this category of citizens. Damianou also pointed out the shortcomings regarding persons who have been granted refugee status in Cyprus. He noted that the strict application of the Law does not allow the MIA and the competent Department of Population Records to count the time of their stay on the island in the required minimum period for obtaining a passport.
Interestingly, the Cypriot Interior Ministry supported the MPs' initiative. The department emphasized that if these proposals are not implemented, then all those who applied before the new rules will be automatically rejected because they do not meet the necessary criteria, which is unacceptable. Therefore, it is necessary to grant a transitional period to applicants who applied for Cypriot citizenship before the new version of the legislation comes into force.
Will Papadopoulos' proposal be supported? We will find out soon.