Cyprus court: citizenship by registration cannot be passed to a new spouse
The Administrative Court of Appeal has upheld a refusal to grant Cypriot citizenship to a foreigner married to someone who himself acquired nationality by registration.
The Administrative Court of Appeal ruled on October 15 that a person who became a Cypriot through registration cannot extend that route to a foreign spouse wed later, as reported by the Legal Service in a statement picked up by Cyprus Mail.
The judgment confirms an Administrative Court decision rejecting a foreign national's challenge to the Interior Ministry, which had turned down the citizenship application. The bench underlined that nationality rules must be applied consistently and that registration rights exist only inside the boundaries set by statute.
According to the court, this reading matches what lawmakers intended: blocking misuse of the system and attempts to get around nationality law by marrying more than once. The scenario covers people who obtained citizenship by registration and then try to open the same door for a new foreign spouse, or for a child born to someone other than the spouse through whom the original citizenship came. The Republic's Counsel Nicoletta Nicolaou handled the case for the Attorney-General.
What it means for residents
Mixed-nationality families should check how the Cypriot partner originally became a citizen before counting on a spousal application. If the route was registration rather than descent, a later marriage may not open the door at all, and money spent on paperwork and legal advice could be wasted.
- Check the basis of citizenship — a naturalisation or registration certificate differs from citizenship by descent, and the two follow different rules for spouses.
- Get advice before applying — confirm with the ministry or a lawyer whether your specific marriage falls inside the registration limits set by the court.
- Children's cases — where a child is not descended from the spouse through whom citizenship was obtained, expect closer scrutiny.
This text is written from the source article and is not a translation of it.
