Azerbaijani Citizenship Act | |
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Parliament of Azerbaijan | |
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Enacted by | Government of Azerbaijan |
Status: Current legislation |
Azerbaijani nationality law is regulated by the Constitution of Azerbaijan, as amended; the Citizenship Law of Azerbaijan and its revisions; and various international agreements to which the country is a signatory.[1] These laws determine who is, or is eligible to be, an Azerbaijani national.[2]
The legal means to acquire nationality, formal legal membership in a nation, differ from the domestic relationship of rights and obligations between a national and the nation, known as citizenship. Nationality describes the relationship of an individual to the state under international law, whereas citizenship is the domestic relationship of an individual within the nation.[3][4] Some countries use the terms nationality and citizenship as synonyms, despite their legal distinction and the fact that they are regulated by different governmental administrative bodies.[3] Colloquially, as in most former Soviet states, citizenship is often used as a synonym for nationality, because nationality is associated with ethnicity.[5][6]
Azerbaijani nationality is typically obtained under the principle of jus sanguinis, i.e. by birth to parents with Azerbaijani nationality. It can be granted to persons with an affiliation to the country, or to a permanent resident who has lived in the country for a given period of time through naturalization.[2]