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Convention relating to the
Stateless persons |
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Convention relating to
the Status of Stateless Persons Adopted on 28 September 1954 by a Conference of
Plenipotentiaries convened by Economic and social Council resolution 526
A(XVII) of 26 April 1954 entry into force 6 June 1960 , in accordance with
article 39
status of ratifications
Preamble
The High Contracting Parties,
Considering that the Charter of the United
Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights approved on
10
December 1948 by the General Assembly of the United Nations have affirmed the
principle that human
beings shall enjoy fundamental rights and freedoms
without discrimination,
Considering that the United Nations has, on
various occasions, manifested its profound concern for stateless
persons
and endeavoured to assure stateless persons the widest possible exercise of
these fundamental rights
and freedoms,
Considering that only those stateless persons
who are also refugees are covered by the Convention relating to
the Status
of Refugees of 28 July 1951, and that there are many stateless persons who are
not covered by that
Convention,
Considering that it is desirable to regulate and
improve the status of stateless persons by an international
agreement, Have
agreed as follows:
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CHAPTER I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1.-Definition of the term "stateless
person"
1. For the purpose of this Convention, the term
"stateless person" means a person who is not considered as a
national by
any State under the operation of its law.
2. This Convention shall not apply:
(i) To persons who are at present receiving from
organs or agencies of the United Nations other than the United
Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees protection or assistance so long as they are
receiving such
protection or assistance;
(ii) To persons who are recognized by the
competent authorities of the country in which they have taken
residence as
having the rights and obligations which are attached to the possession of the
nationality of that
country;
(iii) To persons with respect to whom there are
serious reasons for considering that:
(a) They have committed a crime against peace,
a war crime, or a crime against humanity, as defined in
the international
instruments drawn up to make provisions in respect of such crimes;
(b) They have committed a serious non-political
crime outside the country of their residence prior to their
admission to
that country;
(c) They have been guilty of acts contrary to
the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
Article 2.-General obligations
Every stateless person has duties to the country
in which he finds himself, which require in particular that he
conform to
its laws and regulations as well as to measures taken for the maintenance of
public order.
Article 3.-Non-discrimination
The Contracting States shall apply the
provisions of this Convention to stateless persons without discrimination
as to race, religion or country of origin.
Article 4. -Religion
The Contracting States shall accord to stateless
persons within their territories treatment at least as favourable
as that
accorded to their nationals with respect to freedom to practise their religion
and freedom as regards the
religious education of their children.
Article 5. - Rights granted apart from this
Convention
Nothing in this Convention shall be deemed to
impair any rights and benefits granted by a Contracting State to
stateless
persons apart from this Convention.
Article 6. - The term "in the same
circumstances"
For the purpose of this Convention, the term "
in the same circumstances" implies that any requirements
(including
requirements as to length and conditions of sojourn or residence) which the
particular individual
would have to fulfil for the enjoyment of the right
in question, if he were not a stateless person, must be fulfilled
by him,
with the exception of requirements which by their nature a stateless person is
incapable of fulfilling.
Article 7. - Exemption from
reciprocity
1. Except where this Convention contains more
favourable provisions, a Contracting State shall accord to
stateless
persons the same treatment as is accorded to aliens generally.
2. After a period of three years' residence, all
stateless persons shall enjoy exemption from legislative
reciprocity in the
territory of the Contracting States.
3. Each Contracting State shall continue to
accord to stateless persons the rights and benefits to which they
were
already entitled, in the absence of reciprocity, at the date of entry into
force of this Convention for that
State.
4. The Contracting States shall consider
favourably the possibility of according to stateless persons, in the
absence of reciprocity, rights and benefits beyond those to which they are
entitled according to paragraphs 2
and 3, and to extending exemption from
reciprocity to stateless persons who do not fulfil the conditions
provided
for in paragraphs 2 and 3.
5. The provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3 apply
both to the rights and benefits referred to in articles 13, 18, 19,
21 and
22 of this Convention and to rights and benefits for which this Convention does
not provide.
Article 8. - Exemption from exceptional
measures
With regard to exceptional measures which may be
taken against the person, property or interests of nationals
or former
nationals of a foreign State, the Contracting States shall not apply such
measures to a stateless
person solely on account of his having previously
possessed the nationality of the foreign State in question.
Contracting
States which, under their legislation, are prevented from applying the general
principle expressed
in this article shall, in appropriate cases, grant
exemptions in favour of such stateless persons.
Article 9. - Provisional measures
Nothing in this Convention shall prevent a
Contracting State, in time of war or other grave and exceptional
circumstances, from taking provisionally measures which it considers to be
essential to the national security in
the case of a particular person,
pending a determination by the Contracting State that that person is in fact
a
stateless person and that the continuance of such measures is necessary
in his case in the interests of national
security.
Article 10. - Continuity of residence
1. Where a stateless person has been forcibly
displaced during the Second World War and removed to the
territory of a
Contracting State, and is resident there, the period of such enforced sojourn
shall be considered to
have been lawful residence within that territory.
2. Where a stateless person has been forcibly
displaced during the Second World War from the territory of a
Contracting
State and has, prior to the date of entry into force of this Convention,
returned there for the purpose
of taking up residence, the period of
residence before and after such enforced displacement shall be regarded
as
one uninterrupted period for any purposes for which uninterrupted residence is
required.
Article 11. - Stateless seamen
In the case of stateless persons regularly
serving as crew members on board a ship flying the flag of a
Contracting
State, that State shall give sympathetic consideration to their establishment
on its territory and the
issue of travel documents to them or their
temporary admission to its territory particularly with a view to
facilitating their establishment in another country.
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CHAPTER II
JURIDICAL STATUS
Article 12. - Personal status
1. The personal status of a stateless person
shall be governed by the law of the country of his domicile or, if he
has
no domicile, by the law of the country of his residence.
2. Rights previously acquired by a stateless
person and dependent on personal status, more particularly rights
attaching
to marriage, shall be respected by a Contracting State, subject to compliance,
if this be necessary,
with the formalities required by the law of that
State, provided that the right in question is one which would have
been
recognized by the law of that State had he not become stateless.
Article 13. - Movable and immovable
property
The Contracting States shall accord to a
stateless person treatment as favourable as possible and, in any
event, not
less favourable than that accorded to aliens generally in the same circums
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