Jus sanguinis

From Freepedia

Jus sanguinis (Latin for "right of blood") is a right by which nationality or citizenship can be recognised to any individual born to a parent who is a national or citizen of that state. It contrasts with jus soli (Latin for "right of soil").

Usually a practical regulation of the acquisition of nationality or citizenship of a state by birth to a parent who is already a citizen of the state is provided by a derivative law called lex sanguinis. Most states provide a specific lex sanguinis, in application of the respective jus sanguinis, but citizenship is not normally automatically inherited. This is to avoid the creation of generations of overseas citizens with no real connection with the state, but still being able to claim rights such as immigration and protection from that state.

In many European countries, lex sanguinis still is the preferred means of passing on citizenship. This has been criticised on the grounds that, if the only means, it can lead to generations of people living their whole lives in the state without being citizens of it. More recently these countries have begun to move more towards use of lex soli, partially under the influence of the European Convention on Nationality. In most cases birth in the country plus the citizenship of at least one parent is sufficient.

Many nations have a mixture of lex sanguinis and lex soli, including the United States, Canada, Israel, Germany, Greece, Britain, Ireland, and others.

Italy, possibly alone in this respect, bestows citizenship jus sanguinis for all decendants of an Italian citizen where that citizen was born after 1861, being the date of creation of the modern Italian state. Another constraint is that each decendant of the ancestor through whom citizenship is claimed jus sanguinis can only pass on citizenship if they were a citizen at the time of the birth of the person to whom they are passing it. So if one person in the chain renounces or otherwise loses their Italian citizenship, then has a child, that child is not an Italian citizen jus sanguinis. A further constraint is that citizenship could only be passed on by females after January 1st 1948, so those born before that date are not Italian citizens jus sanguinis if their line of decent from an Italian citizen depends on a female at some point.

See also

• nationality law
• A website explaining in detail Italy's application of jus sanguinis