Law on Azerbaijani Citizenship (adopted by parliament on August 11, 1919)
Following the declaration of independence by the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic in 1918, important legal documents were adopted to establish the country's legal foundations. Among these, the establishment of citizenship as a formal institution was especially significant. Citizenship, a core criterion for maintaining state sovereignty, was first officially codified in the "Regulation on Azerbaijani Citizenship," adopted by the government on August 23, 1918.
According to this Regulation, individuals who lived within Azerbaijani territory before July 19, 1914, and were registered by any administrative or public body, as well as those born to Azerbaijani citizens who had resided in the country for more than five years, were recognized as Azerbaijani citizens. Additionally, a foreign national marrying an Azerbaijani citizen automatically gained Azerbaijani citizenship. The Regulation also specified that an Azerbaijani citizen could not hold citizenship of another country at the same time, reflecting current international legal standards.
Under the Regulation, political rights were exclusively reserved for Azerbaijani citizens. Rights like voting, running for office in central and local government, holding public positions, and participating actively in the country’s socio-political life were available only to citizens. However, the government could invite foreign nationals to civil service positions. Matters concerning foreign nationals acquiring Azerbaijani citizenship or Azerbaijani citizens gaining foreign citizenship were to be governed separately by specific laws.
On August 11, 1919, the Azerbaijani Parliament passed the "Law on Azerbaijani Citizenship," which made the earlier government Regulation obsolete and provided a more detailed legal framework for citizenship. This new law regulated the relationship between the state and its citizens more systematically. According to it, children born to Azerbaijani citizens, foreign nationals married to Azerbaijani citizens, and foreign nationals under 17 adopted by Azerbaijani citizens were considered Azerbaijani citizens. This aligned with the international legal principle of Jus sanguinis (right of blood) that was common at the time.
The law also offered pathways for foreign nationals to acquire Azerbaijani citizenship under specific conditions. For example, former Azerbaijani citizens who married foreign nationals and later divorced, minor children born from marriages between Azerbaijani and foreign nationals, foreigners who provided exceptional scientific or other services to Azerbaijan, and foreigners serving the country in military or civil capacities could obtain citizenship. The law based the process of acquiring citizenship for these individuals on national interests and their contributions.
It clarified procedures for renouncing and losing citizenship. Any Azerbaijani citizen who gained citizenship in another country automatically lost Azerbaijani citizenship. People wishing to renounce Azerbaijani citizenship were required to apply to the local court’s administrative division, stating their new country of citizenship. Those who renounced their Azerbaijani citizenship could only reapply after five years. People who gained another country's citizenship without official permission could only regain Azerbaijani citizenship with special approval from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. A key part of the law required new citizens to take an oath of allegiance to Azerbaijan, with the exact wording provided in the earlier Regulation and carried over to the new law.
In summary, the "Law on Azerbaijani Citizenship," passed by the Parliament of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic on August 11, 1919, represented an important step in creating a clear legal framework suited to the political context of that period. It aimed to protect the country's sovereignty and established the legal foundation for citizenship policy. This law formed the first constitutional basis for Azerbaijan’s citizenship system and marked a crucial beginning for developing modern citizenship laws within the nation's legal system framework.
Recommended literature:
- Əmrahov, Ziyad Cümşüd oğlu. Azərbaycan Parlamentarizmi tarixi - 100 / Z. C. Əmrahov; elmi red. A. İsgəndərli; AMEA A.A. Bakıxanov adına Tarix İnstitutu.- Bakı: Elm və təhsil, 2018.- 268 s.
- Mustafa, Nazim. Azərbaycan Xalq Cümhuriyyəti işığında: 1918-1920: araşdırmalar, məqalələr / N. Mustafa.- Bakı: Ulu İKF, 2018.- 256 s.
- Mahmudov, Yaqub Mikayıl oğlu. Azərbaycan Xalq Cümhuriyyəti (1918-1920): Azərbaycan xalqının tarixinin parlaq səhifəsi /Y. Mahmudov ; AMEA, Tarix İn-tu. - Bakı: Turxan NPB, 2020. - 158 s.