RUSSIA 

CITIZENSHIP: Citizenship laws are based upon the Law on Citizenship dated February 6, 1992.

• BY BIRTH: If either parent is a citizen of the Russian Federation, and the other is a stateless person, their child shall be a citizen of the Russian Federation, irrespective of the child’s place of birth.
• BY DESCENT:
• If both parents are citizens of the Russian Federation, irrespective of the child’s place of birth.
• If one parent is a citizen of the Russian Federation and the other is of another citizenship, the child’s citizenship shall be decided, irrespective of the child’s place of birth, by a written agreement between the parents. (In the absence of such agreement, the child shall acquire citizenship of the Russian Federation if it were born on the territory of the Russian Federation or if it would otherwise become a stateless person.)
• BY REGISTRATION:
• Persons whose spouse or direct ancestor is a citizen of the Russian Federation.
• Person who acquired other citizenship by birth, either of whose parents was a citizen of the Russian Federation, may register for citizenship within five years after their 18^thbirthday.
• Children of former Russian Federation citizens, born after the termination of parents’ Russian Federation citizenship, may register for citizenship within five years after their 18^th birthday.
• Former citizens of the USSR who resided on the territory of the former USSR and who came to reside on the territory of the Russian Federation after February 6, 1992, if they declared their intention to acquire citizenship of the Russian Federation by December 31, 2000.
• Stateless persons permanently residing on the territory of the Russian Federation on the day of enactment of the present Law, or on the territory of other republics of the former USSR as of September 1, 1991, both of whom within one year of enactment of the present Law declare their intention to acquire citizenship of the Russian Federation.
• Foreign citizens and stateless persons, irrespective of their domicile, who themselves are, or one of whose direct ancestors were, a subject of Russia by birth, and who, within one year of enactment of the present Law, declare their intention to acquire the Russian Federation citizenship.
• BY NATURALIZATION: Russian Federation citizenship may be acquired upon fulfillment of the following conditions:
• Be at least 18 years old.
• Have permanent residence for a total of five years, or three years of continuous residence immediately prior to filing an application:

 For refugees recognized as such by the Russian Federation, the time periods shall be halved.

(The period of residence is considered continuous when a person has traveled outside the borders of the Russian Federation for study or medical treatment for longer than three months.)

DUAL CITIZENSHIP:  RECOGNIZED.  A Russian Federation citizen may be permitted, on petition, to be in simultaneous citizenship of another state with which the Russian Federation has a pertinent treaty.

LOSS OF CITIZENSHIP: No information concerning Involuntary loss was provided.

     VOLUNTARY: Renunciation of citizenship of the Russian Federation will be granted upon application for another citizenship when the individual is not in receipt of papers for military call or indictment in a criminal case.