Referendum on the Retention of Lithuanian Citizenship to Be Held in 2024

On May 12, 2024, referendum on the retention of Lithuanian citizenship will be held in tandem with
the first round of the presidential election of the Republic of Lithuania.

Last time such referendum was held in 2019, however, there were not enough votes to adopt amendment to the Constitution. 71.78 percent of voters participating in the referendum have voted in favour of dual citizenship, i.e., 927,410 of the voting-eligible population, but there was a shortage of approx. 300,000 votes in order to adopt amendment to Article 12 of the Constitution. For the change of Article 12 of the Constitution to take effect, no less than a half of all the voters had to vote in favour thereof.

The referendum will raise the following question – whether Lithuanian citizens who have acquired Lithuanian citizenship by birth will be able to retain it upon acquisition of citizenship of another country friendly to Lithuania.

The Constitutional Court has clarified that only a referendum amending the Constitution can open up the possibility of dual citizenship if the citizenship of another country was acquired after the restoration of independence.

It will be proposed to approve the amendment of Article 12 of the Constitution, consolidating the following text: “Citizenship of the Republic of Lithuania is acquired by birth or on other grounds and procedures established by constitutional law; grounds and procedures for the loss of Lithuanian citizenship are also established by constitutional law.”

Currently, Article 12 of the Constitution provides for that “Citizenship of the Republic of Lithuania shall be acquired by birth and other grounds established by law. With the exception of individual cases provided for by law, no one may be a citizen of both the Republic of Lithuania and another state at the same time. The procedure for the acquisition and loss of citizenship shall be established by law.”

Due to various circumstances, most often family, work or other purposes, Lithuanians are forced to make a choice whether to renounce Lithuanian citizenship and accept citizenship of another state.

A question raised in the referendum talks about the possibility to retain Lithuanian citizenship in such a case when an individual acquires citizenship of that country which is friendly to Lithuania. Such countries include those belonging to the European Union (EU), European Economic Area, or to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

It should be noted that at present such possibility of retaining citizenship is offered in 22 EU countries out of 27. There are only 5 countries, i.e., Lithuania, Estonia, the Netherlands, Slovakia, and Austria, that do not allow citizens to hold citizenship of another country at the same time.

MIGRATION LAW CENTER