(LVAT ruling of 23 July 2025, administrative case No. eA-2021-1188/2025)
Summary:
The Supreme Administrative Court of Lithuania (LVAT) examined a dispute concerning decisions of the Migration Department which concluded that the minor applicants did not acquire citizenship of the Republic of Lithuania, as the procedure for renunciation or loss of citizenship of another state (the Russian Federation) had not been implemented, as required by Article 27 of the Law on Citizenship. The applicants relied on a notarially certified statement of the parents; however, the case file contained evidence indicating that under the law of the foreign state such a procedure is not possible before reaching majority or without a change of the parents’ citizenship.
The LVAT emphasised that majority (18 years of age), as interpreted in the doctrine of the Constitutional Court, constitutes an objective and reasonable criterion for the legal regulation of citizenship relations. Accordingly, the fact of renunciation of another state’s citizenship cannot be recognised solely on the basis of a formal declaration, particularly in the absence of objective evidence confirming that such renunciation has been effectively carried out.
The Court found that the Migration Department lacked both the competence and discretion to recognise the renunciation of another state’s citizenship as having taken effect where no factual or legal grounds existed, and dismissed the applicants’ appeal.
📌 Practical significance:
In citizenship cases, especially those involving minors, objective and verifiable evidence of the loss of another state’s citizenship is decisive, rather than formal or declaratory statements.
🔗 Source:
LVAT case-law review, July 2025, section “Citizenship”
https://lvat.lt/doclib/wsbeiwwdace79ds73gzyvt1x3g3fmn66
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If you are facing a similar situation — a decision of the Migration Department or the risk of such a decision —
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