Acquiring Hungarian citizenship by descent

Outlines of procedure of acquiring Hungarian citizenship by descent (simplified naturalisation procedure)

The main point of the simplified naturalisation procedure is that in order to acquire Hungarian citizenship, the law does not require the Applicant to live in Hungary habitually, for a longer period of time, and the Applicant does not have to prove that his/her livelihood is ensured in Hungary. For Hungarian citizenship by descent, he/she does not need to have employment or a bank account, he/she only has to meet the conditions listed below:

A non-Hungarian citizen may acquire Hungarian citizenship:

• whose ancestor was a Hungarian citizen, or
• who can demonstrate his/her Hungarian origin, and
• who proves his/her knowledge of the Hungarian language, furthermore
• who has no criminal record under Hungarian law and no criminal proceedings are pending against him/her before a Hungarian court when examining the application, as well as
• whose naturalisation does not violate the public security and national security of Hungary.

The application for Hungarian citizenship

The application for citizenship, stemming from Hungarian citizenship by descent, must be submitted on a form containing detailed information of the Applicant:

• surname and forename of birth, married surname and forename, previous married surname and forename, place and date of birth, Mother’s surname and forename of birth, gender;
• data on marital status, place and date of current and previous marriage, name of spouse or former spouse, place and date of birth, citizenship, data on Hungarian origin;
• name, place and date of birth, citizenship, data on their residence in Hungary of the spouse or former spouse’s parents;
• ancestor’s name, place and date of birth, place and date of marriage of ancestors, data on their citizenship and residence;
• name, place and date of birth of the child, name and citizenship of the other parent of the child;
• name, place and date of birth of sibling;
• data on the place of residence, former residence in Hungary;
• data on citizenship, data of the Applicant’s departure abroad;
• data on education, occupation, job;
• contact details for contacting the body dealing with citizenship issues and the Minister;
• handwritten resume.

Documentation proving your eligibility for Hungarian citizenship by descent

The Applicant shall enclose with his/her application for Hungarian citizenship a birth certificate and documents proving his/her marital status. Any document in a foreign language shall be attached with an authentic Hungarian translation.

Documents proving Hungarian descent:

birth /marriage/death certificate of ancestors,

old Hungarian document, such as

– contemporary soldier’s small book

– contemporary school certificate,

– contemporary employment record book,

– contemporary Hungarian passport,

– contemporary address notification,

– contemporary change of name document,

– contemporary dismissal document,

– contemporary parish/pastoral certificate.

The lineage shall be traced back to an ancestor who can be presumed to have been a Hungarian citizen. When proving Hungarian origin, it is important that the family relationship, i.e. the lineage, can be traced throughout.

Hungarian language skills as a requirement

The legal requirement for acquiring Hungarian citizenship through simplified naturalization is that the Applicant understands and speaks the Hungarian language at the level of communication (minimum basic level). The appropriate level of knowledge of the Hungarian language is checked by the officer receiving the application at the time of submitting the application.

All Applicants who have reached the age of 14 or who will reach the age of 14 by the expected date of the oath are obliged to prove their knowledge of the Hungarian language. Proof of knowledge of the Hungarian language may be waived in the case of an incapacitated person. A person who has not yet reached the age of 14 or an adult who has been placed under guardianship by a court is considered incapacitated.

Proof of clean criminal record

The Applicant shall declare that he/she has no criminal record and that no criminal proceedings are pending against him/her, as well as if he/she has been convicted of an intentional crime by a court in the last five years. An Applicant living abroad shall enclose a police clearance report from the competent authority of the place of residence at the request of the Hungarian immigration authority.

Change of name in the procedure

Hungarians across the border may request that at the same time as the naturalisation procedure:

• they may bear their own or their ancestor’s former Hungarian birth surname, and
• they may bear the Hungarian equivalent of their forename.

The request for the change of name shall be supported by the relevant underlying document. The document supporting the application is primarily (among other things) the Hungarian birth certificate of the Applicant or his/her ancestor.

An application for citizenship may be submitted:

• abroad at Hungarian embassies – at the Hungarian Consular Officer;
• in Hungary, at the capital and county district offices.

The application may only be submitted in person. When submitting the application, the knowledge of the Hungarian language is checked by the receiving office.

Time to process a simplified naturalisation application

The President of the Republic makes his decision on the application for the acquisition of Hungarian citizenship – on the basis of the proposal of the Minister. The processing time is supposed to be 3 months, but typically a decision is made after 6-8 months from the submission of the application.

Proceedings may be delayed if the determining authority invites the Applicant to rectify the deficiencies.

The citizenship oath

The Applicant acquires Hungarian citizenship on the day of taking the oath. The Applicant takes the oath of citizenship:

• before the Head of the Hungarian Delegation, or
• if the Applicant has a place of residence in Hungary, before the competent mayor according to his/her place of residence.

The oath shall be made in Hungarian language. The Applicant receives an identity card on the day of the oath. The Applicant does not automatically receive a Hungarian passport at the same time as acquiring citizenship; after acquiring citizenship, he/she receives it in another procedure initiated on application.

Contact us for assistance

At Hngary.com, we can assist with Hungarian citizenship consultations, applications fo citizenship and acquiring Hungarian citizenship by descent in general. We can also help you obtain Hungarian documentation, such as birth and marriage certificates, or letters of good conduct (police clearances).

Get in touch with us today to start your road to becoming Hungarian!