Information on procedures concerning acquisition of Slovenian citizenship is available at:

MINISTRY OF THE INTERIOR
Division for Civil Status, Public Documents and Residence Registration
Department for Citizenship
Beethovnova ulica 3
1591 Ljubljana

Department secretariat, telephone: + 386 (0)1 428 49 61
General telephone No: + 386 (0)1 428 40 00
Fax: + 386 (0)1 251 43 30
E-mail: gp.mnz@gov.si, drzavljanstvo-dunz.mnz@gov.si


SECTION I: Acquisition of Slovenian citizenship for persons of Slovenian origin and/or their descendants
(to be considered in: 1. cases when at the moment of the applicant's birth neither parent possessed the Republic of Slovenia citizenship, and/or 2. cases when at the moment of the applicant's birth one of his/her parents possessed Slovenian citizenship; in addition, the applicant was born abroad but has at present exceeded 36 years of age, having the result of his/her missing the deadline for notification).

a) applicant living abroad

•     Adult applicants of Slovenian origin are to file an application for granting of citizenship on the basis of exceptional naturalisation on the grounds of national reasons, pursuant to Article 13 of the Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act (ZDRS-UPB, Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, No.  24/2007) with the Ministry of the Interior in Ljubljana, with one of Slovenia’s administrative units or with the competent diplomatic/consular representation of the Republic of Slovenia abroad.
•     Using the same form that they used in applying for citizenship pursuant to Article 13 of the Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act, applicants can file an application for granting citizenship to their juvenile children who, regarding the final decision, share the same situation with them; in formal terms, the procedure in this event is somewhat different (but irrelevant as to the solution).
•     The procedure is conducted by the Ministry of the Interior, which issues the final decision.
•     In the course of the procedure, the Ministry of the Interior has to obtain the opinion of the Government Office of the Republic of Slovenia for Slovenes Abroad (hereinafter: the Office) concerning the grounds justifying the person's exceptional naturalisation.
•     The Office formulates its opinion on the basis of the Regulation on criteria establishing the national interest regarding admission to the Republic of Slovenia citizenship, pursuant to Article 13 of the Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, No.  41/2007 – Regulation).


In addition, the concerned regulation lays down that exceptional naturalisation on the grounds of national reasons may be possible in cases in which :  

1) the applicant is a Slovenian emigrant, and/or his/her direct descendant to the fourth generation in direct descent, or a Slovene autochthonous national community member living in a neighbouring country (the applicant is of Slovenian origin)

and

2) the applicant proves his/her active ties with the Republic of Slovenia, i.e. his/her active  participation over several years in Slovenian associations, Slovenian language schools, expatriate or national minority organisations.

Exceptional naturalisation on the grounds of national reasons is possible also in cases when an applicant of Slovenian origin, who once possessed Slovenian citizenship but was denied that citizenship for understandable reasons has, at present, again applied for citizenship.  (NOTE: this is to be considered for those Slovenian workers abroad and emigrants who, owing to work or some other reason once in the past applied for the citizenship of the foreign country where they actually emigrated, but who, in order to obtain its citizenship, were required by that country to renounce their existing Slovenian citizenship).    

The concerned regulation explicitly points out that the applicant's file must include recommendations by relevant organisations confirming his/her active ties with the Republic of Slovenia. The relevant opinion on the applicant's fulfilling the criteria, when possible (this is not possible in cases of the applicant's failure to lodge his/her application with the diplomatic/consular mission, or when he/she may not be known to the mentioned mission) is given by the competent diplomatic/consular mission of the Republic of Slovenia.

The Government Office of the Republic of Slovenia for Slovenes Abroad, which is the authority competent for evaluating the existence of national reasons in concrete terms, gives a positive opinion in cases when the applicant is a person of Slovenian origin and when he/she has proven the existence of his/her active ties with the Republic of Slovenia. The notion of ''active ties'' is interpreted by the Office in accordance with the definition from the Regulation. The Office will confirm the existence of the applicant’s active ties with the Republic of Slovenia in the following cases:  (a) when it is about a person who has been active for several years in Slovenian associations, Slovenian language schools or in Slovenian emigrant, guest worker or national minority organisations; (b) in cases when such a Slovenian organisation, school or association does not exist in his/her place of residence (or a place within reasonable reach of distance), but the applicant managed to prove his/her permanent active ties with the Republic of Slovenia in some other documented way;  or (c) when such a Slovenian organisation, school or association does exist in his/her place of residence, but the applicant – due to some objective reason (advanced age, illness) – was not in a position to work actively, but managed to prove his/her permanent active ties with the Republic of Slovenia in some other documented way.  In the event of elderly and/or ill applicants, the Office takes the view that the condition of active ties can be considered as fulfilled also in cases when the applicant can prove that in the past (when he/she was young), he/she worked actively in Slovenian associations, Slovenian language schools or in Slovenian emigrant, guest worker or national minority organisations;

In exceptional cases, examined by the Office on a case-by-case basis, which do not fall within the category of general definitions, a single act by the applicant can be considered by the Office as proof of active ties with the Republic of Slovenia. An illustrative example can be seen in the case of an applicant who donated a collection of his Slovenian books to the Slovenian cultural society; this illustrates the fact that the applicant maintained active ties with Slovenian culture and language throughout his life. In addition, the Office is very favourable to cases when an applicant has an active command of the Slovenian language (although this is not a condition for acquiring Slovenian citizenship), although he/she may belong to the third or fourth generation of emigrants – this, as well, can be considered as proof of fostering active ties with Slovenia.  It is obvious that each of the mentioned exceptional cases has to be appropriately documented.

Owing to specific nature of exceptional naturalisation on the grounds of national reasons, it is necessary – in order to avoid certain misunderstandings – to point out that regarding the granting of Slovenian citizenship under this procedure, Slovenian origin of the concerned person may not be sufficient.  Neither will it be sufficient for the applicant to be a mere passive member of a Slovenian association or organisation; in fact, what is required is well-documented active participation by the applicant.
•     The reasoned opinion is sent by the Office to the Ministry of the Interior, which transmits it to the Government of the Republic of Slovenia, as the only competent authority to establish the reasons for granting exceptional naturalisation.  
•     The Government takes its relevant decision and addresses it to the Ministry of the Interior which, in its turn, issues a corresponding decision. Under this procedure, the Ministry of the Interior must verify the existence of possible reservations regarding security aspects (Article 10(1)(8) of the Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act) as they may affect the applicant’s admission to Slovenian citizenship.    
•     The applicant who has been issued the decision on admission to Slovenian citizenship, following the oath taken under Article 10(1)(10) with the competent diplomatic/consular mission, becomes a Slovenian citizen.    

The APPLICATION FEE with the Ministry of the Interior in Ljubljana or with any of Slovenia’s administrative units is EUR 145.35. Application fees charged with Slovenia's diplomatic/consular missions abroad are higher and amount to approximately EUR 270.00. For more detailed information, interested parties should contact the competent diplomatic/consular mission.

APPLICATION FORM under Article 13 is available here

MORE ON THIS SUBJECT (answers to FAQs) is available here

Legal Base: Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act and Regulation on criteria establishing the national interest regarding the granting of Slovenian citizenship, pursuant to Article 13 of the Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act


b) applicant living in Slovenia

Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia may be granted to a Slovenian emigrant or his/her descendant to the fourth generation in direct descent, provided that he/she has resided in the Republic of Slovenia for at least one year prior to filing the application for citizenship, that he/she has regular alien status and provided that he/she fulfils the following criteria:

-     that he/she has funds available to cover his/her subsistence needs and those of dependent persons in order to secure appropriate material and social security;
-     that he/she has an active command of the Slovenian language for everyday communication needs;
-     that he/she was not lawfully sentenced to the sanction of imprisonment for a period exceeding three months, or that he/she was not given a suspended sentence of imprisonment with a probation period exceeding one year;
-     that the concerned person’s admission to Republic of Slovenia citizenship does not constitute a threat to public policy, to public security or to national security;
-     that he/she has settled tax obligations;
-     that he/she has taken an oath on respecting the free and democratic constitutional order.

The application for granting citizenship can be lodged with any administrative unit, where you will be given the corresponding application form.

APPLICATION FORM available here

MORE ON THIS SUBJECT (answers to FAQs) is available here

The decision on the application is taken by the competent administrative unit; positive solutions must include approval by the Ministry of the Interior.

Legal Base: Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act



SECTION II: Acquisition of the Republic of Slovenia citizenship by birth
(this technical expression in law is used to describe situations when the applicant is granted citizenship effectively through the act of birth)

The child is granted the Republic of Slovenia citizenship by birth provided that:

1. upon birth, the child’s mother and father are Slovenian citizens;
2. upon birth, one of the child's parents is a Slovenian citizen and the child is born on the territory of the Republic of Slovenia;
3. upon birth, one of the child's parents is a Slovenian citizen while the other parent is unknown and/or of unknown citizenship, and the child is born in a foreign country.

In cases of 1. and 3., the administrative unit is to be notified of a child's birth. In case of 2., the Republic of Slovenia citizenship is automatically recorded along with the entry into the Register of Births.  

APPLICATION for a subsequent birth entry into the Register of Births can be filed with Republic of Slovenia diplomatic/consular missions abroad.

Legal Base: Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act


4. Acquisition of the Republic of Slovenia citizenship by notification. Such a case, as well, involves acquisition of citizenship by birth, the only difference being in that it is necessary for the concerned person to express his/her willingness to acquire citizenship and that the process is limited in time by the age of the concerned person. Should the person fulfilling the criteria for notification within the so-called limited period of time (by help of a legal representative/parent, or by the person him/herself) show a willingness to acquire citizenship, such citizenship is recognised retroactively (ex tunc) up to the moment of birth.    

4.a) notification of a juvenile person

A child born abroad with one parent being a Slovenian citizen and the second parent being a foreign citizen, acquires the Republic of Slovenia citizenship by birth if he/she has been notified as a Slovenian citizen prior to his/her 18th birthday, or if he/she has settled permanently in Slovenia prior to his/her 18th birthday accompanied by the parent who possesses Slovenian citizenship.

The child's notification is to be done by the parent who possesses Slovenian citizenship.

4.b) notification of an adult person

A person over 18 years of age can acquire citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia in cases when he/she gives a declaration (prior to reaching 36 years of age) regarding registration into citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia, provided that he/she fulfils the following two requirements:

-     that in the period from the moment of birth to the date of giving a declaration, one of his/her parents is a Slovenian citizen, or was a Slovenian citizen until death, if death happened before the declaration;
-     that the Slovenian citizenship following the applicant’s 18th birthday did not cease as a result of dismissal, renunciation or withdrawal.

The declaration regarding registration of notification can be deposited with all diplomatic/ consular representations, with the Ministry of the Interior or with all of Slovenia's administrative units. Declaration on notification requires no special form.

Legal Base: Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act



SECTION III: Procedure establishing existence of Slovenian citizenship
(to be considered with persons who believe to be Slovenian citizens)

A person believing to be a Republic of Slovenia citizen, but whose citizenship has not been recorded in the Register of Births, can file an application with a view to establishing the existence of his/her citizenship. The competent administrative unit is to issue a corresponding declaratory decision.  

The APPLICATION regarding establishment of citizenship can be lodged with all Slovenian diplomatic/consular representations or administrative units.

OUR ADVICE: Should you believe that you are citizen of the Republic of Slovenia (relevant in cases when in your opinion your status seems to correspond to situations described under items 1) to 3) of  SECTION II), we advise you to contact the Ministry of the Interior, Directorate for Internal Administrative Affairs, Department for Citizenship, by telephone or e-mail address: drzavljanstvo-dunz.mnz@gov.si, where you will be given framework information on whether to file an application regarding establishment of your citizenship or whether it would be wiser to submit an application for granting the Republic of Slovenia citizenship.    

Legal Base: Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act



SECTION IV: Acquisition of Slovenian citizenship regarding marital partners of Slovenian citizens
(to be considered with persons who are not of Slovenian origin but who are married to Slovenian citizens)

The person who has been married to a citizen of the Republic of Slovenia for more than 3 years and who has lived without interruption in Slovenia for at least one year before filing the application for citizenship, can be granted Slovenian citizenship pursuant to Article 12(3) provided that this is deemed to be in conformity with the national interest (to be established by the Ministry of the Interior), and if the other criteria pursuant to Article 10 of the Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act (command of the Slovenian language, etc.) have been fulfilled.  

MORE ON THIS SUBJECT (answers to FAQs) is available here.

Legal Base: Citizenship of the Republic of Slovenia Act