The year 2022 was marked by the asylum reception crisis. For months, the Belgian government has been failing to comply with its legal obligations regarding the reception of asylum-seekers.
Sign the petition: https://dekamer.mijnopinie.belgium.be/initiatives/839
As a rule, reacquisition of Belgian citizenship is required to be done on Belgian soil, after one year of residence in Belgium and provided that one has an unlimited residence permit in Belgium at the time of their application (Article 24 of the Belgian Nationality Code).
Protocol No. 15 to the European Convention on Human Rights came into force on 1 August 2021 once it had been signed and ratified by the 47 member States of the Council of Europe. The main changes brought about by this Protocol consist in the additions to the Convention of express references to the principle of subsidiarity and the margin of appreciation doctrine.
British citizens who “exercised their right to reside” in Belgium before January 1, 2021, and “continued to reside thereafter”, can apply until December 31, 2021, for the status of beneficiary of the Withdrawal Agreement (art. 47/5, §3 from the law of December 15, 1980, on the access to the territory, stay, establishments and return of the foreigners, and art. 69undecies, 1° from the royal decree of October 8, 1981, on the access to the territory, stay, establishments and return of the foreigners).
The Code of Belgian Nationality provides that a child born abroad to a Belgian parent who is him or herself born abroad, is Belgian if the Belgian parent makes an ‘award declaration’ (déclaration d'attribution/toekenningsverklaring) claiming Belgian nationality on behalf of the child (Article 8, (1) (2)) within 5 years of its birth.
Belgium is experiencing an increase in immigrant inflows and a decrease in outflows. Among EU citizens, more than half of first-issue residence permits are being granted for professional reasons. On the other hand, in the case of third-country nationals, family reasons are given as the main reason in the same scenario (45%).
A Ministerial Order, amending the Order of 28 October 2020, “introducing emergency measures to limit the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus”, was published in the Belgian Official Gazette on 28 April 2021.
In order to limit the spread of new variants in Belgium, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already advised Belgian nationals or those with their primary residence in Belgium against travel to Brazil, South Africa or India.
The Code of Belgian Nationality allows the application for nationality provided that one has had a "legal residence" for a certain period of time, depending on the case. For a child, it is sometimes the parents who must be able to prove a legal residence.
A Belgian law passed on 16 December 2020 partially implementing the withdrawal agreement between the UK and the European Union provides British nationals and their family members with the opportunity to formalise any residence permits which were not requested or obtained before the end of the transition period i.e. prior to 31 December 2020.
Due to Covid-19, restrictions prohibiting non-essential travel have been implemented (Article 21 of Ministerial Order of 28/10/2020 introducing emergency measures to limit the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus).