Notwithstanding the emergence of European citizenship as the fundamental status for nationals of Member States, the tension between Member State competence and supranational obligations has become apparent in the acquisition and loss of citizenship in the European Union. International standards, principles and supranational case law have re-shaped the contours of Member States competences over the past decades. The need for national decisions to take ‘due regard to’ European Union law as well as their impact on citizenship of the Union and the duty of sincere cooperation enshrined in the Treaties are of particular relevance at times of setting the boundaries of Member States discretion in decisions related to acquisition and loss of nationality and EU citizenship.
This event constitutes the Final Conference of the ILEC project (Involuntary Loss of European Citizenship: Exchanging Knowledge and Identifying Guidelines for Europe) funded by DG Justice of the European Commission. The Final Conference is jointly organised with the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) and Maastricht University together with the Permanent study group on Immigration and Integration (IMI) of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC).
The following questions will be examined: to what extent can Member States provide for grounds of acquisition of loss and nationality without being under the spectrum of EU law? To what extent are national rules and procedures applicable to loss and acquisition across the EU consistent with European and international legal standards? What are the current challenges in Member State practices relating to the withdrawal of citizenship from their nationals (in cases of both loss and quasi-loss of citizenship)? How can European cooperation in nationality matters be enhanced in order to strengthen fundamental rights?
The Final Conference will draw upon the final research results emerging from the ILEC project and will discuss them together with policymakers, legal practitioners, academics and civil society. Central to this conference are the ILEC policy recommendations and guidelines which will be assessed for their viability and relevance in enhancing the role of the European Union and fundamental rights in nationality matters.
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