New law empowers authorities to suspend the Hungarian citizenship of potentially hundreds of thousands of foreigners

The Hungarian Parliament has passed a new law empowering authorities to suspend the citizenship of foreign individuals. The new regulation could affect hundreds of thousands of people, although its application is subject to strict conditions. Some Hungarian experts and opposition leaders believe the legislation targets individuals such as George Soros. Others fear that opposition figures with dual citizenship – for example, former joint opposition prime ministerial candidate Péter Márki-Zay – could become targets if the Orbán government chooses to act against them.

Orbán’s spring “clean-up” continues in Hungary

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán spoke about the importance of a spring “clean-up” in Hungary during his 15 March speech in front of the Hungarian National Museum. Two weeks later, János Halász, a Fidesz lawmaker, submitted a draft bill enabling the temporary suspension of Hungarian citizenship in certain cases and for certain individuals. This is the bill that Parliament approved yesterday, meaning it will become law unless the Hungarian President vetoes it.

President Tamás Sulyok was elected by Orbán’s Fidesz-KDNP supermajority, and the initiative came from the Prime Minister himself, so it is unlikely that the President will object. In any case, if he does reject the law and Parliament passes it again, Sulyok will be constitutionally obliged to sign it.

• Hundreds of Hungarian citizenships have been withdrawn: how and who can strip you of citizenship?

The new law allows Hungarian authorities to suspend the Hungarian citizenship of individuals who do not hold citizenship in another EEA country. As such, it does not apply to citizens of EU member states, Switzerland, Norway, or Liechtenstein. Additionally, the individual in question must hold another nationality, ensuring that suspension will not result in statelessness. Therefore, it may apply to dual citizens who also hold, for example, British, American, Russian, or Chinese citizenship.

‘Dangerous’ citizens could lose their Hungarian citizenship

Under the new law, Hungarian citizenship may be suspended for up to 10 years if its continuation poses a threat to Hungary’s public order or national security. Such a threat may be deemed to exist if the person:

• serves in a foreign military or foreign public service,
• acts on behalf of a foreign power or organisation in a way that is incompatible with Hungarian citizenship,
• has left Hungary to join a terrorist organisation, or
• has been legally convicted of serious crimes, such as crimes against humanity, treason, or financing terrorism.

Affected individuals may request reinstatement of their citizenship if they can prove the threat no longer exists; however, such a request may be made only once during the suspension period. For reasons of public or national security, the procedure may be conducted confidentially. During the process, the responsible minister may seek the opinion of the National Information Centre but is not required to adhere to it.