Namibian nationality law

Namibian Citizenship Act
Parliament of Namibia
Long title Namibian Citizenship Act 14 1990 to further regulate the acquisition or loss of Namibian citizenship in pursuance of the provisions of Article 4 of the Namibian Constitution; and to provide for matters incidental thereto
Enacted by	Government of Namibia
Status: Current legislation

Namibian nationality law is regulated by the Constitution of Namibia, as amended; the Namibian Citizenship Act, and its revisions; and various international agreements to which the country is a signatory.^[1][2] These laws determine who is, or is eligible to be, a national of Namibia.^[3] The legal means to acquire nationality, formal legal membership in a nation, differ from the domestic relationship of rights and obligations between a national and the nation, known as citizenship. Nationality describes the relationship of an individual to the state under international law, whereas citizenship is the domestic relationship of an individual within the nation.^[4][5]

Commonwealth countries often use the terms nationality and citizenship as synonyms, despite their legal distinction and the fact that they are regulated by different governmental administrative bodies.^[4] Namibian nationality is typically obtained under the principle of jus soli, i.e. by birth in the territory, or jus sanguinis, i.e. by birth in Namibia or abroad to parents with Namibian nationality.^[6] It can be granted to persons with an affiliation to the country, or to a permanent resident who has lived in the country for a given period of time through naturalisation.^[7]