Angolan nationality law is regulated by the Constitution of Angola, as amended; the Nationality Act, and its revisions; and various international agreements to which the country is a signatory. These laws determine who is, or is eligible to be, a national of Angola. 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. Angolan nationality is typically obtained under the principle of jus sanguinis, i.e. by birth in Angola or abroad to parents with Angolan nationality. 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 naturalization.
Obtaining Angolan nationality
Nationality can be obtained in Angola through birth or naturalization. Angolan law makes a distinction between attribution and acquisition of nationality. Attribution is automatic and from birth; whereas, acquisition is obtained later and effective into the future.
By birth
Births must be registered in the Civil Registry Office and proof of the parents' nationality must be provided. Proof may be presentation of the parents' birth registration or an identity card. In the case of a birth abroad, a declaration made before consular officials, may also be required.
Persons born anywhere to at least one parent who has Angolan nationality; Newborn foundlings, under one year of age, with no discernible evidence as to the nationality or identity of its parents; or Persons who later in life discovered that at birth they had a parent of Angolan nationality.
By naturalization
Angolan nationality may be acquired through application for persons who have reached eighteen, the age of majority, and have legal capacity, to the Ministry responsible for immigration. They must provide documentation to confirm identity, economic status, and lack of a serious criminal record, as well as evidence of satisfactory examinations by the Citizenship Commission. Applicants must demonstrate that they are of good character, can integrate with Angolan society, are self-sufficient and able to sustain themselves, and have no criminal record with penalties exceeding three year sentencing. In addition, applicants must take examinations to confirm their understanding of Angolan civics, adequate ability in Portuguese, and knowledge of the cultural and societal norms of the territory. Ten years of residency is calculated from the date of issuance of a permit for permanent residency. Upon approval, applicants must take an Oath of Allegiance. Besides foreigners meeting the criteria, other persons who may apply for naturalization include:
Spouses of, or persons in Registered Partnerships with Angolan nationals, as long as the union is legally valid and on-going, the foreign partner consents, and the union occurred at least five years prior to the request; Minor adoptees, for those over age fourteen with the child's consent, upon request and certification of an adoption order; Children under the age of fourteen who have been abandoned or orphaned; Minor children, or incapacitated persons, of naturalized Angolan parents; Stateless persons who have no other nationality, upon request without meeting general criteria; or Persons who have rendered exceptional artistic, athletic, entrepreneurial, or scientific service to the nation, at the discretion of the National Assembly or President.
Loss of nationality
Angolans who were attributed nationality at birth cannot be deprived of it. They are allowed to renounce their nationality, provided the renunciation is officially recorded in the Central Registry Office. Persons can be denaturalized in Angola by committing a crime against state security; by serving another nation in an official capacity without having informed the Angolan National Assembly beforehand; by serving in a foreign military; by having obtained nationality through fraud, false representation, or concealment; or for having acquired Angolan nationality but using other nationality to obtain benefits restricted to specific classes of persons.
Dual nationality
Angola has allowed dual nationality since 1991. The Nationality Law of 1984 discouraged dual nationality, but recognized that based on international agreements such status might exist either voluntarily or involuntarily. Since 1991, the Nationality Law has not banned dual nationality, but recognized that other nationality possessed of Angolans must not have legal applicability while in Angola.