Hungarian President Sulyok strips a dozen people of their Hungarian citizenship — here’s how you may lose yours too
Losing your Hungarian citizenship isn’t as difficult as you might think—if you meet certain conditions. On Monday, President Sulyok revoked the citizenship of 12 individuals who had earned it through questionable means. Here’s why, and how this could happen to you.
President Sulyok withdraws a dozen Hungarian citizenships
According to 24.hu, the Hungarian President’s resolutions on this matter were published in the Hungarian Official Gazette the day before yesterday. These official documents don’t provide detailed explanations for each case, but the overarching reason is clear: these individuals obtained citizenship by deceiving the authorities.
The resolutions list only the individual’s name, place and date of birth, previous official names, and country of birth. The decisions are also signed by Gergely Gulyás, Minister of the Prime Minister’s Office.
Why Hungarian citizenship could be taken away
Hungarian law stipulates that those who acquire citizenship by providing false information or withholding important facts can lose it.
The Hungarian citizenship is popular, so there are many fraudsters
You can read the resolutions here. The first resolution concerns the appointment of new judges; the rest pertain to citizenship withdrawals. On Monday, 12 people lost Hungarian citizenship: individuals born in Romania, the former Yugoslavia, the Soviet Union, and Israel.
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One of the most controversial cases involved former President Katalin Novák, who stripped citizenship from a 10-year-old Hungarian girl born in Kisvárda.
Hungarian citizenship is especially prized in non-EU countries, as it grants visa-free travel across the European Union and unrestricted movement within the Schengen zone. Since 2010, many have sought to acquire it through a simplified naturalisation process, requiring only proof of Hungarian language ability and descent.
Unfortunately, this has led to fraud, with some Ukrainians and Serbians forging documents and bribing officials. This widespread misuse has even contributed to Hungarian citizens born abroad being denied visa-free entry to the U.S., despite living and working in Hungary.
Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén revealed in March 2024 that over 1.17 million people had obtained citizenship through simplified naturalisation in the past 13 years. These new citizens also gain voting rights in Hungary’s general elections, where over 95% support PM Orbán’s Fidesz party.
Another way to lose your citizenship: suspension
Another way to “lose” Hungarian citizenship is by suspension. We covered the details in this article and this one.
Click for more news about Hungarian citizenship.