Citizenship by descent: countries and requirements

Italy, Ireland, Bulgaria, Latvia, Israel and 8 more countries that grant a passport by descent: who qualifies, whether a language is needed, state fees and where you can keep a Russian passport.

In detail

Citizenship by descent is the shortest route to a second passport: no years of living in the country, no investment and no wait for naturalisation. What you need is an ancestor you can link to with documents. We have gathered 13 countries that grant a passport by descent in 2026 and compared what matters: who qualifies, whether a language is needed, what the state charges and how long the decision takes.

Roots come in three kinds. The first is an ancestor's citizenship: a grandfather was a pre-war citizen of Italy, Latvia or Lithuania, and the right passes to descendants. The second is belonging to a people: an ethnic Bulgarian, Armenian, Serb or Jew gets a passport even without ancestors' citizenship. The third is place of birth: if a grandmother was born on the island of Ireland or a great-grandfather lived in Bessarabia before 1940, that is enough to apply.

Citizenship by descent: countries compared

Each country name leads to a detailed guide: documents, common refusals, timelines and costs. Amounts are in US dollars at today's rate and cover state fees only, without archives, translations and apostilles.

European Union countries

A passport of any of these countries gives the right to live and work across the European Union and travel visa-free in Schengen. The gentlest terms are in Bulgaria and Ireland: no language and no residence. The strictest are in Romania, which introduced a Romanian exam on 15 March 2025, and in Poland, where roots only shorten the path through residence.

Israel, Armenia, Serbia and Moldova

These countries grant a passport for belonging to a people or for a link to a territory. Israel and Armenia require no language, Moldova asks for an exam in Romanian and the Constitution, and a Moldovan passport opens visa-free entry to the Schengen area.

Where citizenship by descent needs no language

• No language and no culture interview: Italy, Ireland, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Israel, Armenia and Serbia.
• No exam, but a conversation: in Greece the consul checks Greek identity, in Hungary officials check at filing whether you can communicate in Hungarian.
• With an exam: Romania and Poland require B1, Moldova Romanian and the Constitution, Latvia fluent Latvian for those applying as Latvians or Livs.

No exam does not mean the language is useless. A Greek consul will notice if an applicant knows not a single word, and in Bulgaria language skills count in the opinion on origin. You need the language to live in the country anyway, while for a passport by descent documents are sometimes enough.

Where you can keep a Russian passport

• Kept without conditions: Italy, Greece, Ireland, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, Hungary, Israel, Armenia, Moldova, and in Serbia when admitted by origin.
• Only in certain cases: Latvia lets descendants of citizens keep a second citizenship only of EU, NATO and a few other states, but Latvians, Livs and descendants of exiles keep any. In Lithuania a Russian passport is kept if the ancestor was deported or left before 11 March 1990 for somewhere other than the Soviet Union.
• Renunciation required: Kazakhstan, and in Spain Russian citizens must also give up their former passport on naturalisation.

Russia does not prohibit a second citizenship but requires you to notify the Interior Ministry within 60 days of acquiring it, and those living abroad within 60 days of entering Russia. More in our review of dual citizenship rules in 51 countries.

Italy, Greece and Ireland: roots in Western Europe

Italy was long the most generous country: citizenship by blood passed down without a limit on generations. The 2025 reform changed that. Children and grandchildren are now recognised if the parent or grandparent held only Italian citizenship. Applications filed before 27 March 2025 are handled under the old rules. Recognition requires no language exam, and the fee for an adult is €600, about $680. Since 19 February 2026 the decision may take up to 36 months. A detailed calculation is in our guide to the cost of Italian citizenship.

Greece grants a passport to descendants of Greeks through four different procedures. If a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent was a Greek citizen, citizenship is recognised by birth. Ethnic Greeks from the former Soviet Union whose ancestors had no Greek citizenship go through naturalisation at a consulate without 7 years in the country: a €100 fee and a €30 consular charge, about $150 in total. The main test is an interview where the consul asks about family, customs, history and the community. Expect one and a half to three years.

Ireland is the most underrated route to an EU passport. If a grandfather or grandmother was born on the island of Ireland, the grandchild is entered in the Foreign Births Register: no move, no language and no exams. The decision is made on documents rather than at a minister's discretion. The fee for an adult is €278, about $320, and the wait is about a year. If your parent was a citizen born on the island, you are Irish from birth and can apply for a passport straight away.

Bulgaria, Romania and Moldova: the Balkans and Bessarabia

Bulgaria grants citizenship to a person of Bulgarian origin without residence, income or a language exam. Origin is confirmed by a certificate from the State Agency for Bulgarians Abroad: its council checks documents on an ancestor up to a great-grandparent within two months. The fee is about $180, the review takes up to 9 months by law, and the Russian passport is kept.

Romania restores citizenship to former citizens who lost it involuntarily and to their descendants up to great-grandchildren. It is the main route for people from former Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina. Since 15 March 2025 applicants need a B1 Romanian certificate, and the commission prepares its opinion within up to 2 years. Queues at the national citizenship authority are huge, so this route suits those prepared to wait.

Moldova recognises the citizenship of people born on its territory or whose parent, grandparent or great-grandparent was born there, and of those who lived in Bessarabia, Northern Bukovina and the Hertsa region before 28 June 1940, and their descendants. An exam in Romanian and the Constitution is required, the fee is about $380, and by law the application is reviewed within 12 months. Moldova allows dual citizenship.

Latvia and Lithuania: ancestors' pre-war citizenship

Latvia has three routes. Descendants of Latvian citizens as of 17 June 1940 register citizenship without an exam or residence, with no limit on generations, and the decision comes within a month of a complete file. Descendants of 1940-1990 exiles get a decision within 4 months, and Latvians and Livs within a year after a check of fluent Latvian. There is no separate registration fee.

Lithuania restores citizenship to citizens of pre-war Lithuania before 15 June 1940 and their descendants up to great-grandchildren. There is no language exam, the fee is about $140, archive searches take 1-4 months and the review usually 6-12 months. The key question is your first citizenship: it is kept only under exceptions. We compared both countries in our guide to repatriation to Latvia and Lithuania.

Poland and Hungary: roots plus language

Poland does not give a passport straight away. First a person with Polish roots gets the Pole's Card, then applies for permanent residence, and after 1 year with it applies to be recognised as a citizen. Polish at B1 is required, the recognition fee is 1,000 zloty, about $260, and the legal term is 6 months. For a Russian citizen after 2022 this is one of the few realistic routes to Polish residence.

Hungary grants citizenship through a simplified procedure if an ancestor was a Hungarian citizen or Hungarian origin is probable. You do not need to live in the country, and instead of an exam officials check at filing whether you can understand and speak everyday Hungarian. The procedure itself is free, renouncing your former citizenship is not required, and you become a citizen on the day of the oath.

Israel, Armenia and Serbia: belonging to a people

Israel under the Law of Return grants citizenship to Jews, their children and grandchildren, and the spouses of each, even if the children and grandchildren are not Jewish under the law themselves. The consular check takes place in the country of residence, the process takes 3-12 months and no language is required. The Russian passport is kept, and new immigrants get tax breaks on Israeli income.

Armenia grants a passport to ethnic Armenians without residence and without a language test. Origin is confirmed by documents of the applicant, a parent or a grandparent. The fee is about $140, the review takes up to 90 working days, and the decision is made by presidential decree.

Serbia admits without renunciation members of the Serbian people who do not live in the country, as well as emigrants and their descendants. The admission fee is about $250 and covers the whole family. The law sets no strict review deadline: from several months to a year.

Where roots only shorten the path

In several countries origin does not give a passport on its own but makes the road to it noticeably easier.

• Spain: grandchildren of Spaniards by origin need only 1 year of legal residence for naturalisation instead of 10. But Russian citizens will have to give up their former passport.
• Portugal: grandchildren of Portuguese citizens by origin get citizenship with a genuine link to the country, and after the reform they need a test of language, culture and history.
• Germany: citizenship is restored to descendants of those deprived of German citizenship in 1933-1945 on political, racial or religious grounds, without residence and without a language.
• Kazakhstan: ethnic Kazakhs with kandas status go through a simplified procedure, but Russian citizenship must be renounced.

How to find documents about an ancestor

A right by descent almost always comes down to paperwork. You need to rebuild the chain from the ancestor to you: birth and marriage certificates for each generation, and a document on any change of surname. The more distant the ancestor, the more links and the higher the risk of a gap.

1. Family papers. Old passports, military cards, employment books, rehabilitation certificates and letters often state nationality and place of birth.
2. Civil registry offices. Duplicate certificates are issued where the event was registered, and archive extracts on births and marriages on request from a relative.
3. State archives. Records of censuses, resettlements and repressions are kept by regional archives and the archives of the countries where the ancestor lived.
4. Archives of the country of origin. Latvia, Lithuania, Greece and Italy hold registers of citizens and parish records.

Russian documents for use abroad are apostilled by the authority that issued them and then translated into the country's language. Certificates usually stay valid from 3 months to 2 years, so they are best collected last.

How to choose a country by descent

1. Check which roots you can prove. An ancestor known only from family stories will not help: you need a document showing nationality, citizenship or place of birth.
2. Count the generations to the ancestor. Italy now recognises only children and grandchildren, Lithuania and Bulgaria go up to great-grandchildren, Latvia has no limit.
3. Decide whether you need your Russian passport. If so, Lithuania, Latvia, Spain and Kazakhstan fit only in certain cases.
4. Weigh language and time. Romania requires an exam and takes years, Ireland and Bulgaria need no exam and decide faster.
5. Look at what the passport gives. An EU passport opens life and work in 27 countries, while an Armenian or Serbian one is mainly about travel and a second citizenship without giving up the first.

If you have roots in several countries, people usually choose the one with the shorter chain of documents rather than the stronger passport. A finished file in Bulgaria is more reliable than years of searching Italian archives.

What citizenship by descent costs

State fees are small here: from zero in Hungary and Latvia to about $680 in Italy. Most of the money goes on archive searches, duplicate certificates, apostilles and translations of every document, plus trips to file and take the oath. The total depends on the number of generations and the countries where documents are held, so we calculate the amount for your family in the chat.

A separate risk is offers of a passport by descent without real roots. Forged grandmothers from Bessarabia and bought archive certificates end in criminal cases and revoked citizenship, so we work only with documents that will stand up to checks.

How we help

The law does not stop you from filing on your own. But mistakes cost more than the fees: an ancestor with the wrong date, a gap in the chain of generations, spelling differences in surnames without a supporting certificate, an expired apostille. We check which country you have a right to by descent, search the archives, prepare translations and handle the case through to the oath and the passport.

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