Phnom Penh: According to official documents reported by Chinese media outlet ‘the Cambodian China Times’, from January to September this year, at least 281 Chinese and Taiwanese become Cambodian nationals after applications were approved by King Sihamoni.
According to documents, they all obtained Cambodian citizenship through investment.
According to documents, a small number of Chinese who have become Cambodian nationals have foreign passports themselves, some have American nationality, and others have national citizenship in the Republic of Vanuatu, Antigua and Barbuda.
According to a report from the Ministry of the Interior, since 1999, more than 2,000 foreigners have obtained Cambodian nationality , most of whom have obtained nationality through investment, and most of the applicants are from China.
In 2018, Cambodia revised its nationality law and raised the threshold for naturalization by foreign investment, including the amount of naturalization by investment.
The Cambodian Nationality Law stipulates that foreigners who apply for Cambodian citizenship must meet the following conditions:
1. A certificate of good character and morality from the local authority or district head of the place of residence.
2. Possess a certificate of good citizenship, and never committed any criminal offence.
3. A certificate of possession to show the applicant has lived in the Kingdom of Cambodia for seven consecutive years and has a domicile in the Kingdom of Cambodia. The certificate is issued by the immigration agency.
4. When applying for naturalization, have a domicile in the Kingdom of Cambodia.
5. Can speak Khmer, can write Khmer and understand some Cambodian history, and shows evidence that he/she can live harmoniously in Cambodian society and can accept Cambodia’s good customs.
6. Be in good health.
However, The PRC does not recognize dual nationality and actively discouraged its occurrence in its treaties with Indonesia and Nepal in the 1950s. When the National People’s Congress adopted the current nationality law in 1980, a further stipulation was added that automatically revokes nationality from Chinese nationals who settle overseas and voluntarily acquire foreign citizenship. Article 3 of the Nationality Law of the People’s Republic of China states “The People’s Republic of China does not recognize dual nationality for any Chinese national”. Taiwan does allow dual citizenship.
