North Mitrovica, 15 May 2026 – NGO CASA has published its second monitoring report concerning the implementation of the Law on Foreigners in Kosovo, identifying serious legal and administrative obstacles affecting access to civil registration, residence regulation, personal documentation, and citizenship procedures, particularly for members of the Serbian and other non-majority communities in Kosovo.
The report prepared in cooperation with legal experts, is based on field monitoring activities conducted during April 2026, including visits to municipal civil registration offices, meetings with representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and a public forum organized in North Mitrovica with affected residents. The report also includes representative cases reported through CASA’s monitoring system by residents living both north and south of the Ibar River.
Inconsistent Administrative Practices and Excessive Costs
According to the findings, one of the most concerning issues is the lack of uniform administrative practice across municipalities. Applicants frequently receive contradictory information regarding required documentation and procedures, while documentation requirements often differ from official guidelines published by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Residents also reported excessive administrative burdens, including repeated requests for apostille verification and notarized documentation that are not formally required by law, resulting in substantial financial costs and prolonged procedures.
Concerns Regarding Acquisition of Civil Status Documents for Persons Born Outside Kosovo
Particular concern was raised regarding persons born outside Kosovo to parents holding Kosovo documents. According to the report, many individuals over the age of 18 continue to face serious difficulties in accessing civil registration and citizenship procedures, despite continuous residence in Kosovo and family origin linked to Kosovo citizens. In practice, many are being directed to considerably more restrictive naturalization procedures for foreigners due to place of birth and delayed registration after adulthood.
The report notes that CASA had previously argued that such practices were not fully consistent with the previous Law on Citizenship, particularly Article 32, which guaranteed citizenship continuity for former FRY citizens residing in Kosovo and their direct descendants without prescribing explicit age limitations.
However, the recently adopted new Law on Citizenship that will enter into force in a less than a week, now explicitly introduces a rule according to which persons born outside Kosovo lose the possibility of acquiring citizenship by descent after reaching the age of 18 if they had not previously exercised that right.
CASA expresses concern that the new legal framework may disproportionately affect specific communities, particularly persons who, due to political, administrative, or practical obstacles, were unable to complete registration procedures during childhood. Organisation announced that it is currently preparing an additional legal and policy analysis of the newly adopted Law on Citizenship, which will be published soon.
Short Deadlines and Lack of Effective Legal Protection
The report also highlights growing fears among residents regarding the short transitional deadlines established for civil registration and residence regulation procedures. According to residents, municipal offices are already overburdened, while applicants often do not receive written confirmations or official written decisions, preventing access to effective legal remedies and judicial protection.
The report further warns that announced expiration of recognition of Serbian identity cards (15 March 2027) issued for residents in Kosovo may create serious practical consequences, including risks related to access to healthcare, social protection, and lawful residence status.
Legal Opinion on Family Reunification and Citizenship Procedures
Special attention is devoted to spouses of Kosovo citizens applying through family reunification procedures. CASA’s legal opinion included in the report argues that the duration of marriage for citizenship purposes should be calculated from the date of lawful conclusion of the marriage and not from the date of subsequent registration before Kosovo institutions.
The report further argues that rigid insistence on an additional one-year temporary residence period in cases involving long-standing marriages and factual family life may constitute a disproportionate and excessively formalistic barrier to civil status.
Recommendations to Institutions
Among its recommendations, CASA calls on institutions to:
- harmonize administrative practices across municipalities;
- extend transitional deadlines;
- establish clear procedures for persons born abroad whose at least one parent possesses Kosovo documents;
- ensure written decisions and effective legal remedies;
- and allow immediate citizenship applications for spouses who already fulfill substantive legal conditions related to duration of marriage and family life.
NGO CASA announced that it is currently preparing an additional legal and policy analysis of the newly adopted Law on Citizenship, which will be published soon.
The full report is available HERE.
