Do I Qualify for Citizenship by Descent (CBD)?

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Slovak citizenship by descent is based on your ancestors' place of birth, which must be within the present-day border of Slovakia, and Czechoslovak citizenship. There is no language or physical residency requirement for CBD.  Answer the following questions to see if you might qualify!

If you have Slovak heritage, most of our ancestors were born in "Austria", "Hungary", "The Kingdom of Hungary", the "Austro-Hungarian Empire", or "Czechoslovakia". 

The question is, "Were they born within the present-day borders of what is now Slovakia?" 

If so, then move on to the next question. If not, move down to "Do I qualify for SLA?".

When was their final departure from the "Old Country"? October 28, 1908, is the earliest they could have left and still be eligible to be used as your anchor ancestor. Keep in mind that it is their final departure date that matters. Meaning, if they first left in 1905, but went back to visit and left again in 1910, then 1910 is the relevant year.

If they left before October 28, 1908, the next questions are - Were they under the age of 24, and did their parents remain in the "Old Country"? 

If your answers are "yes", then keep reading. If your answers are "no", skip to "Do I qualify for SLA?".

They must not have naturalized before 1918. If they naturalized after 1918, and you answered yes to the previous questions, then you may qualify for citizenship by descent. 

If they naturalized before 1918,  move down to "Do I qualify for SLA?".

SLA is a Slovak Living Abroad certificate, which entitles you to a Slovak residency permit. After three years of physical residency in Slovakia, you are then eligible to apply for citizenship. SLA has no language requirement, but it does have a cultural awareness requirement that can be satisfied in several ways, which we can assist you with.

The key differences between SLA and CBD are:

• Location of birth doesn't matter. Whether they were born within the present-day border of Slovakia or Ukraine, Hungary, Poland, Austria, Czechia, etc - it doesn't matter.
• Immigration and naturalization dates don't matter.
• The generation doesn't matter. This means you can use your grandparent, great-grandparent, great-great-grandparent, great-great-great-grandparent, etc. 

You need evidence that your ancestor was of Slovak ethnic origin. So either that they identified as Slovak or spoke Slovak. Generally, a ship manifest or census stating "Slovak" will satisfy this requirement. 

SLA entitles you to a residency permit. After three years of physical residency in Slovakia, you are entitled to apply for citizenship. There is no language requirement for this pathway to citizenship.