Repatriation
Citizenship by descent
You prove that your ancestors were citizens of the country — and receive a passport without investment. Examples: Israel, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Ireland. Slow (6-24 months), but free or nearly so.
- What it is
- Citizenship by descent: you prove that your ancestors were citizens of the country
- Where it applies
- Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Israel, Ireland and others
- Cost
- No contribution for the passport: only fees, archives and translations
- Duration
- Usually 6 to 24 months
- Can you prepare
- Yes: genealogical research and gathering archive documents
In plain words
Repatriation means obtaining citizenship by descent: you prove that your ancestors were citizens of a country and receive its passport without any investment. The state in effect returns citizenship to the descendants of those who were once part of it. Money plays no role — everything turns on documents proving your descent.
This is how the programmes of Israel, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Ireland and other countries work. The depth of the “roots” varies: in some places a grandparent is enough, in others more distant ancestors are recognised. Hungarian citizenship, for example, is available to descendants of residents of historical territories, including Transcarpathia. The main difficulty is gathering and legalising the archive documents that prove the chain of kinship.
The advantage of repatriation is that citizenship costs nothing or next to nothing, and the result is the same full passport, often an EU one straight away. The drawback is time: the process usually takes 6 to 24 months, and much depends on how well the archives have survived and on a correctly built family tree.
Who repatriation suits
What matters in repatriation
- Ancestors who were citizens
- Depth: from a parent to distant ancestors
- Chain of kinship
- Archive registry records
- Legalisation and translation
- A file tailored to the country
- Romania, Bulgaria
- Hungary (incl. Transcarpathia)
- Italy, Israel, Ireland
- No contribution for the passport
- Fees and translations
- Incomparably less
How repatriation works
- 01Genealogical research
- 02Restoring archive documents
- 03Legalisation and translation
- 04Filing and review
- 05Passport
What you need to know
- Citizenship by descent is granted without investment
- Documents proving descent decide everything, not money
- The depth of roots varies: from a parent to distant ancestors
- Hungary recognises descendants from historical territories, including Transcarpathia
- The main difficulty is gathering and legalising the archives
Timelines and costs
- Timeline
- Usually 6 to 24 months
- Investments
- Not required
- Costs
- State fees, archive certificates, translations, legalisation
- What it depends on
- How well the archives have survived and how well the family tree is built
- Result
- A full passport, often an EU one straight away
Common mistakes
- Concluding “there are no roots” without checking the archives more deeply
- Not building a provable chain of kinship
- Skipping the legalisation or translation of documents
- Underestimating timelines — the process takes months
- Preparing the file without regard to the particular country’s requirements
What this means for a BRIDGES client
We start with genealogical research: we find and restore archive documents about your ancestors, build a provable chain of kinship and prepare the file to the requirements of the particular country. Where it seems that “there are no roots”, we check more deeply before drawing a conclusion.
View programs →Frequently asked questions
01 /How far back do the ancestors need to go?
It depends on the country: in some a parent or grandparent is enough, in others more distant ancestors are recognised too. We determine the exact depth under the rules of the particular programme.
02 /How much does citizenship by repatriation cost?
There is no “contribution for the passport” as in investment programmes. The costs are state fees, archive certificates, translations and the legalisation of documents — that is, incomparably less.
03 /What if the ancestors’ documents have not survived?
This is a common situation and usually solvable. We search the archives of different countries and restore the chain from indirect records before treating the route as closed.
04 /Does repatriation give an EU passport?
Often, yes: Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy and Ireland are EU countries, and their passport by descent is full EU citizenship.
05 /Is citizenship passed on to children?
As a rule, yes. Once you have citizenship by descent, you can usually pass it on to your children under the same rules of descent.
06 /How does repatriation differ from investment citizenship?
Repatriation is by descent and without paying for the passport, but it takes longer. Investment citizenship is faster, but costs a contribution or real estate. Sometimes the routes are compared by timeline and budget.
See also
Read next
This material has undergone editorial review by BRIDGES.
Check your right to a passport by descent?
We will carry out genealogical research, restore the archive documents and build a provable chain of kinship for the particular country.