A Growing Crisis of Statelessness

Kuwait has long grappled with issues surrounding nationality, particularly the exclusion of the Bidoon community, a stateless population that has been denied citizenship for decades.Recently, however, the situation has escalated under the new Emir, with the government increasingly revoking the citizenship of thousands. This trend has sparked widespread international concern, highlighting the growing risks to individuals’ rights and the creation of an expanding stateless population.

Since at least March 2024, the Kuwaiti government has been engaged in an aggressive campaign to strip individuals of their citizenship, justified on the grounds of fraud or dual citizenship. The government’s Supreme Committee to Investigate Kuwaiti Citizenship, chaired by high-ranking officials such as Sheikh Fahad Yusuf Saud al-Sabah, has been at the centre of this initiative. As of January 2025, over 10,000 people lost their citizenship, with reports indicating that more than 35,000 individuals were stripped of their nationality between August and December 2024 alone.

This surge in denaturalisations is tied to ongoing amendments to Kuwait’s 1959 Nationality Law, which once provided a clear pathway for acquiring nationality, but has become increasingly exclusionary over time. Recent changes have further restricted access to citizenship, intensifying the marginalisation of stateless groups, particularly Bidoon rights activists. Key amendments include Article 8, which allowed foreign women married to Kuwaiti men to acquire citizenship, and modifications of Article 13, now grants the government sweeping powers to revoke nationality from individuals involved in activities deemed harmful to the state or Emir. These revisions are reshaping Kuwait’s approach to nationality, further entrenching discrimination and statelessness.

While these legal changes were enacted in December 2024, they took retroactive effect after Cabinet approval in September, violating constitutional protections, particularly Article 32, which safeguards against retroactive laws. This legal shift reflects of a broader trend of increasing political repression in Kuwait, particularly following the Emir’s decision in May 2024 to dissolve parliament and suspend key constitutional provisions.

Article 27 of the Kuwaiti Constitution mandates that nationality cannot be revoked without due process. However, citizenship has often been stripped arbitrarily, bypassing established legal protections. Individuals affected by these decisions have no right to appeal, and these actions are not subject to judicial review. With no legal recourse, this mass denaturalization initiative risks rendering individuals stateless, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation and depriving them of fundamental rights, including access to healthcare, education, and employment. Without nationality, these individuals face discrimination and systemic exclusion, conditions particularly acute for the Bidoon, who have long been marginalised in Kuwaiti society.

One of the most troubling aspects of Kuwait’s nationality laws is their gendered nature. Like many Gulf states, Kuwait follows a patrilineal descent system, where nationality is passed through the father. While foreign men who acquire Kuwaiti nationality can pass it on to their children, they are unable to extend this right to their foreign wives. Indeed, under recent changes Kuwaiti women married to foreign nationals are prohibited from passing their nationality to their children, with only a few exceptions, such as the father’s death or divorce. This disparity leaves the children of Kuwaiti women particularly vulnerable to statelessness, as their nationality status remains uncertain. Furthermore, the recent revocation of nationality from women who married Kuwaiti men highlights the gendered nature of this crisis. Stripping women of their citizenship based on accusations of fraud or political dissent not only isolates them but also reinforces a societal tendency to marginalise and demonise women, perpetuating deep-rooted gender inequality within the country.

The revocation of citizenship is not just a domestic issue, it has broader implications for international human rights. States are obligated under customary international law to prevent statelessness, even if this is not explicitly enshrined in international law. The UN has long recognised the harmful consequences of statelessness, and international frameworks exist to protect individuals at risk of losing their nationality. Kuwait’s policies, however, have exacerbated the problem of statelessness, creating a legal vacuum for thousands of individuals who no longer have access to the rights and protections associated with citizenship. The stripping of citizenship, particularly without due process or avenues for appeal, constitutes a violation of fundamental human rights and undermines the rule of law.

Kuwait’s actions are part of a broader regional trend across the Gulf states, where governments have increasingly used the revocation of citizenship as a means of political repression. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Oman have all employed similar tactics, stripping dissidents, ethnic minorities, and political opponents of their citizenship.  These policies, while framed under the guise of protecting national security or preventing fraud, are designed to silence political opposition and further marginalise vulnerable groups. In Oman, for instance, recent amendments to the nationality law allow for the revocation of nationality in cases where individuals engage in activities deemed harmful to the state’s interests. While these laws claim to protect national security, they also underscore the region’s tendency to use citizenship as a political weapon.

Kuwait’s ongoing practice of revoking citizenship has far-reaching implications, not just for the individuals directly impacted. As more people risk becoming stateless, there is growing concern over the potential for stateless persons to seek refuge abroad, exacerbating the global challenge of addressing statelessness. Countries like the UK, which are home to many Kuwaitis, may now be confronted with addressing the legal status of individuals at risk of denaturalisation or statelessness. If these individuals are unable to return to Kuwait without facing the threat of losing their nationality, this situation could place added pressure on immigration systems worldwide.

At the time of publication, Kuwaiti women who had previously lost their nationality under Article 8 of 1959 Nationality Law will now have their citizenship restored, following a new directive from the Ministry of Justice. This decision follows the findings of the Supreme Committee for the Investigation of Nationality, which have been reviewing cases of revoked citizenship. While this development marks a significant shift, many of the issues discussed in this article remain relevant and we are yet to see how this change will unfold.