Hungarian Citizenship

Hungarian citizenship law is based on the principle of jus sanguinis,  meaning that you inherit your Hungarian citizenship from your parents. Everybody with Hungarian ancestry is entitled to get Hungarian citizenship under certain conditions.

1. If you were born before 1 October 1957 and your father was a Hungarian citizen. (It has to be your father, not your mother.)
2. If you were born between 1 October 1957-1 October 1993 and one of your parents was Hungarian. (In this case, it can be your father or your mother.)
3. Your ancestor(s) did not leave Hungary before 1 September 1929 and lived abroad continuously for a period exceeding 10 years.
4. Your ancestor lived in the current territory of Hungary (as opposed to other areas of the former Kingdom of Hungary).

And the Hungarian state did not deprive your ancestor from their citizenship.

Citizenship laws do not have retroactive effect, so the provisions of the Citizenship Act in force at the time of the event affecting citizenship must always be taken into account. For example:

§ A child born before October 1, 1957, follows the citizenship of the legal father. After a mother of a Hungarian citizen, only an “illegal” child born out of wedlock could acquire Hungarian citizenship.

§ If a Hungarian citizen is married to a foreign citizen before October 1, 1957, he or she may have lost his or her Hungarian citizenship. This requires an individual examination in each case.

§ Bilateral agreements were in force between Hungary and the former socialist countries to eliminate dual citizenship. The provisions of the conventions must be taken into account in the so-called in the examination of the nationality of a child born of a mixed marriage, at the time the conventions exist, regardless of their place of birth.