Egyptian Council of State is to consider amendment of Egyptian nationality law
Egypt’s government has announced that it has submitted the law of granting the Egyptian nationality to investors, to the Egyptian Council of State. The law indicates granting the Egyptian nationality to foreign investors after 5 years of staying in Egypt, provided that they make deposits of hard currencies.
Hussam Al-Kawish, Egyptian government’s Spokesman, said the law obligates investors to stay just for 5 years in Egypt which is a considerably short period, giving to other laws of granting nationalities, to facilitate investment. Furthermore, the amount of the deposit has not been specified yet, he added.
In this regard, controversy has been arisen in the Parliament and social media about this law. Magdy El-Agaty, Minister of Legal and parliamentary affairs, suggested that law no 89 of 1960, related to foreigners’ entry and residency in Egypt, should be amended.
The law no 89 amendment indicates that a foreigner may be granted the Egyptian nationality, provided that he stays for 5 years in Egypt and deposits a set amount of hard currency. In addition, foreigners who wish to be granted Egyptian nationality must be at the age of consent.
The Ministry of Interior is responsible for approving the applicants after the approval of the cabinet. In case the applicant is granted the nationality, the deposit goes to the state’s Public Treasury Authority.
The law in question has created considerable controversy on the social media, Facebook and Twitter, and among some politician and parliamentarians.
The suggested law divides foreigners to 4 groups in regard of residency: Special, regular, and temporary residents, the fourth group is those who pay a deposit of hard currency. Article 3 of amendment is to include a new Article 4 bis of law no 26 of 1975 which indicates granting the Egyptian nationality to foreigners after 5 years of residency in Egypt, provided that they make deposits of hard currencies for 5 years; applicants must be at the age of consent and comply with all terms and conditions of Article 4 of this law.
Moustafa Bakri, an Egyptian politician, believes that this amendment of law no 89 indicates an unacceptable political trend which could cause instability. “I am highly concerned about the governmental procedures that precede the passing of this law”, Bakri pointed. He urged Ali Abdul Aal, Speaker of the House of Representatives, to approve his early day motion (EDM), submitted to Prime Minister Sherif Ismail. The EDM of Bakri aims at acknowledging the risks related to granting the Egyptian nationality to investors.
“It is not acceptable to risk Egypt’s stability and security because we are suffering from an economic crisis, especially when we know that such investments aim at achieving hostile policies”, Bakri stressed.
Similarly, MP Mohamed Badrawi, President of Egyptian Patriotic Movement, rejects this amendment of law no 89 and urges the government to withdraw such a decision, highlighting that the Egyptian nationality is not for sale and granting it will give political rights to its holders, which might result in having a Turkish, or any other nationality, president to rule Egypt. MP Ehab Mansour, President of Egyptian Social Democratic Party, rejected the mere idea of granting the Egyptian nationality in exchange for money even though it has a noble purpose. He demanded law makers to state the articles of this law, specifying the granting terms and limiting them. Mansour stressed on the risk of granting such foreign investors the Egyptian nationality, explaining that they could hold crucial positions in the government or the parliament.
Likewise, MP Khalid Abdul Aziz, member of Workforce Committee, believes that the government should reconsider its decision concerning this law, pointing out the necessity of conducting a comprehensive study before granting the Egyptian nationality to any foreigners. Such a law must be discussed with all governmental bodies, especially the Ministry of Interior and sovereign bodies in Cairo, Abdul Aziz stressed.
On the other hand, MP Ahmed Al-Awady, a member of Defense and National Security Committee, has expressed his initial approval of the law to be conditioned on conducting an integrated study on the law, including its benefits for the economy, by MP Moataz Mahmoud. This suggested law could move the country forward and put an end to the economic crisis, he said. Al-Awady believes that the Egyptian nationality will not be “sold” but rather “granted”. It is of a crucial importance to make adequate investigations before granting the nationality to applicants.”
In an interview with “10 PM Program” on Dream TV channel, MP Mahmoud Attia, approved the law, pointing out that the law will enhance competition among businessmen. Under this law, investors will be granted permanent residency then the nationality afterwards in return for depositing $1m, Attia says.
After viewing his electors’ opinions of the law, MP Hitham Al-Hariry posted on his Facebook page “This suggested law is not acceptable and will not solve the economic crisis.”
Ibrahim Al-Gitany, Head of Economic Studies Unit at The Regional Center for Strategic Studies, said that Egyptian government is not the first to address the concern of granting its nationality in return for money; many countries adopt the same trend such as Greece, Cyprus and Russia. Foreign investors seek such opportunities to enjoy the benefits, especially European nationalities which grant investors the liberty of movement across Europe, under Schengen agreement.
In regard to the effectiveness of the suggested law, Al-Gitnay questioned “What are the advantages of obtaining the Egyptian nationality by investors? How is the government going to attract them? Are there any plans to facilitate investors’ travelling across the Arab countries?”. “The answer is no advantages at all which means investors are not yet attracted to obtain the Egyptian nationality as officials expect”, Al-Gitany assumed.
Moustafa Al-Iraky pointed out that the law in question is imposed in the majority of the world’s advanced countries. Imposing this law will boost Egypt’s economy and Arab investors will make use of the chance to push the economy forward. A Syrian lawyer residing in Egypt said that the concept of granting the Egyptian nationality is beneficial for the Egyptian economy. However, there is a growing concern on those who will be granted the Egyptian nationality because some of them will be obliged to abandon their own nationalities.
This law no. 89 will boost Egypt’s investment and I wish it will be approved soon, said Mohamed Al-Flasteny, a Palestinian citizen and resident of 6th of October City.
