Officially… These Are The Cases For Stripping Acquired Or Original Nationality

President Abdelmadjid Tebboune signed a presidential decree, published in the latest issue of the Official Gazette, amending and supplementing the provisions of Order No. 70-86 concerning the Algerian Nationality Law, in a legislative step that re-establishes the conditions and procedures for stripping nationality, whether acquired or original.

Law No. 26-01, dated February 17, 2026, came after parliamentary approval and is based on a set of constitutional texts and international agreements, including the Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons signed in New York in 1954, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights ratified in 1987, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

One of the most prominent provisions of the new law is the amendment of Article 22 of the Nationality Law, making it possible to strip a person who acquired Algerian nationality if a judicial ruling is issued against them for a felony or misdemeanor affecting Algeria’s vital interests, national unity, or state security, or if they are convicted of a felony punishable by five years imprisonment or more, whether inside or outside Algeria.

It is stipulated that the acts committed must be within ten years from the date of acquiring nationality, and that the stripping of nationality shall not be declared except within a maximum period of five years from the date of their commission.

The law also included 3 articles that expanded the possibility of stripping nationality to include, in specific cases, original Algerian nationality as well as acquired nationality, if there is strong evidence of committing serious acts outside the national territory, such as grave harm to Algeria’s interests or its security and the stability of its institutions, or declaring allegiance to a foreign state with the intent to harm Algeria, as well as cooperating with a hostile state or entity, and joining, financing, or promoting terrorist organizations, in addition to working for foreign military or security forces against the country’s interests.

The law also stipulates the possibility of stripping an Algerian of their original nationality if the acts stipulated are committed within Algeria and they are in a state of flight outside the national territory.

The new article also stipulated sending a prior warning to the concerned party and granting them a period of 15 to 60 days to comply, with the possibility of notifying them through electronic means or by publication in two national newspapers if communication is not possible.

Article 22 bis 1 affirmed that stripping original nationality remains an exceptional measure, and is only resorted to for exclusively specified reasons and within legal guarantees, with the condition that the concerned party possesses another nationality, with the exception of certain serious crimes such as acts of treason, espionage, bearing arms against the state, and belonging to terrorist organizations.

It was also decided to establish a special committee under the Minister of Justice to study and decide on stripping nationality cases, with its composition and working methods to be determined by regulation.

The text of the law indicated that stripping nationality only occurs after notifying the party concerned and enabling them to submit their observations by all legal means, including electronic means, within a period of 30 days, and if that is not possible, publication will be made in two national newspapers, one of which is in a foreign language.