Dual citizenship is not allowed in Estonia. This means that to obtain an Estonian passport, one must renounce citizenship of other countries. Currently, Ukraine does not allow its citizens to renounce their passports. Therefore, Ukrainian citizens cannot become Estonian citizens.
If a Ukrainian citizen has submitted an application and fulfilled all other conditions, they can obtain conditional citizenship. This does not grant them full rights. They remain Ukrainian citizens.
Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madis says that the war will not last forever. Therefore, denying Ukrainian citizens an Estonian passport is not against the constitution.
The European Convention states that a country cannot require renunciation of another citizenship if it is impossible. However, Estonia has not joined this convention.
Since the start of the war, more Russian citizens have applied for Estonian citizenship. Russian citizens can still renounce their passports, although the process may take longer.
There are 54,359 Ukrainian citizens living in Estonia. More than half of them fled here because of the war. They cannot apply for citizenship because they have not lived in Estonia long enough.
Last year, 22 Ukrainian citizens received Estonian passports. These were likely those who submitted their applications before the war began.
There are 74,069 Russian citizens living in Estonia. 69,389 of them have a long-term residence permit, which is necessary to obtain an Estonian passport. Last year, 314 Russian citizens received Estonian citizenship.
There are 57,299 people with gray passports in Estonia. Last year, 297 of them received Estonian citizenship.