ביקורת/ערעור על החלטות אזרחות

Standing to invoke this remedy is defined by the adverse act, not by the claimant’s nationality, age or residence. Two classes of person hold the right of appeal. (1) A REFUSED APPLICANT — any person (foreigner or stateless) whose request for acquisition (fitim), reacquisition (rifitim) or renunciation (heqje dorë) of Albanian citizenship has been rejected. Where post-verification the Ministry concludes the statutory conditions are not met, it notifies the interested person of the refusal, “Refuzimi bëhet me akt administrativ të ministrit,” and it is precisely “personi që ka paraqitur kërkesën” — the person who lodged the request — who “mund të bëjë ankim” against that act ( Neni 18 pika 5). Neni 19/1 confirms the same standing for the named-venue channel, reaching the administrative act that decides the “mospranimin e kërkesës” for fitim, rifitim or heqje dorë ( Ligj 77/2023 Neni 7). (2) A DEPRIVED CITIZEN — a naturalised Albanian whose citizenship is removed without request under Neni 15 (falsified documents used to acquire citizenship, or support for / membership of organisations targeting national security and the constitutional order). Neni 15(5) vests the right of appeal in “shtetasi” — the citizen — against the deprivation decree ( Neni 15 pika 5). The Naumov facts illustrate a historically important corollary: even before the specialised administrative courts, a person stripped of citizenship by presidential decree had standing to sue for annulment — Naumov, a naturalised former Bulgarian ambassador, obtained annulment of the revoking decree. No residence, age, means or fee condition gates the right to seek review itself; the only external limits are the statutory time-limits “të përcaktuara në legjislacionin përkatës në fuqi.” As of 2026-07-11.

The review runs as an ordinary administrative-court action, not a bespoke citizenship procedure. STEP 1 — the adverse act. For refusals, the Ministry (through the local State Police structures or the diplomatic/consular mission that received the request) notifies the applicant and issues the refusal as “akt administrativ të ministrit” ( Neni 18 pika 5). For deprivations, the Ministry, on learning a citizen falls under Neni 15, cooperates with the responsible law-enforcement institutions to verify the information and then forwards to the President “propozimin për nxjerrjen e dekretit për heqjen e shtetësisë” ( Neni 19 pika 2); deprivation is then effected by presidential decree. STEP 2 — the appeal. The affected person lodges an ankim/padi before the competent administrative court “në përputhje me afatet e përcaktuara në legjislacionin përkatës në fuqi” ( Neni 15 pika 5 and Neni 18 pika 5;). Since 21.6.2024 the refusal channel names the forum expressly: the act “mund të ankimohet pranë gjykatës administrative të shkallës së parë Tiranë” ( Ligj 77/2023 Neni 7, adding Neni 19/1). STEP 3 — competence and venue. The administrative courts are subject-matter competent for “mosmarrëveshjet që lindin nga aktet administrative individuale.. të nxjerra gjatë ushtrimit të veprimtarisë administrative nga organi publik” ( Ligj 49/2012 Neni 7 shkronja a); territorial competence lies with the first-instance court covering the territory where the public body performed the contested act — “Paditë kundër veprimit administrativ shqyrtohen në gjykatën administrative të shkallës së parë, që përfshin territorin, në të cilin organi publik ka kryer veprimin administrativ që kundërshtohet” ( Neni 11 pika 1;) — which, for Ministry and Presidential acts seated in the capital, is the Tirana court. The specific limitation periods and pleading rules are those of Law 49/2012 and the Administrative Procedure framework, not Law 113/2020. As of 2026-07-11.

The right to challenge an adverse Albanian citizenship decision is built into Law 113/2020 “Për shtetësinë” itself and is exercised before the specialised administrative courts created by Law 49/2012. Two statutory hooks anchor the remedy. First, on a REFUSAL of an application for acquisition, reacquisition or renunciation, Ligj 113/2020 Neni 18(5) casts the refusal as an administrative act of the Minister and provides that “Kundër këtij akti, personi që ka paraqitur kërkesën mund të bëjë ankim në gjykatën kompetente administrative, në përputhje me afatet e përcaktuara në legjislacionin përkatës në fuqi” ( Neni 18 pika 5). Second, on DEPRIVATION of citizenship (heqja e shtetësisë), Neni 15(5) grants the citizen the same right: “Kundër dekretit për heqjen e shtetësisë shqiptare, shtetasi ka të drejtë të bëjë ankim në gjykatën kompetente administrative” ( Neni 15 pika 5). Judicial review of citizenship refusals and deprivations therefore existed from the day Law 113/2020 entered into force on 14.10.2020. Ligj 77/2023 later added Neni 19/1 “E drejta për rishikim,” which merely NAMED the venue — the Administrative Court of First Instance Tirana — for refusal appeals ( Ligj 77/2023 Neni 7), operative 21.6.2024; it did not create a remedy that Neni 18(5) had not already supplied. The subject-matter competence of the administrative courts over such individual administrative acts flows from Ligj 49/2012 Neni 7 shkronja “a”. Constitutionally, the President’s power to grant and revoke citizenship (Kushtetuta Neni 92, as recited in Naumov) has long been treated as justiciable in the domestic courts. As of 2026-07-11 this three-layer basis — 113/2020 + 77/2023 + 49/2012 — is operative.

Several institutions act along this remedy’s chain. THE DECIDING AUTHORITIES whose acts are challenged: the Minister responsible for public order and security, whose “akt administrativ” refuses an application ( Neni 18 pika 5); and the President of the Republic, who issues the grant/reacquisition/renunciation decree and, on the Ministry’s proposal, the deprivation decree ( Neni 19 pika 2). The President’s dual power to grant and revoke citizenship is the constitutional anchor recited in Naumov as Kushtetuta Neni 92. THE REVIEWING COURTS are the specialised administrative courts established by Ligj 49/2012: the Administrative Court of First Instance (Gjykata Administrative e Shkallës së Parë), expressly the Tirana court for citizenship-refusal appeals since Neni 19/1 ( Ligj 77/2023 Neni 7); above it the Administrative Court of Appeal (Gjykata Administrative e Apelit) and the Administrative College of the Supreme Court (Kolegji Administrativ i Gjykatës së Lartë), whose competence and territorial rules are fixed by Ligj 49/2012 Neni 7 and Neni 11. These courts began functioning simultaneously from a date set — per Neni 70 — “me dekret të Presidentit të Republikës, me propozimin e Ministrit të Drejtësisë,” namely 4.11.2013 ( Neni 70). SUPPORTING INSTITUTIONS in the underlying process include the local State Police structures and the diplomatic/consular missions that receive requests, and the “institucionet përgjegjëse ligjzbatuese” that verify the information grounding a deprivation ( Neni 19). At Strasbourg, the European Court of Human Rights is the external forum whose Naumov doctrine caps Article 6 review of citizenship proceedings. As of 2026-07-11.

Because this route sits astride the deprivation regime, its effects turn on the deprivation mechanics of Neni 15. Deprivation without request is available on two grounds only: proven use of falsified documents to acquire citizenship (Neni 15(1)(a)), and support for or membership of organisations whose activity targets the national security and constitutional order of the Republic (Neni 15(1)(b)); the falsified-documents ground carries a 10-year limitation running from the taking of the oath, and the security ground reaches only persons who acquired citizenship by naturalisation and provided the person is not left stateless ( Neni 15). Deprivation is effected “me dekret të Presidentit të Republikës,” and its TIMING is precise: the person “pushon së qenuri shtetas shqiptar në momentin e komunikimit të dekretit” and, exceptionally, if the decree cannot be communicated, upon its publication in the Fletorja Zyrtare ( Neni 15 pika 4). Two protective consequences follow. First, deprivation “nuk ka efekt për fëmijët e shtetasit, të cilit i hiqet shtetësia” — it does not reach the citizen’s children ( Neni 15 pika 6). Second, the decree is not the last word: the citizen may appeal it to the competent administrative court within the statutory time-limits (Neni 15(5)), and a successful appeal — as Naumov demonstrates — produces annulment of the decree and confirmation of citizenship, restoring the status as though never lost rather than re-granting it afresh. The route’s consequence in the refusal setting is different in kind: a successful challenge quashes the Minister’s refusal act and returns the request for lawful re-decision, without the court itself conferring citizenship. As of 2026-07-11.

PRIMARY (decoded verbatim).: Ligj 113/2020 “Për shtetësinë,” FZ 2020/174 — OPERATIVE base for the remedy (Neni 15 pika 4–6 deprivation mechanics + appeal; Neni 18 pika 5 refusal appeal; Neni 19 pika 2 deprivation proposal).: Ligj 77/2023, FZ 2024/95 (6.6.2024) — Neni 7 adds Neni 19/1 “E drejta për rishikim” (Tirana Administrative Court of First Instance venue); Neni 9 EIF 15 days after publication (21.6.2024).: Vendim i Kuvendit 43/2024, FZ 2024/83 — parliamentary decision in the 77/2023 chain.: Naumov v. Albania (dec.), no. 10513/03, ECtHR Fourth Section, 4.1.2005 (HUDOC 001-68206) — domestic justiciability of revocation decrees + Article 6 ratione materiae inapplicability.: Ligj 49/2012 “Për organizimin dhe funksionimin e gjykatave administrative” — Neni 7 (subject-matter competence), Neni 11 (territorial competence), Neni 70 (start of functioning by presidential decree).: Ligj 49/2026 — W6c era context (acquisition-criteria changes; no effect on the review chain). EVIDENCE:,,. Supporting sources:/069/077/078/109/114/115/116/119/120. All primary pins T1, verbatim-verified in _primary_texts. Not legal advice; verify current time-limits under the Administrative Procedure / Ligj 49/2012 framework before relying. As of 2026-07-11.