The second phase of implementing Decree No. 13 of 2026, concerning the granting of Syrian citizenship to Kurds covered by its provisions, began on Sunday, June 28, with personal interviews for applicants starting at four centers in al-Hasakah governorate (northeastern Syria), after the completion of the application intake phase and the initial review of files.
The first phase of interviews targets about 2,892 families, comprising 10,516 individual applications that completed registration procedures during the past period at centers in al-Hasakah, Qamishli, al-Jawadiyah, and al-Malikiyah. The interviews are to be conducted according to prearranged appointments specifying the date and time of review, with all family members required to attend to complete the procedures, whether they are inside Syria or arriving from abroad.
Al-Hasakah is the main center for implementing the decree, after receiving most of the naturalization applications submitted nationwide, while the remaining applications were distributed across the governorates of Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir Ezzor, and Damascus.
Three Stages Inside Interview Centers
Officials overseeing the interview process at the al-Hasakah center told Enab Baladi that the review procedures pass through three consecutive stages, beginning with the reception committee, which verifies applicants’ data using the code granted to them during registration and records their attendance electronically.
After the reception stage is completed, the applicant moves to the fingerprinting and photography committee, where a personal photo matching the approved specifications is taken, along with fingerprints from all fingers on both hands.
The final stage takes place before the interview committee, composed of a judge and assistants. An interview is conducted with the applicant, followed by a review of the file and a decision to accept or reject it. If approved, the data is entered directly into the general civil affairs network.
Officials at the center said registration remains open for one month for people who were unable to register during the previous phase, through a visit to the al-Hasakah governorate building to complete the procedures.
Move to Review Phase
The start of interviews marks a practical shift from the application intake phase to the legal and personal review phase for applicants, after the General Directorate of Civil Affairs announced on June 11 that it had completed collecting applications submitted during the extension period and had begun reviewing them technically and legally in preparation for completing citizenship procedures.
The directorate had allocated the period from June 14 to 18 to publish lists for the first batch of interview appointments through official platforms and state media. It also granted an additional deadline to residents outside the country whose applications were submitted by their relatives, giving them the opportunity to complete the procedures.
Aziz al-Mohammad, civil affairs director in al-Hasakah governorate, previously told Enab Baladi that the first phase of implementing the decree had officially ended after application intake was completed, explaining that the current phase comes after the centers were equipped with the necessary technical equipment, including computers, fingerprinting devices, and photography systems.
He added that the centers include specialized committees tasked with receiving applicants and conducting interviews, ensuring the workflow is organized and waiting times are reduced.
Committees Include Judges and Community Notables
According to al-Mohammad, each committee consists of an advisory judge who heads its work, a civil affairs employee who serves as rapporteur, and one notable from the area, while the Interior Ministry is responsible for issuing the final lists of committee members and their working mechanism.
He explained that the centers are equipped with electronic queue management devices, modern fingerprinting equipment, and specialized teams for photography and data entry, accompanying the committees’ work throughout the interview period.
He said all applicants who completed their applications will receive organized review appointments announced in advance, while some files that contain missing information or unclear data may be postponed until their owners are contacted and the required deficiencies are completed.
He described these cases as “very few” compared with the total number of applications submitted.
Al-Hasakah Leads in Applications
The Syrian Interior Ministry had announced, after the end of the application intake phase, that the specialized committees had received 2,892 family applications, covering 10,516 people across different governorates.
Al-Hasakah governorate recorded the largest number of applications, with 2,772, making it the main governorate in implementing the decree, while the remaining applications were distributed across the governorates of Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir Ezzor, and Damascus.
Before the intake phase ended, the ministry decided to extend the application submission period for an additional 15 days, after the original deadline expired on May 6, with the aim of giving beneficiaries an additional opportunity to complete their files.
Abdullah Abdullah, director of civil affairs in Syria, said at the time that the extension included the al-Hasakah, Qamishli, and al-Jawadiyah centers, to facilitate the completion of legal procedures for beneficiaries.
Addressing a File That Spanned Decades
The path to restoring citizenship is based on Decree No. 13 of 2026, issued by Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on January 16, which stipulates granting Syrian citizenship to citizens of Kurdish origin, including unregistered Kurds, while ending the exceptional measures linked to the 1962 census, which led to tens of thousands of Kurds being stripped of Syrian citizenship for decades.
The decree also includes provisions affirming that Kurdish citizens are an integral part of the Syrian people and guaranteeing their cultural and linguistic rights, including recognizing Kurdish as a national language and allowing it to be taught in Kurdish-majority areas, in addition to criminalizing discrimination on ethnic or linguistic grounds, within a legal framework aimed at strengthening diversity and equality among citizens.
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