Shura to Debate Bar on Court Review of Nationality Cases

Decree-Law No. 13 of 2024 amends Article 7 of the Judicial Authority Law issued under Decree-Law No. 42 of 2002, classifying nationality matters as sovereign acts linked to state security and national interests. The proposed changes would prevent courts from reviewing decisions related to granting, withdrawing, revoking or restoring Bahraini nationality.

The decree-law also repeals Article 11 bis of the 1963 Bahraini Nationality Law, which previously required the Interior Ministry to be included in nationality-related lawsuits for rulings to be enforceable.

According to the committee’s report, nationality matters fall under the executive authority’s sovereign powers rather than administrative actions subject to judicial review. The report cited constitutional principles and legal precedents from Bahrain and other Gulf countries, including Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and the UAE, where nationality decisions are similarly treated as sovereign matters.