Which countries give citizenship through a great-grandparent?

A great-grandparent is where most citizenship-by-descent claims run out. Many countries stop at grandparents, and Italy — for decades the best-known great-grandparent route — closed it to new applicants in March 2025. But a great-grandparent can still carry a claim in three situations: the law reaches great-grandchildren by name, the law has no generational limit and every link held, or your parent claims first and passes it on.

Below is where each European country stands in 2026, taken from our individual country guides. Follow the country link for the documents, costs and catches.

Countries whose law reaches great-grandchildren

These name great-grandchildren (or the “third degree”) directly. Some ask for a language test or time living there.

• Lithuania

  Restoration for children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of people who held Lithuanian citizenship before 15 June 1940. No language test or residence. The law stops at great-grandchildren.

• Slovakia

  A grant under Section 7(8) if a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent was a Czechoslovak citizen born in present-day Slovakia. No language test, and since 15 July 2026 no Slovak residence permit.

• Romania

  Article 11 reaches descendants of former Romanian citizens to the third degree. No residence needed and you keep your citizenship, but since 15 March 2025 you need B1 Romanian.

• Bulgaria

  Bulgarian origin can be proved up to a great-grandparent with official records (not further back since the 2021 amendment). Dual citizenship allowed.

• Albania

  Law 113/2020 covers people of Albanian origin to the third degree in the direct line, with no residence required.

• Moldova

  Law 253/2025 recognises descendants of people born in Moldova up to a great-grandparent; adults need B2 Romanian and a Constitution test.

• Montenegro

  Article 10 covers emigrants’ family to the third degree — but only after two years’ lawful residence in Montenegro.

• Slovenia

  Emigrants’ descendants up to the fourth generation can apply under Article 13 after living in Slovenia for a year.

• Ukraine

  A facilitated naturalization (territorial origin) if a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent was born or lived on today’s Ukrainian territory before 24 August 1991.

Countries with no generational limit

Here a great-grandparent — or someone further back — works, as long as citizenship actually passed down each generation. The question is less “how far back?” than “did anyone lose it on the way?”

• Latvia

  Descendants of anyone who was a Latvian citizen on 17 June 1940, with no generational limit — if you can document every link. Whether you keep your other passport depends on whether your ancestor was an exile.

• Estonia

  Descendants of people who held Estonian citizenship before 16 June 1940 are citizens by birth, generally including great-grandchildren, without a language test.

• Croatia

  Article 11 has no generational limit, but the emigrant ancestor must have left Croatian territory before 8 October 1991. No residence or language test.

• Hungary

  Simplified naturalization has no generational limit and no residence requirement, but you must hold a conversation in Hungarian with the official.

• Poland

  No generational limit, but the chain must run unbroken from the 1920 anchor — naturalization abroad before 1951 often broke it (with a military-age exception).

• Germany

  Ordinary descent has no limit in principle, but ancestors who emigrated before about 1904 usually lost citizenship under the ten-year rule. Article 116(2) restoration for Nazi-era persecution has no generational limit.

• Austria

  The §58c route for descendants of Nazi persecution victims (who left before 15 May 1955) has no generational limit, no language test and no residence requirement.

• Luxembourg

  Article 7 can reach a great-grandparent or earlier ancestor if the line is documented — but nationality passed mainly through fathers (mothers only for children born from 1 January 1969), so these cases need specialist checking.

• Greece

  If each generation was Greek by birth, you can usually register each generation in turn — no generational limit.

• Malta

  Any generation can register through a Malta-born ancestor whose parent was also born in Malta.

• Serbia

  Article 18 covers emigrants and their descendants with no generational cut-off written into the law.

• Kosovo

  Direct descendants of anyone habitually resident in Kosovo on 1 January 1998, any generation.

• Armenia

  Article 13 simplified naturalization for anyone descended from an ethnic Armenian, with no generational limit and no residence requirement.

Countries where a great-grandparent isn’t enough on its own

Here you’d need a closer link, or for your parent to claim first.

• Italy

  Closed to new applicants since 27 March 2025: you now need a parent or grandparent who held only Italian citizenship. Great-grandparent claims survive only under the transitional rules for applications filed or booked by the cutoff.

• Ireland

  Only if your parent registered in the Foreign Births Register before you were born. If they registered after your birth, the great-grandparent can’t help you.

• Portugal

  Since 2026 great-grandchildren can only be granted naturalization at the government’s discretion after five years’ legal residence in Portugal. The usual route is for your parent to claim as a grandchild first.

• Czech Republic

  The declaration route covers children and grandchildren only; a great-grandchild extension had not been enacted as of September 2026.

• Spain

  Through a parent only. The grandchildren’s law (Democratic Memory Law) closed in October 2025.

• United Kingdom

  Citizenship by descent usually stops at the first generation born abroad.

How to check your own great-grandparent claim

1. Pin down where and when they were a citizen. Borders moved: a great-grandparent from Transylvania before 1918 was Austro-Hungarian, not Romanian; one from Bohemia points to the Czech route, not the Slovak one.
2. Find their naturalization date, if any. In most countries, naturalizing abroad before your grandparent was born ended the line. Our guide to proving an ancestor never naturalized covers the records.
3. Collect a record for every link. Birth, marriage and death certificates for each generation — see the document chain guide.
4. Check the closer route too. If your parent or grandparent qualifies, their claim may be simpler and can then reach you.

The free eligibility checker asks these questions for each country, and the requirements table compares the rules side by side.

Frequently asked questions