Ukrainian Journalist Denied Icelandic Citizenship Over Document Dispute

Ukrainian journalist Ihor Stakh, who sought refuge in Iceland in 2019 after facing persecution for his investigative reporting on corruption, is encountering obstacles in his application for Icelandic citizenship. The Directorate of Immigration has requested an original criminal record certificate from Ukraine, a document Stakh fears he cannot safely obtain.

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I received a response last week to the application for Icelandic citizenship that I submitted to the Directorate of Immigration a year and a half ago.

Stakh, originally from Chernihiv, a city near the Russian border, was granted international protection in Iceland in 2020. After residing in the country for four years, he became eligible to apply for citizenship, which he submitted in late 2024. He has since pursued higher education in Iceland, completing a bachelor's degree in Icelandic as a second language and undertaking master's studies in mathematics. He has also worked as a mathematics teacher and currently teaches Icelandic to Ukrainian immigrants.

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In Ukraine, the police issue an electronic criminal record certificate that one orders from their website. I did that and received the certificate.

The core of the issue lies in the Directorate's demand for a physical, original criminal record certificate. Stakh explains that Ukrainian authorities issue electronic certificates, which he has obtained and had translated into Icelandic. However, the Directorate insists on a paper original, which Ukrainian police do not mail abroad. To acquire such a document, Stakh would need to travel to Ukraine, a prospect he finds impossible due to the danger he believes he would face there.

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The Directorate of Immigration has now demanded the original paper document from Ihor. I cannot provide that because the Ukrainian police do not send original criminal record certificates abroad; I would have to go to Ukraine myself and get the certificate, which I cannot do.

Stakh finds this situation particularly ironic, given that his previous reporting on corruption in Ukraine led to him being granted international protection by the same immigration authorities. He fears that returning to his home country, where he believes he is at risk, would jeopardize his safety, making the requirement for a physical document a significant and potentially insurmountable hurdle in his pursuit of Icelandic citizenship.

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That is the reason I received international protection in Iceland; I was a journalist in Ukraine, investigated corruption there, and the Directorate of Immigration granted me international protection at the time because of this.