Parliament on Friday amended the Croatian Citizenship Act, making it easier for applicants to obtain Croatian citizenship.

A person older than 21 who was born abroad, and one of whose parents was a Croatian citizen at the time of said person’s birth, will be able to become a Croatian citizen if they apply to be registered as such in the next two years and if the Interior Ministry establishes that there are no obstacles to it.

The amended law expands the category of emigrants.

“They wouldn’t be only persons who emigrated from present-day Croatia but also from areas where Croats lived which, at the time of emigration, were in the territory of present-day Croatia,” said Interior Ministry state secretary Zarko Katic.

A person born between 8 January 1977 and 8 October 1991, both of whose parents were Croatian citizens at the time of said person’s birth but who was registered as having a different citizenship, will also be considered a Croatian citizen if they apply to have their citizenship established in the next two years.

The amended law will go into force on January 1.

Parliament also appointed Marija Mackovic of the ruling HDZ to the legislation committee after the appointments committee pulled its nomination of Lovro Kuscevic, the former minister of public administration stripped of immunity at the request of the State Prosecutor’s Office.