Convention on Nationality of Married Women, 1957 — Human Rights Law Notes

Convention on Nationality of Married Women, 1957

Well into the twentieth century, a woman’s nationality was tied to her husband’s — marry a foreigner and you could lose your own citizenship overnight, sometimes ending up stateless. The Convention on the Nationality of Married Women, adopted on 20 February 1957, cut that link and let a woman’s nationality stand on its own.

This is a short, single-issue treaty on a woman’s independent nationality.

A. What it does

The Convention on the Nationality of Married Women was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 20 February 1957 and came into force on 11 August 1958. Its rule is that neither the celebration nor the dissolution of a marriage, nor the husband’s change of nationality during the marriage, shall automatically affect the wife’s nationality. A woman may keep her own nationality regardless of whom she marries.

B. Why it matters and how it links

Before it, women were frequently rendered stateless by marriage (linking this topic to Topic 6). Its principle was later absorbed into CEDAW Article 9, which guarantees women equal rights with men to acquire, change or retain their nationality.

🧩 WORKED EXAMPLE — marriage and lost citizenship

Facts. A woman is told that because she married a foreign national she has automatically lost her own citizenship.

Rule. Under the 1957 Convention, marriage to a foreigner does not by itself change or take away a woman’s nationality.

Apply. Her citizenship cannot lapse automatically merely because of the marriage; any loss must rest on her own free choice, not on the marriage itself.

Conclusion. She retains her nationality; the automatic-loss rule offends the 1957 Convention and CEDAW Article 9.

Convention on the Nationality of Married Women, 1957, Article 1: “neither the celebration nor the dissolution of a marriage between one of its nationals and an alien, nor the change of nationality by the husband during marriage, shall automatically affect the nationality of the wife.”

In Simple Terms: A woman’s citizenship is her own — marrying a foreigner, divorcing, or her husband changing his nationality does not automatically change hers. The 1957 Convention set this rule, and CEDAW Article 9 later reaffirmed it.

flowchart TD
    A["NATIONALITY OF MARRIED WOMEN 1957"]:::root
    A --> B["Rule (Art 1)<br/>marriage/divorce/husband's change<br/>does NOT auto-change wife's nationality"]:::leaf
    A --> C["Purpose<br/>prevent statelessness of women"]:::leaf
    A --> D["Link<br/>absorbed into CEDAW Art 9 (1979)"]:::leaf
    classDef root fill:#FFF8DC,stroke:#000,stroke-width:1px,color:#000;
    classDef leaf fill:#E6F3FF,stroke:#1E3A8A,color:#000;
    linkStyle default stroke:#888,stroke-width:1px;

Case Laws

No leading Indian case on this treaty — answer on the Convention itself and its link to CEDAW Article 9 (1979).

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