Guidelines on the Princess Rule

Children born in marriage to a Danish mother and a foreign father during the period 1st January 1961 to 31st December 1978 did not obtain Danish nationality by birth.

As an alternative, between 1979 and 1981 Danish mothers were able to register their children under 18 as Danish nationals, cf. s. 2(2) of Act No. 117 of 19th March 1978.

Children born between 1961 and 1978, whose mothers did not register their children, can apply for Danish nationality by naturalisation according to the “Princess Rule”.

It is a condition that the general requirements for obtaining Danish nationality by naturalisation are fulfilled. This means that an applicant, who has been convicted of an offence, cannot be naturalised until after a certain period of time, and that the applicant must not owe money to the Danish authorities.

In addition, applicants must be able to take part in an ordinary conversation in Danish. It is not a condition, that applicants can read or write Danish, and they do not have to pass a Danish or nationality test.

It is furthermore a condition, that the applicant has been staying in Denmark (not necessarily residing (= registered in the CPR Register), but visiting) under circumstances indicating some association with the country. In general, one year's stay in total before the age of 22 is required. It is not a requirement that applicants have a CPR number in order to apply. 

Applications should be sent direct to the Danish Nationality Office in Copenhagen:

Udlændinge- og Integrationsministeriet
Indfødsretskontoret
Slotsholmsgade 10
DK-1216 Copenhagen K
Denmark

Email: [email protected]

However, the embassy can assist with a test to assess applicants' Danish skills. Please write to the Embassy's main mailbox [email protected] to arrange this. The Embassy charges an hourly fee for this service, which you can find on our website via this link.  

Please contact Indfødsretskontoret for further advice (it is advisable to call rather than write, as the response time is very long for emails and letters):

Tel. +45 7226 8700
Monday - Friday 11-12 (Bulgarian time)

You can, however, also submit the application through the Embassy, but the following fees would apply (in addition to the application charge paid direct to the Ministry):

BGN 75 for the Embassy to submit the application and forward the Certificate of Nationality to the applicant at the conclusion of the application. The application will not be checked. If you choose this method, further charges may apply, for example if further correspondence with the Ministry for Aliens and Integration is necessary:

BGN 296 per hour or part thereof for the Embassy to undertake the whole application and any correspondence with the Ministry for Aliens and Integration.