The information that follows was provided during a 16 January 2004 telephone interview with a consular official at the Embassy of Bolivia in Ottawa, and corroborated during a 29 January 2004 telephone interview, based on information received by the Embassy from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bolivia.

For the purposes of naturalization or recovery of Bolivian nationality, "domicile" (domicilio) refers to the legal place of residence of an individual, which can be demonstrated through a "domicile certificate" (certificado de domicilio). To obtain this certificate, the person needs to obtain a form and pay the fee specified for that purpose (especie valorada), and fills in the required information; the police then verifies that the place of residence of the person is in fact the address given, and then issues the certificate.

No period of residence is specified as a pre-requisite for obtaining a domicile certificate. However, a person is required to reside in Bolivia for a certain period of time before being eligible for naturalization (please refer to BOL35164.E of 22 August 2000 for information on naturalization requirements).

For the purposes of naturalization, a foreigner must first obtain a temporary residence permit in Bolivia. Temporary residence cannot be granted abroad; it must be requested and obtained in Bolivia. The period of legal residence required for naturalization is usually counted from the moment the person is granted temporary residence, even if the person arrived earlier and started living at a given address while on a visitor visa (or without a visa, if he or she did not require a visa to enter Bolivia by virtue of their country of origin).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Embassy of Bolivia, Ottawa. 29 January 2004. Telephone interview with consular official.

_____. 16 January 2004. Telephone interview with consular official.