[17] Human rights organizations have formally commented upon the discriminatory nature of the nationality statutes as well as the lack of provisions regarding Liberia's international legal obligations under treaties and conventions the country has executed.

[21] General provisions for naturalization include that the applicant has attained legal majority (age twenty-one) and is of good and moral character; that they reject anarchy and believe in the principles of the constitution; and that they can demonstrate that they have established at least a two-year residency in the country.

[22][23] Applicants are required to renounce prior nationalities and swear an Oath of Allegiance to uphold the laws and constitution of Liberia and defend the republic.

[29][28] For naturalized persons, denaturalization can occur if they reside outside Liberia for an extended period of time;[30] if they commit a crime against state security or disloyal acts; or if they obtained nationality through fraud, false representation, or concealment.

[28] Similarly, a child born abroad in a country that automatically confers nationality based on jus soli to two Liberian parents would not have to renounce their foreign status.

[38] Seven years later, Fernão Gomes, a Lisbon merchant, was granted a contract by Afonso V of Portugal to explore the West African coastline from Sierra Leone to Cameroon.

[43] In the seventeenth century, the Dutch established a trading post at Cape Mount, and English, French, and German traders began to operate in the area.

These groups did not create unified states, but traditionally lived in autonomous villages, characterized by patrilineal descent which engaged in fishing and farming.

[47] Between 1815 and 1821 numerous attempts to resettle free people of color on the Pepper Coast failed and negotiations for suitable land were unsuccessful.

[55] In each case, negotiations to acquire land were difficult as the Africans did not want to allow the colonists to curtail the slave trade in their territory, as it was the main driver of their economies.

[58] In 1839, the colonists of the various coastal settlements decided to form the Liberian Commonwealth in an effort to unify their policies and provide for mutual protection.

[2] Liberated slaves, referred to as Congos or recaptives, were from various places in Africa and were brought to Liberia and Sierra Leone and freed.

[63] Between 1858 and 1874, explorers from Monrovia traveled from the coast to the interior of Liberia making treaties with the aboriginal people for friendship and trade and negotiate the purchase of land to extend the territory of the republic.

[67][68] To prevent European acquisition of territory in Liberia during the Scramble for Africa (1880–1890), the Republic built a series of forts to protect a chain of settlements which had been established after their earlier explorations.

[70] From 1904, the government shifted its policies toward the indigenous people from assimilation to indirect rule, allowing the Liberian Frontier Force and chieftains of the interior latitude to administer the territory beyond Monrovia.

[74][75] Non-Negroes were prohibited from becoming nationals of the territory and women who married foreigners lost their Liberian status, but could repatriate upon termination of the marriage.

[74] A Supreme Court decision in Williams v. Young and an opinion issued by the Attorney General of Liberia on 18 December 1922, determined that denaturalization of a woman by marriage to a foreigner was unconstitutional and that her status could not be changed without her consent.

[76] Finally in 1945, their status was changed from being non-citizen nationals of the republic and the Liberian Constitution was amended to extend the franchise to all African males, upon reaching their majority, who paid their hut tax.

Children born abroad were required to reside in Liberia or to take an Oath of Allegiance upon reaching majority to retain their Liberian status.

[11][13] Though Liberia promised to amend its nationality statutes and remove provisions that were inconsistent with human rights treaties in 2011,[13] the 1973 law remains in force.

[91] In July 2022, President Weah signed an amendment to the Alien and Nationality Law allowing dual citizenship for Liberians specifically of "Negro descent".