Iranian Christian Convert’s Passport Revoked by Foreign Ministry

IranWire has obtained information indicating that the Islamic Republic has revoked the passport of Masoud Taheri, a 48-year-old Iranian Christian convert who has lived in Armenia for seven years. Mr. Taheri is among the Iranians who have been protesting in Armenia against the suppression and killing of Iranians inside the country and the internet blackouts since the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, and particularly following the massacres of January.

On Friday, May 8, he intended to leave Armenia, where he holds legal residency, for a trip using a Schengen visa. However, passport control officers at Yerevan airport informed him that his passport had been revoked and that his travel document had to be confiscated by order of the Islamic Republic’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since then, this citizen has been left in limbo, not even knowing whether he still holds Iranian citizenship.

What does the revocation of passports of protesting citizens and opponents of the Islamic Republic outside Iran signify? Is it legal? Which institution is responsible for the limbo and hardships that Iranian dissidents are grappling with?

Who is Masoud Taheri, and Why Was His Passport Confiscated?

Mr. Taheri, 48, was born in Tehran, is married, and is the father of two children. He is a Christian convert who, seven years ago, was arrested and prosecuted by the Islamic Republic’s Ministry of Intelligence due to his beliefs. In December 2020, he was ultimately released from detention on bail and left Iran to immigrate to Armenia before his trial. IranWire has reviewed documents showing that he was previously prosecuted by the Public and Revolutionary Court of District 9 in Mashhad on charges of “propaganda against the regime of the Islamic Republic.”

He now operates a fish farm in Armenia and manages a Lutheran church. Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestant Christianity, following the theological beliefs of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and theologian.

According to Masoud Taheri, due to his occupation and church management, he has been able to obtain Schengen visas and travel to Europe several times over these years. However, due to his business, he always returned to Armenia. Holding only an Iranian passport up to this point, his residency in Armenia was work-based through a registered company. He had most recently received a visa from Spain and, according to his pre-arranged plans, intended to travel to Barcelona from Yerevan airport on Friday, May 8. However, passport control officers stopped him and subsequently informed him through an interpreter that the Islamic Republic had revoked his passport and requested that they confiscate it and forward it to the Islamic Republic Embassy in Yerevan.

He is certainly not the only individual whose passport has been revoked. Several other Iranian citizens in Armenia are currently facing a similar predicament but have requested anonymity due to security concerns.

Armenia is not the only country where the passports of Iranians have been revoked over the past five months without their knowledge. Since the onset of the war involving Israel, the United States, and Iran, the Judiciary of the Islamic Republic has orchestrated a campaign of property confiscation and citizenship revocation targeting its opponents abroad, almost globally, particularly in Europe.

Reports regarding property confiscations are numerous. In recent weeks, the Judiciary has announced the seizure of assets belonging to dissident Iranians residing abroad almost daily. Celebrated figures are also among them, including Borzou Arjmand, an Iranian cinema actor who has lived in the United States for several years. Apart from property confiscations, reports had previously surfaced regarding the seizure of passports of several other protesting citizens in European countries; citizens who, for the most part, spent their weekends standing outside Islamic Republic embassies worldwide or in the centers of their host cities, projecting the voice of the Iranian people to the public opinion of those nations amidst the digital blackout back home. Regarding this matter, Maryam Ebrahimvand, a filmmaker and former political prisoner, had previously stated: “I received a call from the Iranian embassy informing me that my citizenship had been revoked by order of judicial authorities and that the system does not allow them to provide any services to me.”

“They Stripped Me of My Identity Without Granting Me the Right to Defend Myself”

Mr. Taheri has been left in limbo since his passport was confiscated. He states that there is a possibility that the Armenian immigration system could create difficulties for him without a passport, despite the fact that he holds a valid work residency for his years in the country.

According to him, certain procedures, including banking transactions in Armenia, can only be conducted with a passport, and given that he owns a business in the country, he is facing serious hurdles.

He mentions that before this incident, he and his friends had discovered through certain channels that they were under judicial prosecution in Iran due to participating in protests and requesting permits to hold rallies in Armenia. The pressures did not stop there; the National Security Service of Armenia summoned them and warned them of imminent threats to their lives and security: “Following the death of Khamenei, the Armenian Security Service held a meeting with us and requested that we completely cease holding rallies. They warned us that they had received intelligence indicating our lives were in danger. They suggested that if possible, we leave Armenia for a while, to which I replied that I could not do so due to my job. They offered the other guys that they could purchase tickets for them if they had financial difficulties. They said it matters to them that nothing happens to any Iranian, whether opponent or supporter, on Armenian soil, because it compromises their own security. Ultimately, they extracted a promise from us not to engage in public activities and to minimize our movements and operations.”

Pointing to the continuity of these sessions in recent months, he says: “During this period, they summoned us once a month, and we attended. They spoke about security matters. Last Friday, I had a flight to Barcelona, and I realized at the airport that this had occurred. Truthfully, I used to think that, at worst, we just wouldn’t be able to renew our passports. I always said it would definitely not come to this. My passport still had over two years of validity.”

Stating that “the Islamic Republic is using this method to suffocate us and instill fear in the hearts of its opponents,” the Iranian citizen adds: “Our protest was against the internet shutdown and the slaughter and suppression of the people. We were the voice of the Iranian people; when the internet is cut off, and the world cannot hear our people’s voice or see the events in Iran, we printed photos so we could raise awareness through that medium. Especially in Armenia, because the reaction of Armenian society has been highly conservative. The media portrays it as if these individuals were killed in a conventional war. There was talk claiming that these youths were killed by Israelis.”

Reflecting on his right to identity and citizenship, Masoud Taheri concludes: “This is another type of crime committed by the Islamic Republic in silence. It is truly difficult for me. Imagine that, without any prior notice, and without any trial, without me even being able to defend myself, they used their state power to strip me of my identity.”

Are Those Whose Passports Are Revoked Stranded from Their Citizenship?

On social networks, users close to the regime occasionally name dissidents and call on Islamic Republic officials to strip them of their citizenship and seize their assets, an action that is, in reality, virtually impossible from a legal standpoint.

According to Iranian law, the revocation of Iranian citizenship by the state or government is by no means permissible under Article 41 of the Constitution and relevant statutory laws. Citizenship is an inherent right of every Iranian, and this legal bond can only be severed in two specific scenarios: voluntary renunciation or the acquisition of a new citizenship.

The renunciation of citizenship at an individual’s request is possible under Article 988 of the Civil Code. Iranian nationals can request to renounce their citizenship and have it approved only under specific conditions, such as reaching the full age of 25, obtaining authorization from the Council of Ministers, and, for men, completing mandatory military service. This process has another prerequisite: the individual requesting the renunciation must commit to transferring all of their rights and immovable property (real estate) in Iran to Iranian nationals within one year of the date of renunciation.

However, based on Article 41 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic, if an Iranian national acquires the citizenship of another country without fulfilling the legal formalities for renunciation, Iranian law does not recognize their foreign citizenship. The individual is still considered an Iranian national under Iranian law, though the Iranian government can strip such individuals of specific privileges, such as the ownership of immovable property.

In the past, under Article 981 of the Civil Code, a punitive measure known as the “revocation of citizenship” existed for those who acted against national security. However, this article was repealed in 1991, and today, the revocation of citizenship does not exist as a criminal or political punishment within the Iranian legal system.

Musa Barzin, a lawyer and legal advisor to IranWire, explains that cases where a passport is revoked, or an individual is denied services at a consulate, do not equate to the revocation of citizenship; rather, they usually manifest as being “barred from services” or passport invalidation for various reasons.

He emphasizes that while invalidating a passport is legally possible, it is restricted to highly specific scenarios: “We do not have a legal provision stating a passport can be revoked due to political protest. Meaning, they cannot do it. For instance, if someone obtained a passport using forged documents, forged a required consent form, or gave a bribe to obtain it, and these facts are discovered, they can subsequently invalidate the passport. But a passport that was legally and properly issued at the time of issuance cannot be retroactively revoked. Therefore, what we are witnessing is an illegal act, and we have nothing in the law termed ‘deprivation of services’ or ‘cancellation of a passport,’ even though this does not mean the individual’s citizenship itself has been revoked.”

Mohammad Oliaeifard, another lawyer and legal advisor to IranWire, also notes that revoking citizenship is not that simple, emphasizing that stripping citizenship applies exclusively to dual citizens and those holding multiple nationalities.

Referring to Article 41 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic, he states: “It is anticipated in the Constitution, but we do not have the corresponding ordinary (statutory) law for it. This means that right now, even if someone is a dual national, they cannot strip them of their citizenship. The gentleman you mentioned (Masoud Taheri) is not even a dual national. Therefore, the issue of citizenship does not apply to him whatsoever.”

According to Mr. Oliaeifard, “Even if the issue of citizenship were to be raised regarding dual nationals, a court would have to make that decision. Therefore, his case is not about the revocation of citizenship. The issue is that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and security agents identified him in Armenia, reported him to the Judiciary, and a case was opened against him in the Judiciary. Based on that case, the Judiciary ordered the invalidation and confiscation of his passport.”

The attorney stresses: “Of course, even if a case has been opened against him in the Judiciary, they can only refuse to issue him a new passport. Invalidation of a person’s passport while it is still valid, even if they have an active judicial case, is entirely illegal.”