Law on Secession

USSR, 3 April 1990
[unofficial translation; extracts]

Concerning the procedure of secession of a Soviet Republic from the USSR. The law of the USSR of April 3, 1990 (Register of the Congress of the People’s Deputies of USSR and Supreme Soviet of USSR. 1990, issue No. 13, p. 252)

Article 1: The procedure of secession of a Soviet Republic from the USSR is conducted in accordance with the Article 72 of the Constitution of the USSR under the present Law.

Article 2: The decision on secession of a Soviet Republic from the USSR is made by the will of the people of that Soviet Republic by means of a referendum.

The decision to conduct a referendum is to be ratified by the Supreme Soviet of a Soviet Republic based either on its own will or on the request made by the 10 per cent of permanent residents who have a right to vote according to the USSR laws.

The referendum is to be conducted according to the referendum law of the USSR, referendum law of a given Soviet or autonomous Republic if they do not contradict this law.

The referendum is to be conducted by a secret vote not earlier than 6 months and not later than 9 months after the decision to conduct the secession referendum has been made by a Soviet Republic.

Citizens of the USSR, permanently residing on the territory of the Republic by the time the decision to conduct a referendum is made and who have a right to vote according to the USSR laws, have a right to participate in the referendum.

No agitation on the subject of the referendum is allowed during the course of the referendum.

Article 3: In case the Soviet Republic has autonomous republics, autonomous regions or autonomous territories within its borders, referendums are to be conducted separately in each of the autonomies. The people residing in the autonomies are given a right to independently decide whether to remain in the Soviet Union or in the seceding Republic as well as to decide on their state legal status.

Referendum results are to be considered separately for the territory of a Soviet Republic with a compactly settled ethnic minority population, which constitutes majority on that particular territory of the Republic.

[...] Article 6: Decision of a Soviet Republic to secede from the USSR must be made by means of a referendum if so voted by not less than two-thirds of the citizens of the USSR, who permanently resided on the territory of the Republic and are eligible to vote in accordance with laws of the USSR by the time the decision was made to conduct a referendum on secession from the Soviet Union.

Results of a referendum are to be reviewed by the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Republic. In a republic, which has autonomous republics, autonomous regions, autonomous territories or territories with compactly settled national minority population as mentioned in Article 3 of the present Law within its borders, the results of the referendum are to be reviewed by the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Republic jointly with the Supreme Soviet of the autonomous republic and respective Soviets of People’s Deputies.

The Supreme Soviet of a Soviet Republic then submits the results of the referendum to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Republic which has autonomous republics, autonomous regions, autonomous territories or territories with a compactly settled national minority population within its borders as mentioned in second part of Article 3 of the present Law submits the results for each autonomous republic, autonomous region, autonomous territory or territory with a compactly settled national minority population to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR separately along with necessary conclusions and suggestions made by respective state authorities. If it is verified that the referendum is conducted in accordance with the law, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR takes it to the Congress of the People’s Deputies of USSR for review.