Naturalisation

Naturalisation is the legal process by which a foreign national acquires citizenship of a country after fulfilling residency and other statutory requirements. Common requirements include a minimum period of lawful residency, language proficiency, a clean criminal record, and passing a civics test. The required residency period varies widely, ranging from as few as two years in some countries to ten or more years in others. Naturalisation grants the same rights and obligations as citizenship by birth in most jurisdictions.