Moroccans Lead EU Naturalizations in 2022, Eurostat Reports

Out of 989,000 people who acquired a European nationality in 2022 against 827,000 in 2021, there were 112,700 Moroccans who obtained the citizenship of a Member State of the European Union (EU), i.e. 26,500 more people compared to 2021. They opted for Spanish (49.2%), Italian (27.5%) and French (14.3%) nationalities. The Moroccans are followed by the Syrians (90,400 naturalizations). The Albanians complete the top 3, with 50,300 naturalizations.

According to Eurostat, Italy is the country that issued the most passports (213,700 people). Spain (181,600 new citizens) and Germany (166,600 passports issued) follow. With 114,500 new citizens in 2022, a decrease of 15,900 people compared to 2021, France ranks fourth.

As for the naturalization rate - the ratio of foreigners acquiring the nationality of the country where they have been residing for more than a year, it is Romania that tops the ranking with 26.8 citizenships granted for 100 foreign residents. It is followed at a distance by Sweden (10.6), the Netherlands (4.4) and Italy (4.2). As for the lowest naturalization rates, they are recorded in Latvia, Estonia, Bulgaria and Malta.