Austria is one of the European Union countries that applies some of the toughest rules for foreigners who want to obtain Austrian citizenship.
Data show that more than 750,000 people who have been legally residing in the territory of Austria for over ten years do not hold an Austrian passport. These figures make the country one of the strictest when it comes to granting citizenship, Schengen.News reports.
The official statistical portal of Austria, Statistics Austria, revealed that in recent years, only around six to seven people out of 1,000 non-citizens residing in Austria have been naturalised.
Commenting on such figures, the political scientist Gerd Valchars said for the Standard that if a comparison is made between all EU countries, Austria will be among the top countries with the lowest naturalisation rates.
Such a comment from Valchers came before the election in Austria, in which around 1.5 million people of voting age did not have the right to vote due to a lack of Austrian passport.
Under the current Austrian citizenship law, in general, foreigners are required to legally reside in Austria for at least ten years to be eligible to apply for citizenship. They must meet several other criteria, among others.
Austria Granted Citizenship to 11,050 People in First Half of 2024
In the first six months of 2024, Austria granted citizenship to a total of 11,050 people. This represents a significant increase of 66 per cent compared to the same period in 2023.
According to Statistics Austria, the majority of those who were naturalised during this period were residents of the country.
The same source further revealed that among those who obtained citizenship in the first half of 2024, descendants of people persecuted during the Nazi regime topped the list, with 37 per cent of them becoming holders of the red-white-red passport.
Data from Statistics Austria also disclosed that Syrians were the main nationality that obtained Austrian citizenship in the first half of 2024. During this period, a total of 1,223 Syrians became Austrian citizens.
Syrians were followed by Turks and Afghanis, who obtained 695 and 540 Austrian passports in the first six months of 202, respectively.
Around half of the people naturalised during this period were women, one-third of them were under the age of 18, and one-fifth of them were born in Austria.
Source: https://schengen.news/austria-among-eu-countries-with-toughest-citizenship-rules/
