Naturalization is a legal act or a legal process that enables a non-citizen of a country to acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. Different countries have different requirements for this, but the residency requirement is the main part in most cases. The residency requirement can range from 1 all the way up to 35 years (in the Central African Republic), but more often it ranges from 5 to 10 years.
Some countries do not allow foreigners to become naturalized citizens at all, such as Palau. China also does not allow it unless you have 1 parent or relative from China.
| Country | Residency Requirement |
| Afghanistan | 5 years |
| Albania | 5 years |
| Algeria | 7 years |
| American Samoa | n/a |
| Andorra | 25 years |
| Angola | 10 years |
| Anguilla | n/a |
| Antigua and Barbuda | 7 years |
| Argentina | 2 years |
| Armenia | 3 years |
| Aruba | n/a |
| Australia | 4 years |
| Austria | 10 years |
| Azerbaijan | 5 years |
| Bahrain | 25 years; 15 years for Arab nationals |
| Bangladesh | 5 years |
| Barbados | 5 years |
| Belarus | 7 years |
| Belgium | 5 years |
| Belize | 5 years |
| Benin | 10 years |
| Bermuda | 10 years |
| Bhutan | 10 years |
| Bolivia | 3 years |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 8 years |
| Botswana | 10 years |
| Brazil | 4 years |
| British Virgin Islands | n/a |
| Brunei | 12 years |
| Bulgaria | 5 years |
| Burkina Faso | 10 years |
| Burma | none |
| Burundi | 10 years |
| Cabo Verde | 5 years |
| Cambodia | 7 years |
| Cameroon | 5 years |
| Canada | minimum of 3 of last 5 years resident in Canada |
| Cayman Islands | n/a |
| Central African Republic | 35 years |
| Chad | 15 years |
| Chile | 5 years |
| China | while naturalization is theoretically possible, in practical terms it is extremely difficult; residency is required but not specified |
| Christmas Island | n/a |
| Cocos Islands | n/a |
| Colombia | 5 years |
| Comoros | 10 years |
| Congo Republic | 10 years |
| Cook Islands | n/a |
| Costa Rica | 7 years |
| Cote d’Ivoire | 5 years |
| Croatia | 5 years |
| Cuba | unknown |
| Curacao | n/a |
| Cyprus | 7 years |
| Czechia | 5 years |
| Denmark | 7 years |
| Djibouti | 10 years |
| Dominica | 5 years |
| Democratic Republic of Congo | 5 years |
| Ecuador | 3 years |
| Egypt | 10 years |
| El Salvador | 5 years |
| Equatorial Guinea | 10 years |
| Eritrea | 20 years |
| Estonia | 5 years |
| Eswatini | 5 years |
| Ethiopia | 4 years |
| Falkland Islands | n/a |
| Faroe Islands | n/a |
| Fiji | at least 5 years residency out of the 10 years preceding application |
| Finland | 6 years |
| France | 5 years |
| French Polynesia | n/a |
| Gabon | 10 years |
| Gambia | 5 years |
| Gaza Strip | n/a |
| Georgia | 10 years |
| Germany | 8 years |
| Ghana | 5 years |
| Gibraltar | n/a |
| Greece | 10 years |
| Greenland | n/a |
| Grenada | 7 years for persons from a non-Caribbean state and 4 years for a person from a Caribbean state |
| Guam | n/a |
| Guatemala | 5 years with no absences of six consecutive months or longer or absences totaling more than a year |
| Guernsey | n/a |
| Guinea | na |
| Guinea-Bissau | 5 years |
| Guyana | na |
| Haiti | 5 years |
| Vatican City | not applicable |
| Honduras | 1 to 3 years |
| Hong Kong | n/a |
| Hungary | 8 years |
| Iceland | 3 to 7 years |
| India | 5 years |
| Indonesia | 5 continuous years |
| Iran | 5 years |
| Iraq | 10 years |
| Ireland | 4 of the previous 8 years |
| Isle of Man | n/a |
| Israel | 3 out of the 5 years preceding the application for naturalization |
| Italy | 4 years for EU nationals, 5 years for refugees and specified exceptions, 10 years for all others |
| Jamaica | 4 out of the previous 5 years |
| Japan | 5 years |
| Jersey | n/a |
| Jordan | 15 years |
| Kazakhstan | 5 years |
| Kenya | 4 out of the previous 7 years |
| Kiribati | 7 years |
| Kosovo | 5 years |
| Kuwait | not specified |
| Kyrgyzstan | 5 years |
| Laos | 10 years |
| Latvia | 5 years |
| Lebanon | unknown |
| Lesotho | 5 years |
| Liberia | 2 years |
| Libya | varies from 3 to 5 years |
| Liechtenstein | 5 years |
| Lithuania | 10 years |
| Luxembourg | 7 years |
| Macau | n/a |
| Madagascar | unknown |
| Malawi | 7 years |
| Malaysia | 10 out 12 years preceding application |
| Maldives | unknown |
| Mali | 5 years |
| Malta | 5 years |
| Marshall Islands | 5 years |
| Mauritania | 5 years |
| Mauritius | 5 out of the previous 7 years including the last 12 months |
| Mexico | 5 years |
| Micronesia | 5 years |
| Moldova | 10 years |
| Monaco | 10 years |
| Mongolia | 5 years |
| Montenegro | 10 years |
| Montserrat | n/a |
| Morocco | 5 years |
| Mozambique | 5 years |
| Namibia | 5 years |
| Nauru | n/a |
| Nepal | 15 years |
| Netherlands | 5 years |
| New Caledonia | n/a |
| New Zealand | 3 years |
| Nicaragua | 4 years |
| Niger | unknown |
| Nigeria | 15 years |
| Niue | n/a |
| Norfolk Island | n/a |
| North Korea | unknown |
| North Macedonia | 8 years |
| Northern Mariana Islands | n/a |
| Norway | 7 years |
| Oman | unknown |
| Pakistan | 4 out of the previous 7 years and including the 12 months preceding application |
| Palau | note – no procedure for naturalization |
| Panama | 5 years |
| Papua New Guinea | 8 years |
| Paraguay | 3 years |
| Peru | 2 years |
| Philippines | 10 years |
| Pitcairn Islands | n/a |
| Poland | 5 years |
| Portugal | 10 years; 6 years if from a Portuguese-speaking country |
| Puerto Rico | n/a |
| Qatar | 20 years; 15 years if an Arab national |
| Romania | 5 years |
| Russia | 3-5 years |
| Rwanda | 10 years |
| Saint Barthelemy | n/a |
| Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha | n/a |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | 14 years |
| Saint Lucia | 8 years |
| Saint Martin | n/a |
| Saint Pierre and Miquelon | n/a |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 7 years |
| Samoa | 5 years |
| San Marino | 30 years |
| Sao Tome and Principe | 5 years |
| Saudi Arabia | 5 years |
| Senegal | 5 years |
| Serbia | 3 years |
| Seychelles | 5 years |
| Sierra Leone | 5 years |
| Singapore | 10 years |
| Sint Maarten | n/a |
| Slovakia | 5 years |
| Slovenia | 10 years, the last 5 of which have been continuous |
| Solomon Islands | 7 years |
| Somalia | 7 years |
| South Africa | 1 year |
| South Korea | 5 years |
| South Sudan | 10 years |
| Spain | 10 years for persons with no ties to Spain |
| Sri Lanka | 7 years |
| Sudan | 10 years |
| Suriname | 5 years |
| Svalbard | n/a |
| Sweden | 5 years |
| Switzerland | 12 years including at least 3 of the last 5 years prior to application |
| Syria | 10 years |
| Taiwan | 5 years |
| Tajikistan | 5 years or 3 years of continuous residence prior to application |
| Tanzania | 5 years |
| Thailand | 5 years |
| Bahamas | 6-9 years |
| Dominican Republic | 2 years |
| Timor-Leste | 10 years |
| Togo | 5 years |
| Tonga | 5 years |
| Trinidad and Tobago | 8 years |
| Tunisia | 5 years |
| Turkey | 5 years |
| Turkmenistan | 7 years |
| Turks and Caicos Islands | n/a |
| Tuvalu | na |
| Uganda | an aggregate of 20 years and continuously for the last 2 years prior to applying for citizenship |
| Ukraine | 5 years |
| United Arab Emirates | 30 years |
| United Kingdom | 5 years |
| United States | 5 years |
| Uruguay | 3-5 years |
| Uzbekistan | 5 years |
| Vanuatu | 10 years |
| Venezuela | 10 years; reduced to five years in the case of applicants from Spain, Portugal, Italy, or a Latin American or Caribbean country |
| Vietnam | 5 years |
| Virgin Islands | n/a |
| Wallis and Futuna | n/a |
| West Bank | n/a |
| Western Sahara | n/a |
| Yemen | 10 years |
| Zambia | 5 years for those with an ancestor who was a citizen of Zambia, otherwise 10 years residency is required |
| Zimbabwe | 5 years |
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