The government of Sweden plans to tighten citizenship rules, thus making the process of acquiring citizenship in this country more difficult.
Recently, the government introduced a decision to overhaul the current system of acquiring citizenship, introducing an investigation into the ways it can most efficiently tighten these rules, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
Swedish citizenship marks membership in Swedish society and has a very high value, both legally and symbolically.Migration Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard
Through a press release published by the Ministry of Justice, the Minister of Migration said that by tightening the requirements for acquiring citizenship, the value of citizenship is also increased.
She stressed that the investigation is an important part of the government’s work to strengthen Swedish citizenship, adding that such changes are also important to promote integration.
According to the recent changes, the investigator must, among others:
- Propose a requirement for longer residence in this country in order to acquire citizenship
- Propose what additional knowledge regarding Swedish society and culture should be needed to require citizenship
- Propose a requirement of self-sufficiency and honest living in order to benefit from Swedish citizenship
“It is not part of the investigator’s mandate to submit proposals for constitutional amendments. The assignment must be reported no later than September 30, 2024,” the statement reads.
In addition, the government of Sweden proposed increasing the period of time one must be a permanent resident in this territory before being eligible to apply for citizenship from the current four to five years to eight years.
These are reasonable requirements that contribute to better integration and that we should now impose on Swedish citizenship.Maria Malmer Stenergard
Once the new changes become effective, Sweden will no longer be considered among the easiest countries for acquiring citizenship. In contrast, it will rank among the countries which apply strict rules for foreigners when it comes to this process.
The minister said that they’re not looking for superhumans, but this is about bringing Sweden in line with the requirements applied in many other countries, stressing that the recent changes will give the country a higher value over time, thus helping internationals to integrate.
At present, in order to acquire citizenship in Sweden, persons should be at the age of 18, be eligible to verify their identity, meet habitual residence requirements, have lived an ordered life in this country and have a permanent residence permit or the right of residence or a residency card.
