Denmark Citizenship

People who have lived in Denmark can acquire Denmark citizenship if certain conditions can be met. Immigrants who get married to Danish citizens, work in Denmark or have been studying there can apply for citizenship by naturalization. In this article, I am going to show you how to fill you application form in such a way that many complications are avoided.

Tips.

1. To avoid wasting your time and effort, ensure that your eligibility is not in question. Normally, the minimum residence time required is 9 years under a permanent work permit. However, this period can be shortened to about six years if your spouse is a Dane. However, you must have been married for at least three years for you to qualify for this special consideration. Residents of other Scandinavian countries can apply after only two years.

2. Get in touch with your embassy to give up your current citizenship. In Denmark, citizenship will only be granted after you renounce your present nationality Danish law does not allow dual citizenship. However, certain exceptions can be made for you if you have refugee status or your country allows you to automatically lose your nationality upon taking up another countries citizenship. There also are some countries whose laws do not provide for loss of citizenship e.g. Argentina. Such applicants are given special consideration.

3. After this, check to ensure that you are considered self supporting in the eyes of the Danish law, i.e., you aren’t the recipient of any social benefits. Incase you at some point in the past did receive those benefits; it should have been for a maximum of 6 months.

4. The trickiest part of the application procedure is the citizenship test. Test can either be taken in December or June. Ensure that you get as much information as possible about the tests before enrolling. You can study this manual on Denmark, titled “Danmark før og nu” to help you pass the test.

If you pass the Denmark citizenship test, the way is now clear for you to apply for Denmark citizenship at the closest police station. The government will then take up to 8 months to respond to your application. Once approved, your name should appear in the naturalization bill. By this time, you are as good as a Danish citizen.

Denmark citizenship requirements

There are several was through which a person can acquire Danish nationality. Apart from the acquiring Danish citizenship from parent i.e., by birth, naturalization has become one of the most common ways in which immigrants acquire Danish nationality.

According to the Denmark citizenship requirements, one can be eligible for nationality by birth if both or one of the parents is a Danish citizen at the time of birth. naturalization is however a far more complicated way of becoming a Danish citizen. A number of Denmark citizenship requirements have to be met and a long and complicated application process completed before one can become naturalized.

For one to be eligible for naturalization under the Denmark citizenship requirements, the person must have resided in Denmark for the last 9 years under a permanent work and residence permit. Special considerations exist for special groups of people with regard to this period. People living under refugee status can be allowed to apply for naturalization after only 8 years. This period can even be shorter if the applicant is either married to a Dane, is a Nordic national, or immigrated to Denmark as a minor and has been educated in Denmark.

Another Denmark citizenship requirement is that the applicant has to prove that he can support himself. This means that the applicant should not have benefited from any social support scheme for the past 12 months. The applicant must also prove to have been self supporting for 4 and half years of the recent 5 years before the date of application. However, benefiting from educational grants, old age and anticipatory pensions are not considered as social benefits.

On submitting your application, a fee of DKK 1,000 has to be paid in accordance to the Denmark citizenship requirements. A written examination is also provided to prove that you are a fluent Danish speaker. The exams also test your knowledge of Danish culture, society and history.

Once you have fulfilled all these requirements, you have to renounce your previous citizenship and pledge you allegiance to Denmark and declare that you are willing to observe Danish laws.  Danish laws don’t allow for dual citizenship. You have to prove that you have renounced your previous country or made sufficient effort to do so. You criminal record also has to be disclosed.