Report: Huge spike in Indian immigrants wanting US citizenship
What's the story
A study by the Pew Research Centre has found that India and Ecuador registered the highest spikes in immigrants wanting to become US citizens between 2005-2015. The study focused on immigrants from different countries who were eligible for US citizenship, and tracked how many eligible immigrants had actually opted for US citizenship in the period 2005-2015. Here's what it had to say.
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Eligibility criteria for US citizenship
An immigrant has to be at least 18 years old, and has to have lived in the US as a lawful permanent law-abiding citizen for at least five years (three years if married to a US citizen) to be eligible for US citizenship.
Details
India and Ecuador have seen highest spikes
India and Ecuador both saw a significant increase of almost 12% in the number of eligible immigrants wanting US citizenship between 2005 and 2015. Naturalization rates among Indian immigrants increased from 69% in 2005 to 80% in 2015, while naturalization rates among Ecuadorian immigrants increased from 56% to 68% in the same period.
Naturalization rates
Stagnant or falling naturalization rates among Chinese, Cuban, Honduran immigrants
The study found that the highest naturalization rates in 2015 were found among immigrants from Vietnam (86%) and Iran (85%). Interestingly, the study also found that naturalization rates among immigrants from China, Cuba, and Honduras had either declined or remained stagnant in the period 2005-2015. In the same period, overall naturalization rates among immigrants in the US had increased from 62% to 67%.