Access to citizenship & its impact on immigrant integration (ACIT)

Determinants of naturalisation?

Co-financed by the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals

Question

• Why do some immigrants who are resident in Europe naturalise, but others not?

– what is the relevance of varying citizenship policies in the context of origin country and individual characteristics?

Citizenship: added value for immigrants

• secure residence status (right of abode)• economic pay-off (eg employability)• social and political incorporation (eg vote)

Marshal 1964; Baubock 1994; OECD 2011; cf. Soysal 1994

Data

• European Social Survey– Pooled dataset of 5 surveys between 2002-2010– 16 European countries (Western Europe)

• First generation immigrants– Persons born outside test country and whose both

parents were also born abroad– Arrived in test country at/after age of 18– At least 5 years residence

• N=7489

% citizenship, by destination country

HDI = Human Development Index of immigrant’s origin country

Explaining naturalization IProbability of having destination country citizenship by level of development of origin country (controlled for gender, age, years of residence, education, employment status)

Immigrants from low HDI country 2.5 times more likely to naturalise

Explaining naturalization II

• In addition to origin, what also matters:– Age and years of residence– Gender and marital status– Education and employment

• mainly for immigrants from low HDI countries

– Language spoken at home– Dual citizenship (origin x destination)– And: citizenship policy

• only for immigrants from low HDI countries

Explaining naturalization III

Immigrants (low HDI) resident 6-10 years: probability increases 20% 60%

Predicted probability of having destination country citizenship by MIPEX Access to Nationality (by years of residence in destination country)

Explaining naturalization: conclusion

• Citizenship take-up influenced primarily by where immigrant is from, but destination country also matters

• Novelty: accessible citizenship policies matter little for immigrants from highly developed countries (it is mainly residence that counts), but matter significantly for immigrants from less developed countries

for the question of how much it matters where one goes, it also matters where one is from

Further reading

• Dronkers, J. and M. Vink (2012). Explaining Access to Citizenship in Europe: How Policies Affect Naturalisation Rates. European Union Politics 13(3) 390-412.

• Vink, M., T. Prokic-Breuer and J. Dronkers (2013). Immigrant naturalization in the context of institutional diversity: policy matters, but to whom? [under review].