Record number of Ukrainians acquired Romanian citizenship in 2016; close to 30,000 Romanians naturalised in other EU member states

Around 4,000 Ukrainians received Romanian citizenship in 2016, a record number, while almost 30,000 Romanians acquired citizenship of other member states of the European Union, Eurostat data show. 

Romania granted citizenship to 4,527 persons in 2016, up 73 percent compared with 2015. Ukrainians acquired 89.1 percent (around 4,000) of the Romanian citizenships granted in 2016, followed by Turks (3.1 percent) and Syrians (1.5 percent).

Eurostat data don’t include Romanian citizenships granted to citizens of the Republic of Moldova, which are officialy considered former Romanian citizens reclaiming their citizenship, being subjects of special legislation. According to unofficial data, more than 500,000 Moldavians received Romanian citizenship during the last decades.

The rising number of Ukrainians which received Romanian citizenship increased Romania’s naturalisation rate.

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“In 2016, the highest naturalisation rates were registered in Croatia (9.7 citizenships granted per 100 resident foreigners), Sweden (7.9) and Portugal (6.5), followed by Romania and Greece (both 4.2), Finland and Italy (both 4.1),” Eurostat says.

But Romania is the 6th country of origin of the recipients of an EU citizenship, 29,700 Romanians being naturalised in other EU member states (up from 28,400 in 2015), after the citizens of Morocco (101,300), Albania (67,500), India (41,700), Pakistan (32,900) and Turkey (32,800).

“Romanians (29,700 persons) and Poles (19,800) were the two largest groups of EU citizens acquiring citizenship of another EU Member State,” Eurostat indicates.

Romanians acquired foreign citizenship in 2016 mainly in Italy (43.6 percent of the total number of EU citizenships granted to Romanians), Germany (12.9 percent) and Hungary (9.7 percent).

Around 995,000 persons acquired citizenship of a EU member state in 2016, up from 841,000 in 2015 and 889,000 in 2014, according to Eurostat.