Naturalisations doubled to 4 865 in the first quarter of 2022; almost 40% of the newly naturalised are descendants of Nazi victims

Press release: 12.812-110/22

Vienna,2022-05-19 - In the first three months of 2022, Austrian citizenship was granted to 4 865 persons, including 1 925 persons residing abroad. According to Statistics Austria, this means that there were more than twice as many naturalisations as in the same quarter of the previous year (2 402 naturalisations). Compared to before the Corona pandemic (first quarter 2019: 2 764 naturalisations), there was also an increase of 76%. This rise is primarily due to naturalisations under §58c StbG. Under this legal title, descendants of victims of the Nazi regime have since September 2020 the option of naturalisation, without having to give up their previous citizenship. In the first quarter of 2022, 1 927 persons were granted Austrian citizenship under §58c, which corresponds to 39.6% of all naturalisations in this quarter. Of these, 1 911 live abroad. Persons naturalised under this legal titel are most frequently nationals of the following three states: Israel (781 or 16.1% of all naturalised in the first quarter of 2022), United Kingdom (414 or 8.5%) and United States (407 or 8.4%). Those naturalised for other reasons were previously most likely to be nationals of Turkey (340 or 7.0%), Syria (304 or 6.2%) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (237 or 4.9%). Women accounted for about half of the naturalisations in the first quarter of 2022 (49.7%), and minors (under 18) accounted for 31.7%. One fifth of the naturalised persons were already born in Austria (1 029 or 21.2%).

For more detailed information please refer to the German version.