₦airaland Forum

The United States of America swore in 47,819 Nigerians as naturalised citizens from 2019 to 2023, an updated U.S. Naturalisations Annual Flow Report by the Department of Homeland Security shows.

The report, updated in August 2025 and compiled by the Office of Homeland Security Statistics, draws its figures from Form N-400, the application every would-be American citizen submits.

The data is also drawn from the electronic case files used by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to track each application from fingerprinting to the oath ceremony.

According to data obtained by The PUNCH, 8,930 Nigerians were naturalised from October 2019 to September 2020, a year marked by COVID-19 shutdowns that paused oath ceremonies for 11 weeks, March 18, 2020, to June 4, 2020.

The following year, 10,921 Nigerians obtained citizenship as USCIS cleared its pandemic backlog.

In 2022, 14,438 Nigerians took the oath, an all-time high for the country and a 32 per cent jump from the previous year. That number, however, dropped to 13,530 in 2023.

The four years add up to 47,819 new Nigerian-American citizens, accounting for approximately 1.4 per cent of all 341,884 Africans who naturalised in that period.

When the OHSS grouped naturalisations by source countries, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo emerged in the top 30 list. 47,819 Nigerians were naturalised within that period, followed by the DRC, which almost doubled in 2022 to about 6,000. Other African source countries include Ethiopia, Ghana and Kenya.

African-born nationals accounted for 11 per cent of all U.S. naturalisations in both 2022 and 2023, the highest share on record; up from an average 9.6 per cent in 2010–2019. Africans who naturalised in 2023 had a median of six years in lawful permanent resident status before taking the oath, the shortest of any world region, alongside Asia.

Overall, naturalisations of Africans increased by 43 per cent between 2020 and 2023, the highest increase among all continents.

Across all regions, Mexico accounted for 437,697 naturalisations over the three years. India followed with 230,164 naturalisations, steadily rising from 48,111 in 2020, 57,043 in 2021, and 65,960 in 2022, respectively, but dropped to 59,050 in 2023.

180,073 Philippines became new Americans, Cuba (159,393), the Dominican Republic (116,523), Vietnam (113,487), the People’s Republic of China (113,126), Jamaica (77,335), El Salvador (73,489), and Colombia (65,486).

Together, the 10 countries of birth accounted for over half of all 3.3 million naturalisations completed during the three-year window.

The USCIS notes that application volumes and approvals do not always move in lockstep. Some petitions are denied, while others are decided in a later fiscal year.

The United States’ naturalisation of foreign nationals is based on its Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952. USCIS—an agency within the Department of Homeland Security—screens applicants, runs FBI name checks and fingerprint searches, reviews five years (three if married to a U.S. citizen) of continuous residence, and tests English literacy and civics knowledge.

Department noted that, “To be considered for naturalisation, an applicant must meet statutory and regulatory requirements and file a Form N-400, Application for Naturalisation, with appropriate documentation.

“U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services conducts an investigation and examination of all naturalisation applicants, which includes completion of security and criminal background checks, review of the applicant’s complete immigration record, interview(s) with oral and written testimony, testing for English and civics requirements, and qualifications for accommodations or disability exceptions.

“Following approval, USCIS schedules applicants for a required oath ceremony before a judge or authorised executive branch official.”

Naturalisation “confers U.S. citizenship upon applicants who have fulfilled the requirements established in the Immigration and Nationality Act,” the department explains.

Applicants must be 18 or older, hold LPR (also known as “green card”) status for at least five years (or three years if married to a U.S. citizen), demonstrate continuous residence for the same period, meet physical presence thresholds (typically 30 months out of five years, or 18 months on the three-year route), and show good moral character with attachment to the Constitution.

For decades, European immigrants dominated U.S. naturalisations. The 1965 amendments to the INA, which abolished the old national-origins quota, opened the door to Asia and, later, Africa.

The OHSS report notes that Asia overtook Europe in the 1970s; since 2020, Africans have posted the fastest growth rate, spending a median of six years in permanent-resident status before naturalising, one year quicker than the global average.

S. naturalisations fell to 878,460 in 2023, from 969,000 persons in 2022. In 2021, 814,000 persons became naturalised Americans; up 34 per cent from the 2010–2020 average of 721,000.

jmoore:
How many have your Tinubu evacuated from Borno state?

Lanretoye:
It is not a bad idea but when they start treating you as a foreigner they you will be calling on the FG and abike dabiri.
You hustle to get visa,buy ticket and travel but when casala burst then you will be waiting for evacuation by the FG.

Lanretoye:
It is not a bad idea but when they start treating you as a foreigner they you will be calling on the FG and abike dabiri.
You hustle to get visa,buy ticket and travel but when casala burst then you will be waiting for evacuation by the FG.I wish you know how many of your mates are in the IDP in borno state as we speak.

jmoore:
How many have your Tinubu evacuated from Borno state?

Elusive001:
How many have been helped by your god in Nigeria. Are lives of Nigerians resident in Nigeria become any better since 2015 till date? Have death, suffering, despair, destitution, hardship, etc not become daily experiences of average residents in Nigeria?

Lanretoye:
if you will be sincere to yourself,look at the lamentations here and look at the monikas,unless you are a dummy you will know that the same people who beat cheat that they will not complain are the ones lamenting most.use yourself for example,unfortunately for you ,when the time comes you will pay the tax
If you know what is good for you now,go get your TIN,don’t come here next year and start saying another nonsense

Elusive001:
Like I said, the shege no reach una wey dey support anything and everything evil. Una own good oooooo. The hardship and suffering no reach una and your relatives. Enjoy.

Specialbaby:
All these recent news about Nigerians in America that keeps coming on front page daily.
If dem want to ban us, they should just do so and move on

Lanretoye:
thank God say na the same market we Dey buy,what we are telling you is for you to make other plans and stop lamenting cos it won’t change anything…your lamentations since buhari regime is making things worst and not better.

cyberbro:
Tiny figure compared to Indians, Mexicans and Filipinos, to mention a few.

In 2022 alone, 66,000 Indians naturalized as Americans, this is more than the four year combined figure for Nigerians.

Nigerians don't migrate as much as other countries, we're just louder. The moment someone manages to travel outside Nigeria, they become travel bloggers; 📢 "how to get Canada PR in 1 week" "how to migrate to Germany in 1 month" 🤡

thisisit:
BANKY W is in the USA
PASTOR SAM ADEYEMI is in the US
MC Oluoma Family is in the USA
Sade Baderinwa in the
Gbenga Akinagbe in the

80% OF ALL POLITICAL OFFICE HOLDERS IN NIGERIA HAVE DUAL CITIZENSHIP

TINUBU IS A CITIZEN OF NIGERIA, FRANCE AND USA!

cyberbro:
Tiny figure compared to Indians, Mexicans and Filipinos, to mention a few.

In 2022 alone, 66,000 Indians naturalized as Americans, this is more than the four year combined figure for Nigerians.

Nigerians don't migrate as much as other countries, we're just louder. The moment someone manages to travel outside Nigeria, they become travel bloggers; 📢 "how to get Canada PR in 1 week" "how to migrate to Germany in 1 month" 🤡

cyberbro:
Tiny figure compared to Indians, Mexicans and Filipinos, to mention a few.

In 2022 alone, 66,000 Indians naturalized as Americans, this is more than the four year combined figure for Nigerians.

Nigerians don't migrate as much as other countries, we're just louder. The moment someone manages to travel outside Nigeria, they become travel bloggers; 📢 "how to get Canada PR in 1 week" "how to migrate to Germany in 1 month" 🤡

Lanretoye:
thank God say na the same market we Dey buy,what we are telling you is for you to make other plans and stop lamenting cos it won’t change anything…your lamentations since buhari regime is making things worst and not better.