On Monday, Sweden announced plans to tighten citizenship requirements by introducing “honest living” and financial standards, as well as language and general knowledge tests. Additionally, the residency requirement will be raised from five to eight years.
If approved by parliament, the new rules would enter into force on June 6th, Sweden’s national holiday, and would apply even to applications currently being processed.
Migration Minister Johan Forssell—whose right-wing minority government holds a majority with the support of the conservative Sweden Democrats—told reporters that it is currently too easy to acquire Swedish citizenship. He said
Citizenship needs to mean more than it does today … Pride is something you feel when you’ve worked hard at something. But working hard is not something that has recently characterised the path to citizenship.
