Between policies and outcomes: Surveying immigrants’ perceptions of the obstacles in naturalisation procedures

While recent studies in Europe point at the relation between citizenship policies and naturalisation rates among immigrants, little research has dealt with the actual relevance of the procedure and implementation. Such questions are notoriously difficult to measure and compare across countries. This paper analyses a unique dataset, the Immigrant Citizens Survey, which aims to identify applicants' self-reported problems with the naturalisation procedure in 13 cities in 6 European countries. Naturalisation applicants were asked about their problems during the procedure: lack of information, discretion of authorities, difficult requirements, renunciation requirements. The analysis will demonstrate which types of immigrants are more likely to report problems in the procedure and why, within the context of different immigrant populations and different naturalisation policies. The design of the multivariate analysis draws on the literature on citizenship implementation and the experiences of naturalising immigrants.