176,537 Nigerians get UK citizenship in 21 years

At least 176,537 Nigerians were granted British citizenship between 2005 and the first quarter of 2026, official Home Office data obtained by The PUNCH shows.

The figure makes Nigeria the highest-ranked African nationality for UK citizenship grants over the period, ahead of South Africa (128,156) and Somalia (86,972), and the third-highest nationality in the world, behind only India (428,577) and Pakistan (321,580).

The figures are drawn from the UK Home Office’s citizenship datasets, part of its Immigration System Statistics release for the fiscal year ending March 2026.

The dataset covers grants of British citizenship by naturalisation and registration, broken down by year, quarter, application type, nationality, sex and age, spanning the first quarter of 2005 through the first quarter of 2026.

Over the same period, Nigerians submitted 201,077 citizenship applications, also the highest total among African nationalities and the third-highest worldwide, again trailing only India (459,678) and Pakistan (355,113).

The figures come months after The PUNCH reported that the UK granted 2,723,558 entry visas to Nigerians between 2005 and the first quarter of 2026 while rejecting 1,344,595 Nigerian visa applications over the same window.

The citizenship data revealed how many Nigerians who travelled to, worked in, or settled in the UK eventually became British citizens.

Although citizenship grants hovered between 6,900 and 9,800 a year for most of the previous decade, it jumped to 12,562 in 2024, a 41.1 per cent rise from the 8,900 granted in 2023. It further rose to 12,620 in 2025.

In the first quarter of 2026 alone, 3,001 Nigerians were granted citizenship.

Applications for UK citizenship also followed a similar trend, rising from 9,454 in 2022 to 10,668 in 2023, 12,530 in 2024, and 15,370 in 2025, the highest annual total in the 22 years.

In the first quarter of 2026 alone, 4,449 applications came from Nigerians.

A closer look at the earlier years of the dataset revealed that Nigerian citizenship applications stood at 5,720 in 2004 and rose to 8,794 in 2005, before settling into a range of roughly 5,400 to 10,800 a year over the next 15 years.

By application type, naturalisation based on residence accounted for the largest single share of grants to Nigerians, at 58,680, or 33.2 per cent of the total.

Registration of minor children followed with 34,979 grants, or 19.8 per cent, while naturalisation based on marriage to a British citizen accounted for 20,583, or 11.7 per cent, and registration on other grounds made up 8,219, or 4.7 per cent.

The data also showed that women were granted 88,364 citizenships, or 50.06 per cent, against 88,073 for men, or 49.88 per cent.

By age, adults between 30 and 49 made up the largest bracket at 55,559, or 31.5 per cent, while children under 18 accounted for 41,453 grants, or 23.5 per cent.

The 176,537 Nigerians granted UK citizenship represented 19.3 per cent of the 912,818 grants to all African nationalities combined over the period, and 4.8 per cent of the 3,696,104 granted worldwide.

Among other African nationalities, South Africa ranked second with 128,156 grants, followed by Somalia (86,972), Zimbabwe (85,883), Ghana (75,133), Eritrea (34,794), Mauritius (30,444), Sudan (29,113), Kenya (28,719), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (24,045), Egypt (23,924), Algeria (20,324), Uganda (17,796), Sierra Leone (17,068), and Morocco (13,546).

Globally, the top 10 nationalities by total citizenship grants over the period were India, Pakistan, Nigeria, South Africa, the Philippines (121,916), Bangladesh (107,938), Poland (94,744), Sri Lanka (88,070), Somalia, and Zimbabwe.

To become a British citizen, most adult applicants must first hold indefinite leave to remain, have lived in the UK for at least five years, pass the Life in the UK test and meet an English language requirement.

They must also satisfy the Home Office’s “good character” requirement, a discretionary assessment covering criminal history, immigration compliance, and financial conduct.

According to the report, the good character test has become significantly more restrictive in recent years. Since February 10, 2025, Home Office guidance has stated that anyone who entered the UK illegally, or who arrived without a valid visa or electronic travel authorisation after making what the guidance terms a “dangerous journey,” including by small boat or concealed in a vehicle, will “normally” be refused citizenship regardless of how long ago that entry occurred.

The policy was updated on April 30, 2026, clarifying that illegal entry should usually be set aside where it happened outside an applicant’s control, such as in cases involving children or trafficking victims, and that recognised refugees protected under Article 31 of the 1951 Refugee Convention must not be refused on that basis alone.

However, the policy has been challenged legally. The High Court granted permission for a full judicial review of the guidance, with a three-day hearing in June 2026 before the Divisional Court.

Following the hearing, the Home Office withdrew citizenship refusals in three of the four lead cases, according to Wilson Solicitors, the firm representing the claimants. The broader policy itself remains in force for new applicants pending a full written judgment.