Nigeria has ranked fourth among countries whose citizens were granted U.S. citizenship through military naturalization between 2020 and 2024. During the period under review, the United States naturalized over 52,000 military service members across different countries.
According to data obtained from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on Monday, 3,270 Nigerian-born service members were granted U.S. citizenship, trailing only the Philippines (5,630), Jamaica (5,420), and Mexico with 3,670.
“Service members born in the Philippines, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, and Ghana, the top five countries of birth among those naturalized, comprised over 38% of the naturalizations since FY 2020.
“The next five countries of birth Haiti, China, Cameroon, Vietnam, and South Korea comprised an additional 16% of military naturalizations from FY 2020 to FY 2024.”
The data revealed that the number of Nigerian service members gaining U.S. citizenship has steadily increased over the past five years.
The Army accounted for 60% of all military naturalizations during this period, followed by the Navy (20.4%), Air Force (10.6%), and Marine Corps (6.6%). Less than 1% of naturalized service members served in the Coast Guard.
“Service members from the Army (including National Guard and Reserves) comprised almost two-thirds (60%) of all military naturalizations from FY 2020 to FY 2024. Service members from the Coast Guard comprised less than 1%. The Navy accounted for 20.4%, the Air Force for 10.6%, and the Marine Corps for 6.6%”.
Age-wise, half of the service members were between 22 and 30 years old when they naturalized.
“Half of all service members were between 22 and 30 years old when they naturalized. The median age of all service members who naturalized between FY 2020 and FY 2024 was 27. More than 17% were 21 and under, while almost 5% were older than 40,” the analysis revealed.
“Men comprised 73% of all service members naturalized between FY 2020 and FY 2024. The proportion of female service members slightly increased across the years”.
