Figures from the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) released this week have revealed how many people were granted Norwegian citizenship last year.

Last year, 49,515 people applied for a Norwegian passport, and of these, 41,030 applications were successful. The number of people granted citizenship has more than doubled compared to 2020 when 19,469 applications were approved.

In 2021, 2,357 applicants had their citizenship applications turned down, the UDI told The Local. The remaining 6,128 applications lodged in 2021 were still pending. 95 percent of citizenship applications to receive a decision in 2021 were approved.

Swedes made up the largest group to receive Norwegian citizenship in 2021. 4,086 Swedes had their applications for Norwegian citizenship approved last year. 98 percent of Swedish nationals who applied for a Norwegian passport were successful.

Eritrean nationals were the next largest group to receive a Norwegian passport in 2021. 3,562 Eritreans received citizenship last year.

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The following largest groups to successfully apply to become a citizen of Norway were Russians, Filipinos, Somalians and Poles.

Nationals from the UK and the United States made up the seventh and eighth largest groups to be granted a Norwegian passport. 1,620 Brits successfully applied for citizenship, while Americans were given 1,608 Norwegian passports last year.

Nationals from the US were marginally more successful when applying for citizenship than Brits. 97 percent of applications from Americans were approved compared to 96 percent of applications from Brits.

Danes and Belarusians had the highest success rate when applying for citizenship. 99 percent of applicants from these groups were granted citizenship

Of the nationals that the UDI provided data for, Cubans and nationals from Tanzania were the least successful at applying for citizenship. Only 80 percent of applications from these groups were successful.

The UDI told The Local that the most common reason for an applicant being turned down for Norwegian passport was not having passed the citizenship test or the test in Norwegian social studies.

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Other reasons for not passing included not completing the Norwegian language or social studies training, not meeting the requirements when it came to how long they needed to have been a resident of Norway, being under 12 years of age, not properly clarifying their identity, having criminal offences or not meeting the conditions for permanent residence or right of residence.