Access To Citizenship
Usually permanent residents may apply for citizenship by naturalisation after a period of residency in the country concerned. Dual citizenship may or may not be permitted.
In many nations an application for naturalisation can be denied on character grounds, sometimes allowing people to reside in the country but not become citizens. In the United States the residency requirements for citizenship are normally five years, even though permanent residents who have been married to a US citizen for three years or more may apply in three years. Those who have served in the armed forces may qualify for an expedited process allowing citizenship after only one year, or even without any residence requirement.
Read more about this topic: Permanent Residency
Famous quotes containing the words access to, access and/or citizenship:
“Lesbian existence comprises both the breaking of a taboo and the rejection of a compulsory way of life. It is also a direct or indirect attack on the male right of access to women.”
—Adrienne Rich (b. 1929)
“Knowledge in the form of an informational commodity indispensable to productive power is already, and will continue to be, a major—perhaps the major—stake in the worldwide competition for power. It is conceivable that the nation-states will one day fight for control of information, just as they battled in the past for control over territory, and afterwards for control over access to and exploitation of raw materials and cheap labor.”
—Jean François Lyotard (b. 1924)
“To see self-sufficiency as the hallmark of maturity conveys a view of adult life that is at odds with the human condition, a view that cannot sustain the kinds of long-term commitments and involvements with other people that are necessary for raising and educating a child or for citizenship in a democratic society.”
—Carol Gilligan (20th century)