Most Difficult Countries For Citizenship or Permanent Residency

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Saturday — April 29, 2017

By:Study Abroad

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Whether I have the opportunity of settling there permanently or not, is one of the most important questions a student asks when deciding a studying abroad destination for higher education. Even if someone like me doesn’t want to leave family and settle permanently abroad but still it is good to have the nationality. So, question is kind of a MUST for a study abroad destination.

To help students select the best study abroad destination exactly like their dream, study abroad team brings the best of information to all your confusions. In today’s article, we will discuss the top 5 countries where it is most difficult to get citizenship or permanent residency than any other country in the world. It’s not like that these countries never issue any citizenship but they have very strict filters to select who will get the residency of their country.

There are also many countries that has kept their privacy from the world and rarely let anyone have the citizenship like North Korea though not many people are enthusiast of going there. In this article I have only shared the countries that are study abroad destinations and most difficult to get citizenship. North Korea is not a study abroad destination.

Some countries just have had too many foreigners that they stiffed their rules and laws of residency. On the other hand some countries just like their country to be theirs and foreigners are only liked as tourists or workers. You have to corroborate that you make the right choice according to what your plans are for future.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia, the most respected place for Muslims all around the world, is known for its very strict laws. Saudi Arabia is also one of the best study abroad destinations of Arab. It is ranked 36^th best higher education system of 2017 by QS in their Higher Education System Strength ranking. It is a good place for education where you can enjoy unique culture and new lifestyle but if you are thinking of residing permanently, Saudi Arabia is not the country for you.

You can say Saudi Arabian government likes to keep their privacy and do not grant any citizenship to any foreigner. There is only one case they will give someone residency if his or her father was a Saudi national. If applicant’s mother is a Saudi native, even then they will have to prove it and some other documentation will be required relating ancestry. So in short it is safe to assume that Saudi Arabia is the most difficult study abroad destination to get permanent residency because it is impossible. You can still work or study there as long as you want until you fulfill the eligibility criteria.

United States of America

United States of America is currently the Top study abroad destination. Its higher education system is also ranked the best in the world. It is also most popular destination among students around the world. In addition, it also homes the most international students and has the most diverse culture of the world.

With all the mentioned TOPs you must have gotten the idea of what United States of America is. Because of its success in almost every field especially in education, it is always the first choice of every student in the world. This causes a lot of students going to USA and almost every one of them applying for residency though they already have overflowing population of foreigners.

Since the Donald Trump came into there has been a lot of change in rules, many countries were ban and many foreigners were deported and racism also went to its peak. But still I have seen people keeping American dream. Now, you can somehow get student visa to study there but permanent residency is a long shot. So, if you are thinking of permanently residing in USA, it is recommended to change your thoughts. America is not very good place for foreigners anyway, at least not anymore.

United Kingdom

United Kingdom has the same story as America. United Kingdom is right behind the United States with a very little difference in almost everything mentioned above. United Kingdom is ranked the 2^nd best higher education system after United States by QS ranking but some other ranking organizations have different thoughts and they consider UK to be on top.

Likewise America, there is also a great proportion of foreigners in United Kingdom. So many foreigners in United Kingdom that their government had to specifically take action against it. Last year, according to statistics it came knowledge of official that almost every foreigner that comes to UK never goes back permanently settles there, increasing population and becoming a liability to government. So, it has been about one year since they decided not to give visas this liberally and they made their laws and rules more strict.

United Kingdom is a good place for higher education but now I won’t recommend it if you are planning to get citizenship. However, you should go there just to study if possible.

Japan

Japanese permanent residency is so difficult to get that I would renounce it instead of going through so much trouble. You must have lived at least 5 years in Japan to be eligible to apply for citizenship. In these 5 years, time on student visa is not counted and you must have stayed 80% of the time. You must have grown 20 year old in your own country. You also need to have good income. But here is the worst part, you must leave your own country’s nationality in order to be a Japanese national. I would say just leave it. Japan is good place for higher education and you should only be concerned with education there.

Germany

Unless you are a European citizen, getting citizenship in Germany is also quite exhausting. You must have lived at least 5 years in Germany and have good grip over German language, their politics and society system. You must demonstrate that you have good income a suitable place to live. Just like Japan, you are also required to renounce your own homeland’s nationality only then you can be a German.