In the midst of the immigration crisis that affects Cuba and the entire region, almost 35 thousand migrants born on the Island became American citizens last year. So it reported the United States Immigration Service (USCIS).
The total number of Cubans naturalized as Americans during 2023 was 33,200. In fact, in fiscal year 2023 Cuba was the fifth requesting country, only surpassed by Mexico, India, the Philippines and the Dominican Republic.
Overall, the United States welcomed 878,500 new citizens during the aforementioned period. Regarding these statistics, Cuba ranked seventh among the nations with the most new citizens and the average number of years they spent as legal permanent residents.
The USCIS report highlights that “of these countries, applicants from Mexico and Canada spent the most time, with 10.4 years, and applicants from Nigeria spent the least, with 5.6 years.” Right now, more than 7.7 million naturalized citizens reside in the United States.
Naturalization processes in fiscal years 2022 and 2023 accounted for almost a quarter (24%) of the total registered in the 10 most recent years.
Committed candidates
On the subject, USCIS remembers that “the decision to become a US citizen is an important milestone in the life of an immigrant. Candidates for citizenship must demonstrate that they are committed to the unifying principles that unite us as Americans. For that commitment, in return, they will enjoy the fundamental rights and privileges of American citizenship.”
During fiscal year 2022, Cuba anchored among the four countries with the most naturalized citizens in the United States. At that stage, migrants still benefited from the defunct “Wet feet, dry feet” policy.
Of the 1.3 million Cuban migrants residing in the United States, almost a million have lived or now live in Florida. This was reported by the Migration Policy Institute (MPI) of that country.
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