Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

n nationality law is regulated by the

Constitution of Nigeria The Constitution of Nigeria is the written supreme law of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Nigeria has had many constitutions. Its current form was enacted on 29 May 1999 and inaugurated the Fourth Nigerian Republic. History Nigeria's str ...

, as amended, and various international agreements to which the country is a signatory. These laws determine who is, or is eligible to be, a national of Nigeria. The legal means to acquire

nationality Nationality is a legal identification of a person in international law, establishing the person as a subject, a ''national'', of a sovereign state. It affords the state jurisdiction over the person and affords the person the protection of the ...

, formal legal membership in a nation, differ from the domestic relationship of rights and obligations between a national and the nation, known as

citizenship Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

. Nationality describes the relationship of an individual to the state under international law, whereas citizenship is the domestic relationship of an individual within the nation.

Commonwealth countries The Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary association of 56 sovereign states. Most of them were British colonies or dependencies of those colonies. No one government in the Commonwealth exercises power over the others, as is the case in a p ...

often use the terms nationality and citizenship as synonyms, despite their legal distinction and the fact that they are regulated by different governmental administrative bodies. Nigerian nationality is typically obtained under the principal of jus sanguinis, i.e. by birth to parents with Nigerian nationality. It can be granted to persons with an affiliation to the country, or to a permanent resident who has lived in the country for a given period of time through naturalisation.

Acquiring Nigerian nationality

Nationality can be obtained in Nigeria at birth or later in life through naturalisation.

By birth

Typically, in Nigeria, there are no provisions to acquire

through jus soli, i.e. by birth in the territory, which means that

foundlings Child abandonment is the practice of relinquishing interests and claims over one's offspring in an illegal way, with the intent of never resuming or reasserting guardianship. The phrase is typically used to describe the physical abandonment of a ...

orphan An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...

s whose parents are unknown are stateless. Those who are eligible for nationality by birth include: * Persons born anywhere whose parents are Nigerian nationals; or * Persons born in Nigeria who have at least one grandparent who was Nigerian, or belonged to an indigenous community of Nigeria prior to independence.

By naturalisation

Naturalisation Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...

can be granted to persons who have resided in Nigeria for a sufficient period of time to confirm they understand the customs and traditions of the country and the responsibilities of citizenship. Applications are submitted to the Ministry of the Interior, who in turn forwards the paperwork to various state agencies like the Immigration Service, State Security Service, as well as the state governor, chair of the local governing body, and the police. If it is accepted, the application is then sent to the Federal Executive Council for a recommendation. The final decision on the application comes from the

President of Nigeria The president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is the head of state and head of government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the Nigeri ...

. General qualifications are that applicants have good character and be able to contribute to the progress of the nation. Nigerian statutes have no provisions for adopted children to acquire nationality. Applicants must verify legal residency of a minimum of fifteen years. Besides foreigners meeting the criteria, the wife of a Nigerian national who meets the other criteria for naturalisation can register without a residency period.

Loss of nationality

Nigerians are allowed to

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