How to get citizenship in Europe in 4 ways!

The number of Brazilians who find work and study opportunities outside the country grows exponentially every year. If you want to become one of these and intend to go to Europe in the near future, plan how to obtain citizenship in Europe with our article today.

In our post, you will find out about the four most common ways to obtain one of the most dreamed of things for any foreigner who arrives on the old continent, and which is also much easier to achieve compared to North American citizenship, for example.

Therefore, start planning completely what your experience will be like, whether it be work or study, when you realize your dream of going to Europe in search of realizing all your dreams and goals.

What is European Citizenship?

European citizenship is a series of rights and privileges that a “European” citizen has, being a complement to their national citizenship – therefore, before having European citizenship, it is necessary to have citizenship of a European country.

As mentioned, European citizenship, officially created in a treaty signed in 1992, brings a series of benefits to its holders, including: freedom of movement and residence in any member country of the European Union; political exercises to vote and run for candidates during local and European elections; and finally, the right to protection by the diplomatic authorities of EU member states.

1. Blood Right

Opening our list of ways to obtain citizenship in Europe, we start with the famous “Jus sanguinis”, or “right of blood” in Portuguese. Basically, it guarantees citizenship to an individual based on their ancestry and/or ethnic origin.

To obtain European citizenship in this way, it will be necessary to organize numerous documents, including translating most of them into the local language, a process that can cost close to 20 thousand reais.

Find out more about how each country deals with the right to citizenship by blood!

2. Wedding

For many, this is the easiest way – if it is done within the law, obviously, as we know of countless cases of falsehood in this format. Marrying a native of a European country is one of the ways to obtain citizenship in Europe, 

The possibility of gaining European citizenship occurs after completing 3 years of marriage. However, the person applying for citizenship must still pass a local language proficiency test – proving that they are fluent in the language.

It is worth remembering that documents proving your relationship with the native will also be required. The time for citizenship to be accepted takes a maximum of 2 years, however, it takes half that estimate if the couple already has children.

READ TOO: Fly with Decolar airline tickets and get 3 advantages!

3. Residence

Just like in any other country in the world, European countries also guarantee citizenship to foreigners who reside within their territory, which is another way to obtain citizenship in Europe.

To obtain European Citizenship through this method, you must have been living legally in the country for at least 5 years, a very short time considering that you plan to live permanently on the old continent.

In addition to the requirement already mentioned, it will be necessary to prove proficiency in the local language - take tests such as TOEFL/IELTS, for example -, prove payment of taxes in the last 5 years and other documents that follow this line.

4. Investments

Closing our list of ways to obtain citizenship in Europe, we have a method quite popular in the United States of America. There are three types of investments in this category:

The first of these is the promotion of the economy through business investments. The second of them is through the real estate market, investing in the purchase of properties. The third and last is financial investments.

It is important to note that countries with stronger economies require a greater number of investments – the United Kingdom, for example -, while countries with smaller economies require a much smaller investment – Malta is a good example.

Did you like to know how to obtain citizenship in Europe?

So, what did you think of the four most common ways to obtain European citizenship? We hope we have helped you start planning your dream of moving to the old continent and becoming a citizen there.

If you liked our article on how to obtain citizenship in Europe, we recommend that you continue accessing our website daily, the The Series, to have access to more articles like this on how to obtain citizenships and also travel around the world.