Fewer Indians seek U.S. citizenship

Fewer Indians are seeking American citizenship although they are still the second largest ethnic group to get the right to live permanently in the U.S.

There were as many as 46,871, or seven per cent, Indians among the 660,477 people from around the world who became naturalized U.S. citizens in 2007, according to the Annual Flow Report of the U.S. Office of Immigration Statistics.

Mexico with 19 per cent topped the list of countries of origins of new citizens with the Philippines (six per cent) taking the third place after India.

China (five per cent) and Vietnam (four per cent) were in fourth and fifth places respectively.

In 2005, the number of Indians who took citizenship was 35,962, or six per cent of the total; in 2006, the number rose to 47,542, or 6.8 per cent; and in 2007, it was 46,871, or 7.1 per cent.

When combined, the 10 countries with the largest number of naturalizations accounted for 53 per cent of all new citizens in 2007.

The largest number of naturalized persons lived in California (181,684) followed by New York (73,676) and Florida (54,563).

The report noted that until the 1970s, a majority of people naturalizing were from European countries. But with increased immigration from Asia, the arrival of Indo-Chinese refugees in the 1970s, and the historically higher naturalization rate of Asian immigrants, the regional origin of new citizens shifted from Europe to Asia.

Asia was the leading region of origin of new citizens in every year from 1976 to 2006, except 1996-2000.